Concentration

[Viticus 0]

Ok, I am sure to get the usual "donkey" and "noob" comments here but I am going to throw myself out there anyways. Three times this year I have run my BR from 100 to 1000, twice on Full Tilt and once on Stars. Needless to say I have had mild success. I have also had to cash out because of unexpected bills and family expenses. Recently I have been trying to get my BR back in shape but have been making dumb mistakes. The concentration I once had seems to have disappeared. My live game hasn't changed and I am on still on track there. Are there any suggestions on how to stay focused online? Do any of you have this problem frequently?

[ABigMotivation 0]

When you decide to play, make sure you are focused before hand. Sometimes I would find myself just playing for 30 minutes to kill time or when i was bored and then get up and leave. When you start playing, play for a long session and be totally focused on only poker. Don't watch tv or surf the web in between hands. Music is really the only entertainment thats around me when I play. Adderall helps also

[Viticus 0]

When you decide to play, make sure you are focused before hand. Sometimes I would find myself just playing for 30 minutes to kill time or when i was bored and then get up and leave. When you start playing, play for a long session and be totally focused on only poker. Don't watch tv or surf the web in between hands. Music is really the only entertainment thats around me when I play. Adderall helps also

ha. maybe i'll try the latter.

[SGFULTON83 0]

Take breaks and only play when you can focus 100% on poker, one distraction could cost you alot of money.

[sennin 0]

Im pretty bad at concentrating, I usually find myself opening firefox every 10 seconds, closing it 5 seconds later, and repeating Only do this during early parts of tournies though, once its mid-late I'll start concentrating since it's actually interesting/exciting

[Nashtak 0]

Funny how i got this same problem and found myself reading those answers while in the middle of a tourney.

[mtdesmoines 3]

Ok, I am sure to get the usual "donkey" and "noob" comments here but I am going to throw myself out there anyways. Three times this year I have run my BR from 100 to 1000, twice on Full Tilt and once on Stars. Needless to say I have had mild success. I have also had to cash out because of unexpected bills and family expenses. Recently I have been trying to get my BR back in shape but have been making dumb mistakes. The concentration I once had seems to have disappeared. My live game hasn't changed and I am on still on track there. Are there any suggestions on how to stay focused online? Do any of you have this problem frequently?

Shorten your sessions and commit the time to poker only. Then log off and go do other stuff. Period.

[jmbreslin 0]

Donkey. Noob. On a more serious note, if you're having a lot of trouble concentrating but didn't in the past it may actually reflect a general loss of passion or interest in what you're playing. This happened to me not too long ago when I hit a bit of a skid (playing NLHE STTs almost exclusively) and just couldn't get the upward momentum back in my bankroll. I soon realized that I had just grown bored with NLHE STTs and as a result I had lost my focus and my motivation. I rediscovered my passion for poker when I started learning other games and basically abandoned NLHE SnGs altogether. I also have a new source of motivation since I just recently moved some money over to FT and now I'm trying to clear my bonus.Bottom line: I tend to get bored and lose focus and motivation when I do the same thing over and over and over again, which is what playing NLHE SnGs is all about. I need a change, something different to get me motivated again. You might be like me. If so, take a break from NLHE (I'm assuming that's what you're playing) and try learning a different game. It can be quite invigorating.

[Viticus 0]

When my bankroll is healthy I tend to dabble is HORSE at low limits. I try to do that once a week so that I don't burn out on Hold'em. I havent really had the opportunity recently because of BR restraints. I think I am going to set a schedule during the week of "poker only" time. maybe playing a more regular schedule and forcing myself into the correct mindset with help. thanks for all the advice.

[jmbreslin 0]

I don't know what your BR is at this point but if you're playing on Stars there are lots of micro stakes options. If you're concerned about bankroll give Stud-8 a try. Much lower variance than many other games but the competition is pretty soft and the cash games start at .04-.08. You can also play cheap 8-Game SnGs.

[ThatPkrGuy 0]

If your playing poker as a Job then treat it like one and get on a regular schedule. Take lots of short breaks and step away from the computer during these times.If poker isn't a job....well just play w/e games/limits you can afford without going broke and stop worring so much about building a roll

[aucu 3]

I'm bad at this, I'll jump in and play 20min or just one orbit if there is some time to kill. Don't do this, play only when you have the time and mindset.

[jmbreslin 0]

I'm bad at this, I'll jump in and play 20min or just one orbit if there is some time to kill. Don't do this, play only when you have the time and mindset.

Agreed. If you try to squeeze a session into a brief period of time you'll find yourself getting impatient, trying to force the action, and making loose calls because you know you only have a short period of time to make something happen. At least that's what happens to me.

[mtdesmoines 3]

Agreed. If you try to squeeze a session into a brief period of time you'll find yourself getting impatient, trying to force the action, and making loose calls because you know you only have a short period of time to make something happen. At least that's what happens to me.

FYP

[HollywoodAFD 0]

Maybe develop a note making strategy to help you focus on certain players. You'd be surprised how handy that may come in later in the tourney.

[Shark527 0]

Switch games every couple weeks regardless of how your running at one certain one. Try a game you barely know. Force yourself to play your worst game. This itself can spur a "concentrative" competitive streak to get better at it.

[coug2828 8]

Bottom line: I tend to get bored and lose focus and motivation when I do the same thing over and over and over again, which is what playing NLHE SnGs is all about. I need a change, something different to get me motivated again. You might be like me. If so, take a break from NLHE (I'm assuming that's what you're playing) and try learning a different game. It can be quite invigorating.

i read this the other day and decided to give Pot limit omaha high/low a shot, i was getting a bit bored or complacent with hold em. i had played very little omaha before and found it really enjoyable, so much more to think about and process, hands to try and read etc. thanks jmbreslin, it was invigorating. and amazingly i ended up winning the first $1.00 sng i entered for a nice profit of $3.30

[JaNnN 0]

I now it's kind of hard to build your BR up over and over. Start small (boring), work your way up (exciting)...then do it all over again. It's tough.Just make sure you are motivated as many people have said before. If I go over the strat forums I always see hands and plays that really interrest me. When at work I go over some hands I played in my last couple of sessions and how I played them. Why don't you make a mental list and try to perfect those plays.Jan

[Royal_Tour 0]

I now it's kind of hard to build your BR up over and over. Start small (boring), work your way up (exciting)...then do it all over again. It's tough.

.. i thought you were about to say the same thing i am going too..anyways. problem lies within your "want". i dont know what to call it.. A lot of the previous posts are good advice for playing. but your issue is totally different.Your problem is that you want to be back to where you were. and you're tryiing to do so quickly. You're not respecting the fundamentals of BR building. you've done it before, so now you feel in your own mind that you should be playing with a few thousand as your roll. You want to start raking 200 dollar pots instead of 20. you want to play a level were a win is exciting. building from 100 bucks is lame. all you gotta do is grind through it.

[mtdesmoines 3]

.. i thought you were about to say the same thing i am going too..anyways. problem lies within your "want". i dont know what to call it.. A lot of the previous posts are good advice for playing. but your issue is totally different.Your problem is that you want to be back to where you were. and you're tryiing to do so quickly. You're not respecting the fundamentals of BR building. you've done it before, so now you feel in your own mind that you should be playing with a few thousand as your roll. You want to start raking 200 dollar pots instead of 20. you want to play a level were a win is exciting. building from 100 bucks is lame potatoes. all you gotta do is grind through it.

FYP

[Royal_Tour 0]

FYP

lol. after reading yours i was like where the hell is the FYP? its become so standard in my day to day vocab, i missed it

[Nashtak 0]

I had a similar problem. When i first won 5$ in a freeroll, i got it to 70$ before falling back down to 15$ then up to 85$ (now i'm at 20$). I believe concentration was the real issue there and since i have 2 screens now, i can really pay attention to the game while reading the forum. It's pretty damn useful to have my Tourney on a screen and the tourney info on the other. Either way, concentration is key and i'm glad i learned it without much consequences.

[vbnautilus 48]

Practice meditation. It's concentration exercise.