Nearly everyone can think of a time where getting really, really angry did them some good. Perhaps they needed a push to start a diet, or they needed something to stir their fire to stop an abusive situation. Anger is a great motivator; it really can help to get things started if they are not already in motion. When it comes to making smart decisions, however, anger can be your worst enemy.
Anger, or any emotion, that runs unchecked is the wrench in the logical machine of thinking, and will sooner or later break the delicate cogs that operate the machine, producing a lot of smoke and noise, but nothing positive. In fact, tossing a wrench in a running machine will probably be smarter than playing poker on tilt. At least with the machine, once it breaks, it stops moving. A poker player steaming from a bad beat, or worse, poor playing, will continue to operate, unaware they may be digging their own grave.
Keeping your emotions, especially wounded pride, irritation, and anger, at bay is essential if you plan on playing smart. Playing smart includes understanding that you will loss more hands over time than you win, and accepting that fact. Learning to play those hands you win for maximum effect will help you keep your winnings outpacing your losses, but only if you play focused.
If you play poker poorly, you will, sooner or later, go on tilt, allowing your aggravation at your play to push you into plays you should have stayed out of. It is therefore essential to play poker well in order to minimize the times you are tempted to go on tilt. In order to play poker well, you need to keep strong emotions bottled up; or better yet, let them flow passed you without affecting you.
In the next article we will take a look at specific ways you can control your emotions, and therefore maximize your successes at poker.
