I think this is a must read book for any poker player, who wants to become successful at this game. It is useful, practical and easy to read. This book will give you insights that can truly take your game to the next level. If you are playing poker and have been stuck at the same level for a while or want to read a book that can help you dramatically improve your game then this book is for you.
In The Mental Game of Poker 2, author and renowned poker mental game coach Jared Tendler breaks down the zone and delivers actionable steps to help players get there consistently. He demystifies the zone, and for the first time, brings logic and order to this previously misunderstood concept. This book provides proven strategies to:
- Play poker longer and across more online tables
- Improve decision making
- Learn faster
- Eliminate C-game mistakes
- Increase focus and discipline
The Mental Game of Poker 2 expands on the psychological strategies and theories from Tendler’s groundbreaking book, The Mental Game of Poker, which cracked the code on managing tilt and has helped thousands of players eliminate mental leaks from their games. Like the first book, The Mental Game of Poker 2 is a must have resource for every poker player who is serious about improving.
Click here to get this book from Amazon! Read it, study it, take notes in your poker journal, do the exercises from the book and it’s guaranteed that your poker mindset will improve.
Note: I’ll earn a referral fee if you purchase from Amazon, but it comes at no extra cost to you.
Here are my favorite 20 quotes from The Mental Game Of Poker 2. Enjoy!
1. In poker, you can increase your chances of getting into the zone by developing and maintaining consistent routines. When you get into the zone more frequently as a result of your routine, a causal relationship can grow between them. When this association becomes strong enough, you’ll begin to anticipate playing in the zone just by starting your routine.
2. Injecting inspiration: Sometimes remembering your goals is not enough; you may need a stronger dose of inspiration. Fortunately, we are often inspired by the same thing over and over again. Be prepared with a sampling of things that inspire you: a meaningful song, a quote from a great athlete, a clip from a favorite movie, footage from a championship victory, or a phrase you say to yourself.
3. Some amount of your mental energy is burned up with every decision you make at the poker table – tough or easy. Therefore, if you play long enough, at some point you will fall out of the zone simply because you have depleted your energy. When you notice that you’ve started to feel tired, it’s a great time to push through and attempt to play in the zone a little longer. This builds mental endurance, so that over time you’ll be able to play longer and endure more tough decisions before fatigue sets in.
4. Keep in mind that how you study can have this multiplying effect as well. Active study, such as taking notes and asking a coach questions, can be worth more than just passively watching a video or reading an article.
5. If you are unsure of what to work on in your game, your C-game will be the most beneficial and rewarding place to start. It’s also the simplest. Learning can be overwhelming, daunting, and complex at times. Knowing you can always focus on the three or four worst things in your game gives you a reliable and easy starting point.
6. Without luck, bad players wouldn’t even play and poker would stop being profitable.
7. It’s natural to get a little down when you make a mistake or experience failure. What’s most important is how you recover from it. Does the disappointment fuel you to work harder and to make the most out of the mistake, or do you get stuck and allow those negative feelings to linger? Failure provides a great opportunity to learn because it highlights the limitations in your capabilities. Only when you can learn from those limitations will you be able to truly push your game higher.
8. Going with your gut often means folding, which means you may never find out whether or not it was right. This requires you to have a high tolerance for uncertainty. That uncertainty can be so difficult for some players to deal with that even when their gut says to fold, they’ll call just so they can avoid feeling uncertain.
9. The first step to becoming more self-disciplined is to accept responsibility and acknowledge that your success is entirely on you. You are the only one responsible for your goals, time, and work ethic. If you keep relying on external things or hoping that someone or something else will drive your success, you will never become self-disciplined. Even if you’re getting staked, coached, or sponsored, success is still ultimately in your hands.
10. Work hard to recognize the instances where you’re blaming someone or something else, and redirect the responsibility back on to yourself. When you can accept blame and acknowledge your weaknesses, only then can you start to improve.
11. Athletes ice and stretch their muscles after playing to help their bodies recover more quickly. Poker players who grind a lot of poker need to help their minds recover after long sessions by taking notes after they finish playing. Writing out their experiences at the table frees their mind from having to grind on poker long after they’re done playing
12. The reality is that every poker player on the planet has weaknesses in their game. Only when you’re realistic about your game are you in the best position to succeed in the long term.
13. Take time off. Don’t expect to be able to play poker every day. Sure, you can go stretches of time, maybe a month playing every day, but at some point your mind will start to break down. Take, on average, one day off per week, five days off per month, and five days in a row off per quarter.
Injecting Logic Quotes:
14. When you get overconfident on an upswing and start playing too many hands: The quickest way to lose the money I just made is to play poorly. I need to make adjustments, and not assume I’m going to win every hand I play. That’s impossible.
15. When you start to feel pressure as you get close to the final table: Pressure is fuel to perform at my absolute best. No matter what happens, I’ll walk away feeling the best if I played the best. I can’t control the outcome entirely, I can only control how I play.
16. The past is over and no matter how much I think about it, I can’t change it. I can only control what I do next.
17. If I want to play high-quality poker for a long time, I have to do the work. Playing in the zone is earned, not automatic.
18. Taking regular breaks keeps me playing at a high level and is how I will be most profitable over the long term.
19. My ideal future won’t become a reality if I don’t concentrate on what I have control of in the present.
20. I can’t control all aspects of the game. I have to take what the game gives me, adjust, and steadily climb my way back into the flow of the action and the zone.
Click here to get this book from Amazon!
Note: Click here to read the top 20 quotes from Jared Tendler’s first book: The Mental Game of Poker 1!