How do great poker players make better decisions?

Really great players make better decisions more regularly than players of more average ability. Of course, there are many reasons why successful players make better decisions, but in part, it is because they are able to connect more closely with those constructive subconscious feelings and signals we refer to as “gut feeling.”

Ironically, it was the master of non-verbal tells himself, Marc Salem, who gave me the most insightful piece of indirect information when I interviewed him for Poker Wizards. When I asked him about the significance of the inner voice, he pointed out that gut feeling has tremendous significance “if you are smart enough to recognize it.”  It wasn’t until later when I listened to the recording that I realized how rare he thinks it is for a person to actually connect with his true gut feeling. That begs the question:

Is that little voice that says “Call,” your gut feeling, or is it perhaps driven by other inner desires such as your need to win or your desire to prove your superiority? Or could it be a more complex, self-destructive urge that tells you to call when you know you shouldn’t?

The better players understand the differing internal signals they’re getting and know which ones to heed and which to ignore. That’s all you have to figure out!

Warwick Dunnett