By xxrod17xx on September 16th, 2007 (more posts by author)

I have been realizing that I need to make some changes in my game on and off the table lately. The first I realized was I need to stop multi-tabling. For those of you guys newer to poker playing micro stakes NL, stop multi-tabling! It is hurting your development more than you think. If you play more than 3 tables I don't see how you can really stop and think out every decision with a clear mind or even pay close enough attention to successfully put your opponents on a correct (or close to correct) range of hands, figure out your equity against that range and then figure out what your options are and choose the best one. So thats the first change, I have been single-tabling this whole month.

The second was clear to me for a long time, you have to put in work off the table. I have to start reviewing my sessions, posting hands on 2+2, and replying to more posts there as well. Along with that, I really have to re-read Professional No-Limit Hold'em along with NL Hold'em Theory and Practice. I read both these books while I was multi-tabling a lot and was never able to truly implement their concepts into my game. I would like to be putting at least 2x the amount of time on working on my game outside of playing at the tables. So that would be anywhere from 2-4 hours per day. Not too much even with a job.

As for on table things, focus is really important. I have to start putting on my headphones listening to music and just flow. When this happens I am less inclined to read 2+2 and 2rags while playing, I am less likely to see who is on AIM besides my backer (whom I talk to during the sessions, Shoutout kid happy b-day) and I am less likely to see what tourneys are coming up. When I know how my opponents are playing, they don't have a chance to outplay me. I am that confident when I am on my game, when I am off...I can't tell the difference between a clear value bet and an obvious bluff. Focus is the reason I am on or off. Going a long those lines, I tend to make decisions too quickly. From this point on anything but an easy fold I am going to take at least 5 secs to think about what is the best line. All-In situations (where I am calling) I would prefer my decision time to at least be 10-15 secs unless its a must call/fold.

These are just a few things I think I can change in my game which are really easy to do and I will become a better player for sure. I think the hard work will pay off in the long run as well. We will see though.[s]