Confidence

[PokerProdigy]

I never here anybody talk about confidence on this forum. Do you guys think that it has any importance in poker? It seems like it's a big component in sports. For example, I've played basketball my whole life, and when I don't feel confident I underperform, and I wonder whether this also happens in poker [img]/images/graemlins/confused.gif[/img]

Also, feel free to offer any advice, websites, book recommendations, etc... that talk about confidence and how it relates psychology and to success in overall life.

P.S. I would really like to hear Dr. Al's opinion on this topic.

[Alex/Mugaaz]

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I never here anybody talk about confidence on this forum. Do you guys think that it has any importance in poker? It seems like it's a big component in sports. For example, I've played basketball my whole life, and when I don't feel confident I underperform, and I wonder whether this also happens in poker [img]/images/graemlins/confused.gif[/img]

Also, feel free to offer any advice, websites, book recommendations, etc... that talk about confidence and how it relates psychology and to success in overall life.

P.S. I would really like to hear Dr. Al's opinion on this topic.

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I think confidence matters less in poker than it does in most endeavors. It only comes into play when people are playing above their bankroll and pushing small edges, playing very high stakes games even if they are bankrolled, or make a play that is normally very stupid but correct if they read the opponent accurately.

In fact I think the worst thing for 99.999% of people here would be having confidence in their poker ability.

[bmxreed36]

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I think confidence matters less in poker than it does in most endeavors. It only comes into play when people are playing above their bankroll and pushing small edges, playing very high stakes games even if they are bankrolled, or make a play that is normally very stupid but correct if they read the opponent accurately.

In fact I think the worst thing for 99.999% of people here would be having confidence in their poker ability.


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I guess I'd disagree here as I think confidence is very helpful and even a key tool to winning. Not being confident in your reads or amount of skill leads to weak/passive play and generally speaking, aggression is a great tool in poker. When I have a couple losing days and get back to work not feeling sure that I can beat it, I find myself missing bets and folding at bad times. But most importantly, I think confidence breeds enthusiasm which leads to paying more attention and putting your full effort into each hand.

[Alex/Mugaaz]

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I think confidence matters less in poker than it does in most endeavors. It only comes into play when people are playing above their bankroll and pushing small edges, playing very high stakes games even if they are bankrolled, or make a play that is normally very stupid but correct if they read the opponent accurately.

In fact I think the worst thing for 99.999% of people here would be having confidence in their poker ability.


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I guess I'd disagree here as I think confidence is very helpful and even a key tool to winning. Not being confident in your reads or amount of skill leads to weak/passive play and generally speaking, aggression is a great tool in poker. When I have a couple losing days and get back to work not feeling sure that I can beat it, I find myself missing bets and folding at bad times. But most importantly, I think confidence breeds enthusiasm which leads to paying more attention and putting your full effort into each hand.

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What does confidence have to do with being weak tight? Most of the moves I make I have a clear understanding they make money, not doing them is in the same league as not picking up a $20 bill. The only time confidence effects my game is when I have a lukewarm read and I'm not sure it's worth altering my normal play in that situation.

[intheflatfield]

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I think confidence matters less in poker than it does in most endeavors. It only comes into play when people are playing above their bankroll and pushing small edges, playing very high stakes games even if they are bankrolled, or make a play that is normally very stupid but correct if they read the opponent accurately.

In fact I think the worst thing for 99.999% of people here would be having confidence in their poker ability.



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I guess I'd disagree here as I think confidence is very helpful and even a key tool to winning. Not being confident in your reads or amount of skill leads to weak/passive play and generally speaking, aggression is a great tool in poker. When I have a couple losing days and get back to work not feeling sure that I can beat it, I find myself missing bets and folding at bad times. But most importantly, I think confidence breeds enthusiasm which leads to paying more attention and putting your full effort into each hand.


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What does confidence have to do with being weak tight? Most of the moves I make I have a clear understanding they make money, not doing them is in the same league as not picking up a $20 bill. The only time confidence effects my game is when I have a lukewarm read and I'm not sure it's worth altering my normal play in that situation.

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I don't see how you can reasonably make the statement that confidence is not a major assett to a winning player.

A - people around the table p/u on it and fold in marginal situations when they might otherwise call

B - take three bad beats within 5 hands for all you're chips and see how confidently you play.

C - When one is confident about his reads, he tends to be much more assertive and agressive. Last time I heard, that whole "agression" thing is pretty important as well.

Confidence is not "over-confidence"! You have to be confident in your reads, in your ability and in whatever tactics you're choosing to use at any give table. This talk of confidence being a bad thing for poker players is crazy.

I'd much rather be the confident aggressor at the table, than the wishy-washy limper.

[Marlow]

Last week I was tired and pushed in for my whole stack with the second nuts. I basically misread the board and got cleaned out. When I was anylyzing it afterwards, I realized that there are literally dozens of considerations that we make when we make a poker decision. We have to be confident in all but only one or two in order to make a good decision (and that's tricky enough!). So if I'm a newbie, I've got to be confident that I can read the board before I can even think about how to calculate odds, etc. So confidence is a complicated cognitive function that has many many variables that we can't and don't even want to be conscious of.

[Poldi]

I think confidence is one of the key elements to become a great player, no matter which sport. I am sure the same is true for poker.
As you can lose money in poker, too much confidence is also the downfall for many many players.

[Marlow]

Incredibly, I was planning on posting here on this very subject this morning. Serious mind-meld, PokerProdigy!

If you look at top people in any competitive endeavor, you will always find confidence. In my experience, I have never encountered a winning competitor who is not confident in his or her skills.

When Lance Armstrong wins 7 Tours by usually 5 minutes or less (a MAJOR gap, BTW) than his closest rival, he has done so by pressing every edge that he has. But if he were to race against me and not press ANY of these edges, he'd still crush me, even if I was a really good amateur cyclist. If I were to play a top poker pro in a heads up-match, however, I might win. In fact, I would most certainly win if he or she were playing their "C" game and I was on my "A" game. You simply can't give anything away in this game. If you do, you're toast. Luck is the great equalizer.

And this is where confidence becomes even more key in poker than it is in other sports: confidence allows you to play your "A" game by keeping you near or in the zone. If I'm not secure in my knowledge, I can't make the kinds of complicated decisions I'm forced to make at the poker table.

Marlow

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Luck is the great equalizer.

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Marlow, that was a great post.