Preventing Tilt: Working on the Heart of the Problem
Introduction
In this article
- The different types and effects of tilt
- The meaning of presence and awareness
- The heart of the problem and how you can work on it
This article won 1st place in our April 2011 Article Contest
The difficult thing about psychology articles is often a lack of evidence to support theories and concepts. There is no mathematical evidence as you might find it in most poker articles. Psychological issues can't be solved with formulas and often only possible but no definite right way can be given.
This article is no exception. The problems outlined here, the theses and suggestions for solutions, do not claim to be the absolute truth. Everyone evaluates situations subjectively and so may draw different conclusions.
The truth
Still, modern neuropsychology can already demonstrate the biochemical processes of many psychological phenomena and unlock the influence of a diverse range of substances on our psyche, such as dopamine. The facts are irrefutable and offer poker players a great opportunity to understand why a healthy life style is an important factor for successful poker playing. Bearing this in mind, I highly recommend reading Somnius's article series, The Neuropsychology of Poker.
This article presents several neuro(psycho)logical processes, greatly simplified. The reason for this is that I am not a neurologist and cannot explain all the processes in detail (which isn't really necessary anyway). Even if I could, it would significantly exceed the scope of a poker article.
While poker theory articles often build on existing knowledge, poker psychology articles generally have the opposite effect. What we thought we knew is cast aside. Habits, belief systems and behaviour patterns we've spent a long time acquiring are broken down. In addition we need to be prepared to critically question ourselves and admit our mistakes.
Definition and effects of tilt
Tilt has been defined many times. Tommy Angelo defines tilt as "any deviation from your A-game and your A-mindset, however slight or fleeting", which makes a lot of sense. You don't just tilt at the tables by uncontrollably bet/raising. It also occurs in less obvious forms away from the tables. However, this isn't a debate about what can or cannot be defined as tilt. What's important is that we learn how to deal with tilt and minimise it.
Every poker player will know the effects of tilt from personal experience. It varies from player to player, depending on character and experience. For some it's irrationally moving up a limit, for others it's a broken keyboard. However, there are also passive tilt symptoms, one of the most common being scared money. There's one thing everyone suffering from tilt has in common - they're unhappy about a situation which shouldn't be the way it is.
The effects of tilt can be disastrous. Some simply lose more money than they should. Others allow tilt to have an effect on their day-to-day life and the RNG of their poker site suddenly defines not only their cards but also their general happiness. Those who suffer from depression brought on by poker shouldn't be looking for the answers in an article but rather seek professional help.
Extended sessions night after night to try and compensate for losses often result in fatigue and exhaustion, which then generally has a direct effect on the next session.
Getting angry about losses generally leads to laziness and a lack of motivation to critically analyse your own game; which often leads to further loss and even less motivation. Players often end up in a vicious circle, only understanding the situation when they've lost large chunks of their bankroll. Forum posts relating to this generally start with the phrase "I've lost x% of my bankroll, help!"
Treating the symptoms
Many concepts trotted out when searching for help with tilting problems only look at treating the symptoms of tilt. A stop-loss may deal with the symptom of losing lots of money, however it doesn't help the player in fighting the reason for these losses. A stop-loss is a good concept for damage control in the short term, but it should never become a regular habit. It's not about tilting up to a certain amount and then leaving the game, we don't want to tilt in the first place.
A stop-loss is often carried out in order to prevent tilt. Here the aim is also to work on tilting less and developing a higher tolerance level.
Other advice, such as posting hands, recording videos or having a friend look over your shoulder don't address the cause of the problem either. All these things can help reduce the negative effects of tilt and uncover the mistakes that creep in. Yet, the tilt itself remains untreated, it will crop up again and the story will repeat itself.
The root of the problem
So how can we solve the problem itself: the actual tilt? For this you need to understand what tilt triggers and what's happening inside your head.
As previously mentioned, tilt is always synonymous with dissatisfaction about a situation which shouldn't be the way it is. In most cases this is the loss of more money than was expected, of course, it's a much nicer problem not to have won as much as hoped. Other tilt triggers include other players' behaviour and comments.
We're making a school boy error here by claiming to know how a situation should be. We think we know the truth, saying to ourselves "I should have won that hand." Our subjective view of the world does not allow us to know the truth. Our memories and belief systems project an image of the world that we merely hold to be true.
If you flip a coin five times in a row, lose and then tilt, you're assuming that you had the right not to lose five goes in a row and that this is an entirely unfair situation. Every poker player should know their odds and make it clear that every downswing, as improbable as it may seem, is ultimately fair.
Most players are also fully aware of this but still tilt. The reason for this is that knowing about the probability and legitimacy of a downswing is on a level of awareness that is no longer active when you start to tilt. If you're on tilt, there's a chemical reaction in your brain which makes rational thought impossible. It's very difficult to stop this process and move away from the psychological state of 'tilt'. If this is a big problem, a stop-loss will serve you well. However, you should keep trying to work on this problem and not just rely on stop-loss.
In the end, we identify fully with the picture we've created in our heads, without any awareness of what is happening in front of us. The word "identify" comes from the Latin "idem" (the same) and "facere" (to make). So to identify means to make something the same. The same as what? The same as our egos. Whatever we identify with, we make it a part of our identity.
If we see ourselves as poker players, we automatically identify with our bankroll. A couple of numbers on a screen become part of us and from now on belong to us. Yet what do we actually have? If we stand on the street, point at a high-rise building and say "that belongs to me", then we're telling a story, where "I" and a building become one. If everyone agrees, there will be documents supporting this, if they don't, you get sent to a psychiatrist. No matter which situation is true, ultimately it doesn't have anything at all to do with who we are. Lots of people only realise this on their death beds, just before dying. All concepts of ownership and possesion become meaningless.
Processing stimuli – reaction as a mindset
The world we live in is full of stimuli. Light, that is, everything we can see, sounds, smells, etc. We are constantly bombarded with these stimuli, far too many to perceive all of them on a conscious level. Most of them are processed by our subconscious. For example, in poker we concentrate on what's happening on the screen and we don't hear the quiet background noises, such as the hum of the computer fan. However, this humming exists and our subconscious is aware of it.
Bodily functions such as digestion or your heart beat are also dealt with by our subconscious and never enter our conscious mind. So the entire outside world manifests itself in our heads from stimuli, all we see is light that hits receptors in our eyes and is pieced together by the brain. Sounds are vibrating air, a taste or smell is a chemical process. Every stimulus we are consciously aware of is dealt with in four steps.
- 1. Realisation
In the first step you realise the type of stimulus, i.e. light. - 2. Recognition
In the second stage you recognise the stimulus you have registered in step one. For example, a particular card, let's say
on the river. - 3. Evaluation
Next, the information from step 2 is evaluated. The information "" is evaluated along with existing information. So it could mean that your opponent has AA and you have a set, for example. The resulting evaluation then is "negative", as in this case the means a bad beat for you. - 4. Reaction
In the final step you react to the evaluation from step 3, for example, to anger.
If we want to avoid tilt, which means we no longer want to react angrily to the stimulus 
, we have to find a way to intervene in this four-step process. Around 2,500 years ago, one Siddhartha Gautama, also known as Buddha, set out on a search for such options.
We can't control the first two steps, nor would we want to. Nor can we affect the third step, as the example clearly demonstrates. There will always be bad beats, just as there will always be unpleasant situations in life. Buddha recognised this and formulated the first eternal truth: "Life is dukkha." Dukkha is generally translated as "suffering."
The only remaining option then is to intervene in step four: our own reaction. This reaction always takes place subconsciously. We don't choose to be angry, we just are. However, if we can call this step into our conscious mind, we can surpress it and rationally evaluate that we just had a bad beat. We often use the term mindset in poker, and this non-reactive mindset is one of the central teachings of Buddhism and the path to a happier, more self-aware existence.
Acting instead of reacting
As mentioned in chapter 5, the path to success is to surpress the subconscious reaction to a stimulus. This enables conscious consideration of events. We can act rationally instead of reacting irrationally.
Subconscious reaction is a habit, it manifests itself more and more intensely from birth onwards. That's why it's so hard to get rid of this behaviour. To a certain extent we can make comparisons with addiction here. The longer a person takes drugs, for example, the harder it is to break the subconscious behavioural pattern of longing.
This doesn't mean that the more experienced Strategists among us have worse cards. Different people have adopted these bahavioural patterns with varying intensity. For example, people who take part in a lot of sports activity know the feeling of being completely present. Whenever we are fully present, we're taking a small step in the right direction.
Where does this lead us in the end? Buddhists call it enlightenment. Enlightenment is a mindset whereby a person never reacts subconsciously to a stimulus, rather always acts consciously. It shouldn't be understood from this that such a person would not instinctively move their hand from a hot hob, as this behaviour is anchored much more deeply in the subconscious, just as organ control is.
It's a long way towards achieving this mindset. Buddhist monks devote their whole lives to the task and many do not accomplish it. Others have never heard about this situation and lead a fully enlightened life, while some suffer from strokes of fate, which can suddenly bring about a change in perspective.
A person controlled by their reactive subconscious is like a marionette, with external stimuli pulling their strings, the subconsciousness. This subconsciousness reacts to external stimuli and we are nothing but marionettes of out subconsciousness. If we manage to stop this process, to cut the strings, then we are free to move as we choose.
However, reacting doesn't just mean reacting to bad but also to positive stimuli. We get a delicious meal and our subconscious immediately reacts with a desire for more. When we've eaten up, the suffering starts. Admittedly the suffering in this case is not particularly great, in other cases however, beginners luck can come with a lot of suffering. This is the loss of possession, in this case, money. As a poker player, you know both sides of the coin. Joy at money won, anger and frustration at money lost.
For this reason in ancient Rome, when a general celebrated a victory parade through the town, there was always a slave behind him with the phrase "memento mori" ("remember you will die"). However, this doesn't mean that we should be neutral, unfeeling people. We can still enjoy the advantages of material wealth, but we wouldn't miss them if they were suddenly gone.
In Buddhism the term "dharma" (Sanskrit) or "dhamma" (Pali) is used as a term for Buddha's teachings (among other things). An old Indian story gives a clear description of how an non-reactive mindset can occur in everyday life:
A mother has three sons. She gives the first son an empty bottle and 10 rupees to buy cooking oil. The son goes off and buys the oil but he falls on the homeward journey and spills half the oil. He goes home crying to his mother that he has spilled half the oil.
The mother sends her second son off, also with a bottle and 10 rupees. This son also falls on the way home and spills half the oil. He goes home happily, telling his mother that he was able to save half the oil.
Then the mother sends her third son off, a dhamma boy, also with an empty bottle and 10 rupees. He buys the oil and also falls on the return journey, spilling half. He returns home and says he is happy he could save half, but knows that he has spilled half and intends to work on the market in the evening to earn 5 rupees and fill the bottle.
There are many pitfalls on the way to a non-reactive mindset. For example, striving for this status is actually the opposite of what you aim to achieve and therefore a step in the wrong direction. Those who wish to achieve "enlightenment" are performing "dukkha" by desiring something. In Zen Buddhism it is said that a pupil asked his master to give him something, so he could achieve enlightenment. The master was sad upon hearing this and said: "I would love to offer you something but in Zen we have nothing."
This complete emptiness, free from desire, rejection, wanting etc. is the "nothing" described here. In this moment of emptiness, of freedom from all reactions, we can see things as they really are and act consciously.
"True freedom is owning the moment between stimulus and reaction, to determine the action yourself."
There are many metaphors and sayings for this philosophy of spiritual "emptiness". Jesus said "Blessed are the poor in spirit: for theirs is the kingdom of heaven," or "it's only after we've lost everything that we're free to do anything" in "Fight Club.“
The key to this freedom, awareness, is discussed in the next section.
Awareness
You need to observe your thoughts from a further, background level of consciousness for what they really are, namely, your impression of how the world could or should be, or how you would like it to be, as formed by your memories from life experiences. If you can achieve this, then in that moment, you stop identifying with these moments.
Those who identify completely with their thoughts find themselves in a dream state. When dreaming, you identify completely with the dream. You are not aware that you are dreaming. The same goes for your thoughts, if you identify with them totally.
Tilt or anger in general is one of the best examples of a person who identifies completely with their thoughts. There is no kind of access to a level of consciousness other than the one currently active.
As soon as you think of an event in the past, you identify with a vague impression, which you have deemed to be true from something. When you think of the future, you construct how something could or should be in your mind and at the same time identify with it. There is no awareness.
The key is in the now. "Yesterday's history, tomorrow's a mystery. Today is a gift, that's why it's called the present." Your life is contained in a single moment and that moment is now. If you live in this moment and out of the fog of the past and future, impressions and concepts appear, then awareness unfurls, which allows you to observe and control your thoughts.
Meditation is nothing more than pure presence and observation of thoughts. More on that later. Wallowing in memories should not be confused with recalling information which can be helpful in the present moment. For example, hands played earlier. Targeted information is called up here and processed in the now, while a bad beat story would be identifying with the events of the last session.
This presence is unusual for many and only occurs in certain situations. In these situations you feel good, although you aren't entirely sure why. There's the football fan who forgets all his worries for 90 minutes in the stadium and is mentally only on the pitch. The sportsperson who blocks out the world around them or the dancer, becoming one with the dance. Some people have this experience when they work, for example surgeons. These are all moments of the absolute presence.
Now that we understand what happens in the moments which are so special to many, we can precipitate this situaiton again and again. It's sufficient if we make ourselves aware that when we walk, our soles touch the floor or if we simply feel how we are now sitting on a chair in front of the computer. With regular practice, these present moments will become more and more frequent. It will become easier to observe thoughts instead of identifying with them and to expose tilt for what it is: a construct of our own minds.
A lack of awareness is not only a feeding ground for tilt, it also costs money in normal situations. In No Limit Hold'em, the biggest pots are usually the least important. In the long-term, everyone will lose the same amount of times with KK against AA and lots of hands are no-brainers. Big pots are very often EV neutral, as fellow players would often act exactly the same as you would and therefore you can't gain an edge on them.
Small pots on the other hand, often make the difference between a break-even and a winning player. Many players who aren't present enough overlook the small, supposedly unimportant hands and experience heavy blows to their win rates. A person who checks in the BB with 72o, after a fish limper and check/folds to a 35Tr, is not in the present. In two out of three cases, Villain won't have hit the board and you can win the pot with a small bet. If you do this three times in 100 hands, the win rate increases to 3.5BB/100 (of course, the fish will still call now and then and the actual increase in win rate will ultimately be smaller). Nonetheless, most players lack the presence to realise the situation at all. As soon as you see 72o, your brain automatically switches to fold and you don't pay any more attention to the hand. This is also a deviation from your A-game, therefore, according to the definition it's tilt.
A further situation where a lack of presence costs money is overlooking short-stacks. You call a raise with 67s on the button and a moment later realise you've just called a short stack and can never get the necessary implied odds. Overlooking important stats is another phenomenon. You call a full-stack on the button with 67s and establish that the BB is a maniac who takes every opportunity to squeeze.
These situations are fairly frequent, the more experienced the player, the less often they occur. Nonetheless, all of these situations are unnecessary, avoidable and will harm your win rate immensely.
Belief systems – the eternal loser
Many underestimate the power of the subconscious, some believe it has no influence on them.
However, if we consider which tasks our subconscious takes on, it quickly becomes clear that it can have a big influence on us. It controls our breathing, if we aren't doing it consciously, controls our heart beat and takes care of digestion.
Under hypnosis a way can be opened into the subconscious of the test person. From this point on there are numerous possibilities. You can plant belief systems in the subconscious and the subject suddenly believes they're a chicken, or is disgusted by cigarettes. You can remove belief systems and cure phobias. This always happens in the subject's subconscious: he doesn't know why he suddenly no longer wants to smoke.
The many possibilities also conceal many dangers. For example, adopting negative belief systems. If you almost drown in a lake as a child, you may store this in your subconscious and develop a fear of water. If you're repeatedly told you can't do something, this becomes engrained in your subconscious and in the end you believe yourself that there are certain things you can't do - without being aware of it.
A typical phenomenon is the eternal loser. He is more engaged than anyone around him, yet he makes no progress whatsoever. Whenever he's about to have a breakthrough, something goes wrong. In this case, the loser's self-image is often buried so deeply in his subconscious that the affected person will subconsciously do everything he can to fulfill this self-image. If you think you're a loser or a victim, you always will be. Henry Ford once said: "Whether you believe you can or you can't, you're probably right."
It's very easy to adopt this kind of self-image. The subconscious can't determine between reality and fiction. So if we have a negative impression of ourselves, the subconscious will hold this to be true and save it. We often make throw-away comments without thinking, such as "I'll never manage that" or "I can't say it often enough", which ultimately is sent word for word to your subconscious and in an emergency made real by every means possible. This phenomenon gives you a tool in the hand to positively program, to visualise your subconscious. More on this later.
Negative internal dialogs are more common in some than others and can be a real hinderance, if they aren't realised and mitigated. This "mental hygiene" should be a part of mental training for sportspeople and psychological training for poker players.
Practice and application in daily life
In order to recognise tilt and to expose it as such, you need to be present. With simple practice this will improve with lasting effects.
The most intensive form of practice is meditation. There are plenty of guides on positions etc. on the internet. That's not the point of this article. When meditating you concentrate entirely on your breathing, as Tommy Angelo presents in his video. At the beginning it's easier to count every breath. This helps to concentrate on the subject. When a thought occurs, don't see it as something negative, it's completely normal. Take note of the fact that you've just thought it and let it go without further evaluating it.
The more you practice, the fewer thoughts occur and the more in the present you will be. Meditation is the exact opposite of mental absence, it is pure presence. An old Zen master crept up on his pupils whilst they were meditating and tried to hit them in the back with a stick. If students were sufficiently present in the moment, they will notice him and be able to dodge him.
A less intensive approach is small routines, which can be built in everywhere. Being aware of the soles of your feet when you walk or of clicking the mouse during a session: presence can be continually practiced and easily built into everyday movements.
"If you're sweeping the yard, sweep the yard. If you're cutting a carrot, cut a carrot." Zen saying.
The power of our subconscious over our behaviour is explained in chapter 8. However, this power can't just hurt us, it can also be useful. An important and well-known tool is visualisation. It's importatnt that we visualise things positively. Visualisation should also be as detailled as possible. Smells, sounds and temperature also aid better retention in the subconscious.
For top atheletes, visualisation is a part of daily training. As Boris Becker once said after he'd won a tie-break: "I'd already won that game yesterday."
Spiritualism and science - summary
This has increasingly moved from being a pure poker article to a general lifestyle article. However, as tilt has the same origin as all negative emotions, this is more of an advantage than a disadvantage, in my opinion. If we learn to control our thoughts and reactions in life in general, then we can use these skills directly in poker too. Moreover, a happier life is also needed to perform well at the tables.
I edited this article once more after completing a ten-day meditation course in complete stillness and cut off from the outside world. The course and some of the taught content was very spiritual. I have intentionally tried to keep spiritualism out of this article, as I don't know a lot about it myself.
I have tried to filter out the scientific truth and to work with these facts on a scientific basis, still, I find myself only at the start. This article could easily be stretched out a lot further, I hope however, I have presented the main points effectively. I'm sure there may be a lot of questions, which I would like to address. So please, post your questions in the comments, or, if there is one, in the appropriate feedback thread.
In summary we can say that all suffering is rooted in ourselves. That we react subconsciously or lose ourselves in the past, or the future. The key to switching from reacting to acting lies in precisely this moment, in the now. If we don't meander into the past or the future, we are completely in the present and can take the step from being reactive stimuli-driven marionettes, to becoming active, consciously controlled individuals. Those who take this in and live it, no longer live asking what is the sense to life? They accept the reality and have true freedom to do anything.