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Maryann Guberman has been a writer and editor with many gaming publications, including Sports Form, Card Player, Poker World, Player's Panorama and Systems and Methods. She also has written and edited numerous books on gambling.

Dec 30, 2006

Resolutions - Make Then Often, Make Them Stick

You must purify, cure, grind down,
Or brush away all the tendencies
You have fabricated into apparent habits.
-- Hongzhi Zhengjue

We are most impressionable when we are young. Ideas, thoughts and concepts our parents, guardians, grandparents, aunts, uncles, teachers and myriad other adults in our lives tell us during our developing years, often stick with us, even during our rebellious periods. This is especially true if we are forced to hear or repeat these concepts or if we are taught to believe without question.

As we get older and discover that some of the stuff drilled into us is not actually legitimate we begin to foster doubt and, unfortunately, we also begin to deny the validity of life's lessons.

We don't know for sure why doubt and denial go hand and hand, but they often do. Oddly, though, we continue to practice some lessons but we also scoff and deny others. Part of us believed while another part became jaded. Not being a psychologist, I can't explain why individuals accept some rote lessons and reject others. I just know it's true that no one accepts all or rejects all. I think it's because sometimes proffered ideas work and sometimes they don't and sometimes we find discover new ways to deal with life.

Now before we get too heavy, here presented in the form of New Year's resolutions to help us improve our game is the poker part of this philosophical treatise,

Resolve to believe that you must be completely aware of hold'em starting hands. Repeat the resolution over and over while memorizing those hands (by position, of course), until they are as easily remembered as your ABCs. Practice playing only those starting hands in the recommended positions and, if you are playing online, keep an accurate log of your play. Once you have satisfied yourself that you have played precisely the way the starting hands recommend you can let a little doubt creep in, and you can start to improvise. Just remember that every departure must be the result of new knowledge - new information about your opponents, new information based on the pot, new information based on tournament time constraints and the like.

Resolve to read focus on one lesson a week. Write sticky notes, record the concept and listen to it on your ipod, make it a mantra that accompanies you while you exercise. Take it to the table with you and repeat it silently before every decision, even if it doesn't relate to the decision at hand.

Resolve to act like a lady or gentleman when you win a big hand. While it's fine to like jackass-generation movies, it's not so fine to be one of those characters at the poker table. Sure, it looks fun on camera but you aren't always going to be on camera, and, the more you rub your victory in, whether on purpose or unconsciously, it's going to come back and bite you at the worst moment.

Resolve to bring a little Zen into your poker life. When I first heard that Larry Phillips was writing a book called Zen and the Art of Poker, I scoffed. The two concepts seemed so far removed from each other but once I read the book, I realized I should not have been so quick to judge a book by its title. If you don't want to read the book, take a look at what the esteemed Howard Lederer has to say about this little suggestion. (www.howardlederer.com/howard-lederer-poker-article9.html)

Resolve not to celebrate stupid decisions that turned into a positive result. First, your exuberance is going to tick a lot of people off. Second, you will just bring attention to your accidental success so others will realize your shortcomings, and they will take advantage of them. There is nothing I like better than to have a strong hand go down the tubes to someone holding a handful of garbage because I know in a matter of time, I'll get that money back and then some.

Resolve to imitate success. If you watch football and your favorite team makes a brilliant play, you feel good. But if the opposing team makes an even more stunning play, you feel bad. This is natural. But you aren't involved in the game (we're not talking about wagering, just watching), so the lesson goes away without notice. But, if you see another player make a terrific play, a great trap, a super bluff, don't let it pass by. Glue it to some part of your brain so you can pull it loose sometime in the future.

Resolve to be kind to your neighbors. You'd think this resolution has nothing to do with poker but you couldn't be further from the truth with that belief. If you harbor anger, bias or jealousy, chances are you bring those emotions to the poker table in one form or another. Even if that were not true, think about how much better you will feel about yourself and your world if you're not carrying all that negative baggage around.

As for me, I'm resolving to beat the pants off you - nicely and calmly, of course - next time I see you at the poker table. But don't take it personally because I didn't stay mad when you took my money last month.

Hey, have a great 2007 and beyond.