Any creative art requires a philosophy. The game of poker, with all its complexities, is an art form. If you are a droid, all you need is an on-off switch to get you going. If you are not, you will need certain human qualities to motivate you to achieve your purpose and that which you love. Obviously, few of us would consider ourselves philosophers. But that isn't required - what is required is a creative imagination and powers of perception.
Imagination and perception are the springboards to allow you to force yourself to do that which you don't like to do. These two concepts will enable you to view the unwelcome chore from a more favorable perspective. Think of comparing the somewhat abhorrent task of developing communication skills with taking a cold shower. The cold shower will shock your system and turn you off of them completely. But with repetition, over a few weeks of taking them one or two times a week, you actually may look forward to the occasion and you won't give them up. It becomes a challenge to step into the shower, but it will wake you up, and the warm water feels so good after the cold.
The same holds true for learning any new skill and the challenge involved is appealing to many people, they begin to seek those experiences even though somewhat stressful. The results are worth it.
So, again using the cold shower situation as a guide, it is time to tackle what you dislike about the game of poker.
So much for the philosophical side, it is now time to consider some more general and pragmatic advice. You might hire a professional coach to teach you privately where you can acquire experience without the embarrassment of more learned opponents making fun of you. The coach will also point out your weaknesses and mistakes so that you can learn from them - weaknesses and mistakes that you may not be aware of without outside intervention.
If the idea of a professional coach is too pricey for you, try making the acquaintance of poker playing buddies. The honest debates between even run-of-the-mill players can greatly improve strategy and perception. Poker forums are another good place to learn. Some exceptional poker players post to these and you can gain some valuable insights from them sharing their experiences.
Don't forget to take notes. Whether on or offline, while playing the game, record your play to enable you to review the hands later and learn from this as to where you went wrong. Notes can reveal all the choices you could have made but didn't, putting you on to greater possibilities of alternate moves in the future. They will also help your self-introspection and will lead you to ask yourself why you made the moves you did. This skill at introspection also applies greatly to your opponents moves. You want to reach the point where you can ask these crucial questions of yourself before you make that bet or play that card.
Did your opponent react the way you thought he would? Is his reaction in keeping with what you expected after learning the ways of your opponent? Did he bet or raise according to your expectations? What cards do you want him to think are in your hand? At which point in the hand to you want him to call or raise?
Learning to ask these questions of yourself on a regular basis may seem tedious and difficult. Pretty soon, though, you will find it a challenging and addictive process. Now you are a poker player for real.
Imagination and perception are the springboards to allow you to force yourself to do that which you don't like to do. These two concepts will enable you to view the unwelcome chore from a more favorable perspective. Think of comparing the somewhat abhorrent task of developing communication skills with taking a cold shower. The cold shower will shock your system and turn you off of them completely. But with repetition, over a few weeks of taking them one or two times a week, you actually may look forward to the occasion and you won't give them up. It becomes a challenge to step into the shower, but it will wake you up, and the warm water feels so good after the cold.
The same holds true for learning any new skill and the challenge involved is appealing to many people, they begin to seek those experiences even though somewhat stressful. The results are worth it.
So, again using the cold shower situation as a guide, it is time to tackle what you dislike about the game of poker.
So much for the philosophical side, it is now time to consider some more general and pragmatic advice. You might hire a professional coach to teach you privately where you can acquire experience without the embarrassment of more learned opponents making fun of you. The coach will also point out your weaknesses and mistakes so that you can learn from them - weaknesses and mistakes that you may not be aware of without outside intervention.
If the idea of a professional coach is too pricey for you, try making the acquaintance of poker playing buddies. The honest debates between even run-of-the-mill players can greatly improve strategy and perception. Poker forums are another good place to learn. Some exceptional poker players post to these and you can gain some valuable insights from them sharing their experiences.
Don't forget to take notes. Whether on or offline, while playing the game, record your play to enable you to review the hands later and learn from this as to where you went wrong. Notes can reveal all the choices you could have made but didn't, putting you on to greater possibilities of alternate moves in the future. They will also help your self-introspection and will lead you to ask yourself why you made the moves you did. This skill at introspection also applies greatly to your opponents moves. You want to reach the point where you can ask these crucial questions of yourself before you make that bet or play that card.
Did your opponent react the way you thought he would? Is his reaction in keeping with what you expected after learning the ways of your opponent? Did he bet or raise according to your expectations? What cards do you want him to think are in your hand? At which point in the hand to you want him to call or raise?
Learning to ask these questions of yourself on a regular basis may seem tedious and difficult. Pretty soon, though, you will find it a challenging and addictive process. Now you are a poker player for real.
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