Psychology may be one of the most important aspects of poker, but it is also one of the least understood elements of the game. Many people pride themselves on their knowledge of poker, especially with respect to their ability to calculate percentages and pot odds. However, this knowledge is useless if you let your emotions get the best of you; there is no faster way to go broke in poker than to go on tilt.

A good poker player must always be a model of equanimity. Of course, this is much easier said than done; while at the table, it can be very hard to remain calm after your pocket aces get cracked on the river by an opponent holding a hand that should have been folded pre-flop. Just like in life, perfect play does not always guarantee rewards at the poker table.

As such, any poker player must accept the inevitability of bad beats. It is called math. For better or for worse, luck is a part of poker, and there is nothing you can do to change that. Instead of getting angry about things over which you have no control, you must continually remind yourself of your strategy and stick with it, even if you are getting awful cards, the player across from you keeps reminding you that he now has half of your stack, or the player next to you keeps telling annoying bad jokes.

Even if you are aware of the consequences, you will eventually go on tilt – it is just a fact of life. My friends tell me I am tilt proof but the fact is I just recognize it for what it is. You need to prepare yourself for the times when you do lose your cool and just let it go. If you don’t, that guy across from you will end up with the other half of your stack in no time at all.

The first step is to recognize when you have gone on tilt. Many players will ignore the symptoms, but that doesn’t mean that you don’t have the disease. If you can not let go of a previous hand, it can cloud your judgment in the future. All of a sudden, you are raising indiscriminately in a desperate attempt to get your chips back. Unfortunately, desperation is not a desirable quality in a poker player. Just move on and play the next hand.

When you are on tilt, you must calm yourself and act deliberately. Learn the lessons from the hand that you lost if there is one, but don’t dwell on it. If you played it perfectly and just got unlucky, remind yourself that you are playing good poker, which will be rewarded in the long run. It always is. Your opponent just made a mathematical error and that is profitable for you. If you just can’t let it go, the step away from the table for a few minutes until your emotions abate or maybe think about taking up another game.

Whatever you do, don’t allow one or two bad hands to be the excuse that causes you to lose more money with poor play. Players who routinely go on tilt might as well hand their money to me and the other players at the table.

Always remember that success in poker comes from discipline, patience, and others on tilt.