The Mental Exam

It's early August and pro football teams have begun their training camps. Each year there are a handful or more of big name veterans who make the rounds of the teams with specific needs, looking to be that one final piece of the puzzle that can elevate the team to playoff or title contention, or perhaps just looking for one final payday before fading off into obscurity. As you read about these guys, inevitably each article written about them visiting team X mentions how he came in for a physical. The team of course wants to ensure its potential investment by confirming the player's physical readiness and make sure he's up to the rigors of the game. Which left me wondering about the other side of it, the mental side. How many of these guys are mentally up for joining another team, mentally committed to the grind of the season with new teammates, how many are just looking for a chance to pad their statistics in the hope of extending their career beyond that one? Some, of course, are hard-wired to compete at their fullest level regardless of situation. Some, obviously not. Each has their own motivations and results vary.

What the hell does this have to do with poker? Well, I have recently been thinking a lot about the mental aspect of poker, about imposing your will upon other players when needed, about sitting down at a table with a plan of attack and implementing it. About really focusing on playing the opponent, playing the table and letting the cards support your actions, rather than the reverse. A self-given mental exam, before sitting down at the table if you will. Figuring out what you plan to do, taking stock of yourself before pulling back that chair. Even as little as planning one play per session, one scenario where you have the plan of how you're going to play it, sticking with it when the scenario happens, then testing it over and over and seeing the results. The pot sizes, stack sizes, ablility and makeup of your opponents will vary each time so keeping mental notes (or even physical ones) of these variables and the results can yield helpful information. The mental ability to stick with your plan, even in the face of adversity and knowing that over the long haul, that this play will make you better in that you know its results, you've tested it, is not just limited to that play but to the ability and commitment to improving your game. Each session might not yield a winner but if your game improves, so will your winning sessions. Next time you play, do yourself a favor and give yourself a quick mental exam, have a plan ready to go, so that you aren't that lost player wandering from table to table, looking for the elusive payday before fading into the poker obscurity, also known as a 1-2 limit game.