Quest to Winning Poker (Part 8)

Humility and Moving Down

One of the hardest things to do in poker I’m finding is moving down in limits when either bankroll or skill warrants it. Once you’ve tasted victory or success at a certain level, you don’t want to leave, even if you really should. I’m currently experiencing this myself. I’ve been playing $30 1-table SnG’s and although I’ve gotten a few cashes, a recent bout of tilt and admittedly bad play has forced me to move down to $5 games.

My pride makes this very painful, but I think part of being a long-term winning player is accepting this with humility and moving down until you have the bankroll or have developed the skills to move back up. In my case, I need to reduce my volume of play in general as I sort out some stress at work and at home. In the meantime, I’ll “earn” my way back up the ladder slowly while I play at the lower levels.

I think there are a couple things I’m trying to do that might be helpful if you find yourself in this situation:

1. Keep a positive attitude. Don’t hang on to old painful memories. Losing 5 tournaments in a row is painful, but the pain of holding on to those memories magnifies it tenfold over time. Recognize the pain, learn from it, and move on.

2. Make it a mission. If you believe that you can hang at a higher level, then prove it through success and domination at lower levels. I think the lessons you will learn about yourself and poker will be worth it (at least I hope it does for me).

Wish me luck as I wish you luck in your poker endeavors.