Pre- and post- game process - Part III

I'm finding that more and more, in order to continue being a successful poker player, one needs to maintain discipline at all times. Discipline includes more than just playing your "A" game at the table, but putting in time after the game is over to review your hand histories, as well as education and researching. The following is part three of a series of four posts that I will be posting dealing with my pre- and post- game process.

Blogging and videos

The third part of my process is online primarily internet related poker education. This portion of my non-playing time includes writing on the blog you are reading right now, as well as posting and reviewing other bloggers' hand histories and posts, and the newly incorporated watching training videos. I can't immediately think of a parallel to engineering for this part, other than the social aspect of my job - talking with other engineers about various issues I am running into. However, this avenue allows me to explore other player's (at similar stakes) thought processes and allows me a venue to air my own misgivings on how I think I played a particular hand. In addition, it also reassures me and gives me confidence by reading that other players are running into similar situations as me. As an added bonus, I have the opportunity to read strategic thoughts from players who are a lot better than I, and who have insights I may or may not have considered prior. Tracking said blogs and bloggers is simplified with Google Reader, which is part of the Google suite of online applications. Via Atom or RSS feeds, I can track and keep up on all my favorite blogs without even needing to visit the site itself.

Finally, similar to reading blogs, watching training videos enables me to see a mass of hands with a commentary similar to that of having a coach on my shoulder. I can certainly put myself in the situation of the video and simulate in my head how I would or would not make a move. Essentially, I get a poker coach for free! Assuming that I am disciplined enough to take a critical and honest look at my own play, I can adapt the videos into my game. I realize that some of you don't qualify for the free training videos, but as little as 1375 Full Tilt base points will net you a free week. There should be no excuse for not already having signed up for the free training. My online time accounts for approximately 55% of my non-playing poker time.