We cannot stress enough how important money management is in the game of poker. You have to play your stakes and you have adjust those stakes as the cards crumble.
This is a spectacular blog in that regard from Daniel Skolovy at PokerListings:
Dropping down in stakes to $1/$2
They say one of the most important skills for a poker player is being able to drop down in limits when necessary.
I was forced to practice this life skill once again recently by dropping back down to $1/$2. It always sucks being forced to move down in stakes, but when you're running bad it's almost always a good idea.
I've only logged less than 30k hands at $2/$4, so it's not a huge deal. It's been a pretty turbulent last couple months since coming back from Vegas and, well, including Vegas really.I've been slightly better than break even + rakeback in the cash games, so while I can't complain too much, it's been pretty frustrating. It's been 50k hands of coolers and suckouts and probably a little bit of bad play mixed in.
Some of it has been bad luck. Some of it is adjusting to the aggressiveness of $2/$4.
At least I've gotten very good at not letting prolonged losing streaks get to me. I've finally reached the point where losing days, weeks, and months don't even effect me.
It's a big step in my growth as a poker player, because when you start letting poker cross over into your personal life, nothing good can come of it. You just start taking it out on people who have even less control on the outcome than you do.
I guess the "trick" is to just look very long term. Though a month may seem like a long time, in the grand scheme of things, it's nothing. It's a blip on the radar.
Poker is a life-long game. There will be good months, and there will be not-so-good months.
