Handling Tilt at the tables

I'm not sure about you - but it took me 7+ years to become officially immune to tilt. Seriously - when first starting out, I thought you could win every tournament by playing correct or at least getting your chips in good.

It only took me thousands of hours and studying, year after year reviewing my game, and finally increasing my aggression after watching top pro's battle it out for millions of dollars.

Now when I sit down, and feel extremely comfortable with my game (primarily NLHE), building stacks consistently over time has only strengthened my approach.

Now don't get me wrong, does it hurt to lose a 80/20 with a few tables left in a large MTT, yes, but do I lose control and let it adversely affect my play? Not at all. I know I can repeat the process. This is where the confidence comes from.

Tips to consider:

- Play within your means (it hurts a lot less when the buy-in doesn't affect my every day life)

- Be honest with your skill set (do you feel comfortable playing multiple spots from different positions?)

- Focus on the long-term (we all know a good average ITM is 15-17%) don't ignore the math, and keep playing your A/B game as much as possible.

- Play when you feel ready to go the distance (seriously, if you don't envision yourself sitting for a long session, why bother. If you can't see yourself closing a heads up match, don't play)

Best of luck at the tables! And remember it's just a game.