Everybody knows what tilt is and that it’s painful for your mind and your bankroll that you have taken so long to build (looking for tips on how to grow your bankroll faster? Click here!).

The question is how to prevent it, how to deal with it and how to beat it when it happens.

Long term vs short term in poker

We already discussed about how poker is a long term game, where variance is a factor but skill is a way more important part of the equation. If you remember, we already proven that the better players always win in the long run, while luck might strike one or two times but it’s not a warranty that you can score good results in your poker career.

The other side of playing a +ev long term game, is that in the short run everything can happen. In short, it’s sometimes hard to remember that skill wins the game, if you keep on getting busted in tournaments with awful bad beats. What it counts – though – is how to handle these periods of bad luck

If you are keep on losing at online poker, the first correction to set for improve the situation is stop playing for a while. It’s really really hard that a doomed session can turn into profit. Almost never happens, mostly because while losing players cannot keep their minds clear and their analytical skills, even if they do think they can.

They just can’t and it’s human. Not a shame. At all.

If this point is really stressed is because it’s typical of human nature wanting to recover fast and soon from a negative situation, often making it even worse, therefore as a skilled poker player, you now know that if you are keep being busted, just take a break, sleep over it, go for a walk and breath. Do whatever you want, but do not keep on playing that doomed session (or start another one right after).

Poker tilt: how to prevent it

Making a step back, the only real way to prevent tilting in poker is being really deeply aware of your (true) skills and that the game is long term one. If you study daily, keep reviewing your game and play poker always with a clear strategic mind, you make the tilt harder to happen. If it does anyway, you know how to react.

Poker tilt: how to beat it

It’s not sexy, it’s not funny, but the only way to beat the variance and therefore face the negative moments with the good attitude, is studying poker a lot. A lot. Always reviews your game, always confront your plays with friends, forum users, the best critical part of yourself. see our poker strategy tips!

Never think you can master a particular situation, without going over it many times. Self made poker players with millions in the bank do tilt, do understand the variance and they do keep on studying every given day.

That’s the only way to make money in poker and preserve your mind from a slow sneaky destruction made by coolers and bad beats.

Remember that poker is your friend whether you are winning or losing; exact all the money you deserve (as long as you truly work hard for that) necessarily goes through negative periods, but strong players know that it can and will happen and know how to overcome bad situations.