In poker thought, there are three main levels of thinking. Little, little, and big.
The little dreaming thoughts are teammates, squabbles, and the sane few that know they’re on the outs, and try to play it safe. The big dreams are very rare, and those that occur more frequently mean something. They mean that the other guy, or team, has some monster.
Little dreaming thoughts are normally done on the cheap or free when you’re watching TV at home and have a spare moment. With ten seconds to spare, you can start fantasizing about what if you were on the outs, or some good cards, and you had a big hand. These dreams are mostly done in anticipation of a match or in sessions when you’re playing a new site or have joined a new poker website.
Big thoughts are done to intimidate, to condition the mind to images of things beyond the imagination. Some people will never go beyond level four, and those that are not very comfortable with their poker money management techniques, will not go beyond the level three. There is a reason why these techniques are called poker money management, because it doesn’t always work. Sometimes you will make a lot of money and still lose. The trick is to know when you are not playing in top form and have not played your best. That’s when it’s time to take break. That’s when you need to take a break. After a hard day at the tables, this is all too easy to say.
But you are a player who can’t resist a warning shot across the bow. Every single poker pro knows about this method. It is the very essence of the game and yet it is what makes you a player. You are just special in that you can quit when you are ahead, and when to take a break.
Another important element to becoming a great poker player is the ability to mix up your play. Really mix up your play. It is rare to see a player’s game the same every single hand. To do it, you have to have a lot of skills and be really fluent with many different play styles. This is the journal of a poker player J.J. Lieu. Lieu has won a bracelet in the 2008 World Series of Poker. He used his bankroll to take his from $1.7 million to $3.6 million in just three years. This was taken basically through a series of very aggressive hands. The result was that whenever he was going to win, he did. And whenever he was going to lose, he lost. In between, Lieu made a few weak calls which analysts said was all or nothing. When he took a good reading, he would always play his strong hand to the river. That was when he evolved his style. The result was that whenever he would get good hands, his opponents would either get nothing, or lose. And whenever they demonized him, he would always win. The game was all about his every move. And while his opponents were doing the reading, and figuring out his game, he was up, winning, and establishing his style.
So what does all of this tell us? That’s the nutshell version of the Lieu effect. It says that whatever is consistent about your play, in whatever situation you should respond likewise. Think of it as Star Trek. Whenever you’re in danger and someone says ‘Who do you think you are?’ your reply is ‘Bolagila‘. You don’t do the same when you’re winning. And you definitely don’t do the same when you’re losing. You are who you are, essentially.
This is poker. You are who you are, theoretically. So applying the Lieu effect to your poker game would have had the same effect. You are who you are in poker terms. So to blend in when you’re playing, instead of the automatic Outs/Unders with which you associated with standard poker, you need to become salient. Become recognizable. Set the example for your opposition. When you get good hands, make them see that you get good hands. When you lose, see that they lose. It doesn’t matter if you win or lose, or what their cards were, in getting there, you made them see that you could have won. And therefore they will have a tendency to avoid you, less likely to gain repeat flourish.