[keikiwai]

Nice post.

For me the biggest factor in being able to play hands w/o putting my ego into it is my bank roll.

I started w/ $10 no-deposit bonus. I hit an $8 downswing at $20 to bring me to $12 playing $0.05/$0.10 LHE. Now this sounds like nothing, especially since I didn't have to risk ANYTHING for the bonus..... but wait there was my ego! I remember I basically sat down one night and said I'm just gonna play until I lose all the money and get it over with... luckily I broke even and at 5am went to sleep. That was the breaking point. I made a come back, and now I play 2/4 LHE at party.

Now, if I have a few hundred dollar downswing I don't even sweat because my bankroll is big enough to not have to worry about. Plus I have the cushion of going down in multiple limits in case of a drastic downswing.

Seeing all the money in my Neteller account makes all the difference to me in being able to evaluate hands logically and not emotionally...

That being said I still TILT sometimes. It's a hard skill to master.

I think the first step in getting to what you are talking about is playing w/o fear. And busting out is my biggest fear and probably most peoples... luckily you can take care of that by being bank rolled correctly..

The second biggest fear (or first I guess) for many people is being looked at as a "fish" or "bad poker player" or "weak tight" or whatever it is you don't want people to think you are..... now overcoming this, and being able to detach yourself from this can be very difficult.... I think everyone has different ways to try to get over this...

Next, and a HUGE one, must be being results oriented. After all we're all in the game to win money, but there is no better way to put your ego into the game than by trying to make money.... you have to play well w/o being results oriented, now that's even harder, and many people don't even realize or think it's a probem when they think about their BB/100 as they sit at the table....

Here's to floating above the big table!