Rebuilding Your Confidence

We've all heard people talking about a bad streak that they have had, or about how brutal poker can be sometimes. Often, they'll say they had been killing a game for a long time, only to run into a neverending string of "bad beats." Some of these guys do not let up, let alone take a step back, take a deep breath, and reevaluate their position. You see, at this point, they've probably taken a substantial hit to their bankrolls, but it isn't their bankrolls they need to begin rebuilding; it's their confidence. They may be playing in a beatable game, but it's probably only beatable when they are playing at their best; something that is hard to do after a long losing streak.

So how do you rebuild confidence? It's actually easier than you might think. The first and most important part is to be able to recognize when your game is off. Keep track of your sessions, not just if you won or lost, but also how well you feel you played. If you find that you have been making an abnormal number of mistakes, or have had a bunch of losses in a row, then it is time to boost your confidence. To do this, all you need to do is win. And to do that, you need to play in games that you know you will dominate, even if you have to move down a few levels. It's at these levels that you will find it much easier to get back into the swing of things. Feel what it is like to dominate the table again! You don't have to spend a long time in the lower levels, just until you have some good momentum, and then go back and give it another shot.

Remember, playing good poker is more than just bankroll management, it includes skill management (understanding where your skill level fits in the bigger picture), and confidence management. If you are able to get a grasp on all three, you'll be a very dangerous player, virtually destroying every game you play in, because you are always going to be playing a game that you feel you can dominate, while minimizing the other risks and pitfalls your opponents may fall into.

Brett Jungblut