The
Bull And The Straw
By:
Rune Hansen (Z)
Most
people when something pushes them instinctively
push back. I guess it's our manhood that's
at stake. We got to defend our territory
or our women will run off with an intruder.
We have to stand up for our rights or
we'll get run over right?
I
call this the strategy of the bull, and
though the bull sure is a frightening
animal the toreador still gets it most
of the time. While the bull mentality
sure is frightening at first glance, it
is a loser over the long haul. And the
reason is that raw power is not enough
to win at poker. You need power and control.
Often
I hear people defend the bull strategy
by saying that it takes guts to play poker.
While I can agree on that, I still think
the bull strategy has a severe shortcoming
in that the bull doesn't pick its fights.
Whenever someone waves that red piece
of cloth - off goes the bull. It can't
help it. While the guts of the bull might
do you good in some situations, it is
no good unless you can constrain the power
until the brain tells you to release the
beast.
A
much more powerful strategy is that of
the straw. When the wind starts to blow,
the straw just bends backwards. The straw
doesn't really care. It can stand all
ways, but if pushed it just bends to ease
the strain. And when the storm is over
the straw is still standing at the same
spot in the field as before the storm.
This way of approaching an fight can probably
not be called gutsy. Yet the objective
of the exercise was achieved in both cases.
The bull hunted the man out of its field,
and the grass waited for the wind to blow
over its field. But the strategy of the
straw has some huge advantages compared
to that of the bull.
First
of all bending off doesn't take half the
energy the bull used up chasing the intruder
off the field. As soon as you've learned
how to act like a straw, it can be done
almost without effort. Secondly the bull
always runs the risk of running into an
enemy that is stronger then itself. The
straw doesn't really have this risk, as
it doesn't really fight, it just bends.
And as it keeps pushing slightly up against
the wind it's ready to move as soon as
the wind wears off. In poker you can rest
assured that sooner or later you will
run into a situation you just cannot beat.
It might be bad luck, strong opponents,
you losing your A-game or a combination
of both (usually it's pretty hard to pinpoint
precisely the cause of the misery in the
heat of the battle anyway), but when it
hits you, you will get sucked in and spit
out in small pieces if you try to bully
your way through. And as there is always
a higher limit to conquer, those who cannot
back off will get crushed sooner or later.
No matter how good a player you are it's
just a matter of time before they run
into an enemy they can't beat. You'll
need to bend, back off and throw the towel
in the ring when it's necessary, no matter
how humiliating you feel it is. If you
cannot do that, you will get yourself
in trouble.
How do you teach your self to bend? Well
for a start you should ask a friend to
help you with a little exercise. You stand
an arms length in front of each other.
Now she'll have to push you gently. The
first time she does this, you will probably
try to push back, and the push will be
somewhat unpleasant. Now instead of this,
try to follow the direction of the push,
so your upper body swings back when pushed.
This is actually a pleasant feeling (if
pushed with moderation). Now ever time
before you play poker you start off "swinging,"
pretending that you've been pushed gently.
Feel the flexibility of your body, and
bring that feeling to the table. The more
you do it, the easier it will be.
I
reckon some of you old-timers will ask
yourself what kind of hippie talk this
is. Personally I'll do whatever it takes,
including looking incredibly stupid every
now and then. And it is a strong belief
of mine that you will need this frame
of mind to overcome the long-term poker
ride. Courage is not enough. It's about
having the patience to endure the things
you cannot change, to have the courage
to influence the things you can, and to
have the insight to know the difference.
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