When I’m not working on my websites or at the virtual poker tables, I manage a restaurant. Valentine’s Day weekend was hell. We did three times our normal volume even though we didn’t have the resources to do it. There were problems. A lot of them.
My job is to make sure the guests never know anything’s wrong and that takes a lot of split second decisions. The right decisions result in a smooth night and happy diners. The wrong decisions result in hour wait times, pissed off people and freaked out servers. We pulled through the weekend flawlessly. Unfortunately I won’t be able to play poker for a day or so because of decision fatigue.
Poker is a decision war. Players that make good decisions make money. But making decisions drains your mental resources and you start to get tired. The more tired you become, the more likely you are to make bad decisions.
Most of you have experienced this phenomenon. You’re playing like a god and all of the sudden you find yourself making what-the-hell moves. You raise or call and think to yourself, “What the hell – why not? Let’s just see what happens.” Once you start making decisions without solid reasons, you have decision fatigue.
When decision fatigue sets in, your mind feels like a car engine running without oil. Small things begin to irritate you and you get frustrated easily.
You’ll notice that you’re making decisions faster. Subconsciously you want the choice/action over with so you make a snap choice without giving it any thought. At this point you’re not reasoning through hands anymore.
Finally, your attention will begin to drift. You’ll remember something that you wanted to search and fire up Google. You’ll turn on the TV or pull up Hulu. You’ll do anything except focus on the game. It’s your brain’s way of telling you that it doesn’t want to play poker anymore.
You should stop playing any time you notice decision fatigue starting to set in.
There’s no way to avoid decision fatigue. It’s going to happen sooner or later, but the more you practice, the longer it’ll take before fatigue sets in.
Certain choices will become automatic in poker. Today you might think that you have a decision to make with AJo under the gun in a full ring game. After a while you’ll realize it’s a snap-fold. One less decision to make.
There are a lot of standard lines in poker. These lines will become automatic for you in certain hands. You’ll use them against the fish and save your mental energy for when you need to get tricky against the regulars.
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Becoming aware of your mental state will make you more money. Start watching out for warning signs of decision fatigue and stop playing when you notice them.
Remember that you don’t have to get creative on every hand. Use the best line for the best situation. Don’t waste your mental energy on non-thinking players and you’ll have plenty in reserve when you face the regulars.
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