“What discourages opponents from coming is the prospect of harm” – Sun Tzu

Poker is not a gentlemens game anymore, it has become a war between opponents.  This doesnt mean you have to insult or deface your opponents, but it does mean that you are in battle for their chips!  Show that you are there for battle and you will see them begin to fall.  Opponents will either choose to attack at the wrong times, or will back off from any confrontation with you.

“However, though I don’t want to die, I want to practice so that when I’m faced with death, I’ll think nothing of it” – Suzuki Shosan, Warrior of Zen

The game of online poker cannot and will not be mastered if you do not take into account the idea of complete loss.  Prepare yourself for all situations, including losing your stack or your bankroll.

Your lack of ability to learn from your mistakes, your rationalization of playing marginal hands, lack of patience, inability to play emotionless….these are your biggest opponents, all within yourself.  If you can take the time to master a Zen like state in poker, then you will be eliminating your biggest opponent and creating a more profitable game of online poker.

“If defeat has more to teach us than victory, then perhaps a defeat is a victory unto itself?” – Miron Stabinsky

If you can take your past lessons/mistakes and use them as a tool towards your future games, then you are making your losses a win in itself.  As stated before: poker is a game for the long run.  You are given so many tools (especially in Online Poker) to learn from your mistakes, and you have the ability to take these mistakes into profit.

Review your mistakes, and see what you could have done better or how you could have taken action differently.  Incorporate your mistakes into your strategy.

“There is interaction if there is a call for it, no interaction if there is no call for it” – Zen master Yangshan

The reality in poker is, there is no unwritten rule that just because you have been dealt 100 terrible hands, doesnt mean that you should play second rate cards because you are “due to win”!  Patience will be tested, but you will not be rewarded for your patience until you begin to receive the hands you should be playing. 

Online Poker Secrets suggests that if you have been folding a lot, and your hands still arent improving: KEEP FOLDING!