Poker is a lot like sports in that your performance can change from day to day. Many people have the false impression that they are playing their best game all the time. Many people believe they are one of the best players in the world but the cards simply aren't falling their way. Most of the poker playing population feels victim to bad luck. Poker is a game of skill and in the long run, there is no luck. Some players are more skilled than others. On any given day, any player could potentially win. In the short run, the worst player at the table could win all the money. If you plan on playing poker for a long time, you have to accept the fact that bad players can win in the short run. Playing your best all the time is impossible. In order to play your best most of the time, you have to learn how to stay in the zone. When you are in the zone, your decisions become automatic and everything seems so easy. The tough times at the poker table occur when you are not in the zone. Many times you will make a couple mistakes or suffer some bad beats and your future decisions will be terrible. Going on tilt is the number one source of losses for any decent player.

In order to stay in the zone, you can't care about winning or losing on any given day. You are going to play perfect poker some days and still lose. If you can't handle the losses, don't play poker. Rather than focus on winning or losing, simply focus on making good decisions. Focus on improving your game and how you can exploit your opponent's weaknesses. Your conscious mind cannot think of more than one thing at a time. If you let your mind think about winning or losing, you are using up valuable memory space. Playing in the zone requires your mind to focus on making good decisions all the time. Any other thought that enters your mind will definitely lead to bad decisions. It takes a lot of time and effort to stay in the zone. Remove your attachment to winning or losing and you will be a step ahead of most players.

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