Here's a challenge....

[eandre]

I believe that blackjack is as much a mental exercise as it is a mathematical system. What I'm suggesting is on your next visit to a casino, try to make the following adjustments to your game and let the forum know how it turns out.
Once you find the right table(low stakes), adequate pen, friendly dealer, unattentive pit supervision, and your third base seat, then buy in for $100. Don't worry, you can buy in as often as needed...the pit loves that. Now relax, quit trying so hard,relax and just think win. Play your game but don't sweat the money. You just don't care about the money...you must not care about the money. Don't worry that you just lost 10 in a row...trust the odds, trust you ability. Use every trick in your arsenal and spread as wide as you can get away with...1-30, 1-50. Pretend your don't care, you are a wild ass gambler.
As silly as all this seems, I suspect that the majority of players who do not usually play like this will see some measure of success or at least will have more fun playing.
Before you post back and blast me, try it. Don't worry about how much you are winning or losing, "God, I'm up $300, time to quit". "God Eandre is such an ass, I'm losing". Relax and play, your skills should carry you on to a win.
I play every session with this attitude and my personality does not change even when I flush big big money. I simply think "who cares, I'll win it back soon". This mental approach did more for my game then anything else. Without it, I would have burned out a long time ago.

 

[blackjack avenger]

The Calm Before The Storm!

Being calm while playing can come with experience.

However, if you spread and have large bets, given the low frequency of large bets they can still provide some excitement.

 

[mjbballar23]

I believe that blackjack is as much a mental exercise as it is a mathematical system. What I'm suggesting is on your next visit to a casino, try to make the following adjustments to your game and let the forum know how it turns out.
Once you find the right table(low stakes), adequate pen, friendly dealer, unattentive pit supervision, and your third base seat, then buy in for $100. Don't worry, you can buy in as often as needed...the pit loves that. Now relax, quit trying so hard,relax and just think win. Play your game but don't sweat the money. You just don't care about the money...you must not care about the money. Don't worry that you just lost 10 in a row...trust the odds, trust you ability. Use every trick in your arsenal and spread as wide as you can get away with...1-30, 1-50. Pretend your don't care, you are a wild ass gambler.
As silly as all this seems, I suspect that the majority of players who do not usually play like this will see some measure of success or at least will have more fun playing.
Before you post back and blast me, try it. Don't worry about how much you are winning or losing, "God, I'm up $300, time to quit". "God Eandre is such an ass, I'm losing". Relax and play, your skills should carry you on to a win.
I play every session with this attitude and my personality does not change even when I flush big big money. I simply think "who cares, I'll win it back soon". This mental approach did more for my game then anything else. Without it, I would have burned out a long time ago.

LOVE the advice. I play the same way. On the outside i show happiness or frustration just to look more like a gambler but on the inside my true emotion never changes.

 

[Bojack1]

I believe that blackjack is as much a mental exercise as it is a mathematical system. What I'm suggesting is on your next visit to a casino, try to make the following adjustments to your game and let the forum know how it turns out.
Once you find the right table(low stakes), adequate pen, friendly dealer, unattentive pit supervision, and your third base seat, then buy in for $100. Don't worry, you can buy in as often as needed...the pit loves that. Now relax, quit trying so hard,relax and just think win. Play your game but don't sweat the money. You just don't care about the money...you must not care about the money. Don't worry that you just lost 10 in a row...trust the odds, trust you ability. Use every trick in your arsenal and spread as wide as you can get away with...1-30, 1-50. Pretend your don't care, you are a wild ass gambler.
As silly as all this seems, I suspect that the majority of players who do not usually play like this will see some measure of success or at least will have more fun playing.
Before you post back and blast me, try it. Don't worry about how much you are winning or losing, "God, I'm up $300, time to quit". "God Eandre is such an ass, I'm losing". Relax and play, your skills should carry you on to a win.
I play every session with this attitude and my personality does not change even when I flush big big money. I simply think "who cares, I'll win it back soon". This mental approach did more for my game then anything else. Without it, I would have burned out a long time ago.

As much as I agree with this post, I find it disturbing that anyone that is an AP would think it as a challenge instead of it being just how its supposed to be. I have always said that most people don't truly trust the math involved or their own skills with there counting method, thus causing anxiety shifts with wins and losses. The problem with most aspiring AP's usually stems from the fact that most were just gamblers before finding out they could play with an advantage. Once an average gambler thinks he has an edge, he then thinks he should start making easy money. As all who truly play this game know, that is not the case. There are many arguments of whether card counting is still gambling and I can see both sides of that debate. But its not until an AP loses the gambler mentality that he will start his path towards a winning career. In my best guess the overwhelming amount of failed counters is due to the fact that they turn off reason and let emotion overcome them during the course of their playing. Most will credit skill for wins and bad luck or variance for losses, but I would be willing to bet that almost no one truly knows, although they should, which in turn undermines their play eventually. In most cases sooner then later.

I personally have no real love of being in a casino. If I couldn't play with an advantage and make money, I most likely would not step foot in one. It just so happens that many years ago I tapped into a fine source of income that leads me to be in a casino more than most. It has no emotional attachment as well it shouldn't as far as performing your job as an AP.

It comes down to these things that cause burnout and bad play as an AP:

1) Do not bet money you cannot afford to lose. Most fool themselves into thinking they are doing this but put it this way, if a gambling loss ever changes the way in which you live your life, even temporarily, you shouldn't be playing.

2) Truly know your AP method before trying to beat the casino. It seems too many are in a hurry to play for money and try to learn their craft in the casino. While I believe even after you are truly skilled at your system you will need the live casino experience to hone it properly, it is a huge mistake to try to just learn on the job. It will cost money and usually destroy confidence leading to anxiety and doubts while playing.

3) Don't play just for the sake of playing if you are serious about making money. For all those outside of strictly recreational players, find the best possible game to play. Too many players will only play whats directly in front of them whether it be good or bad. If you do that you can expect your results to match that of the game in which you are playing. Simply put, if you play a bad game don't expect too much. Laziness effects AP results as much as anything. Search out good games, or find a method to exploit what might be considered a bad one. Either way sitting on your ass playing all for marathon sessions isn't the way to go about it seriously.

 

[eandre]

Bojack if my posts don't look A/P...

Ahh, shucks, ya caught me! I mean 30+ years playing worldwide on my original bankroll. Damn, when am I going to earn my wings?

ps- Maybe you should re-think your play if you dislike casino's. I mean I have never had a bad day(in my mind) at a casino....not even at my only backoff...I scored high 5 figures and it was worth it.

 

[Bojack1]

Ahh, shucks, ya caught me! I mean 30+ years playing worldwide on my original bankroll. Damn, when am I going to earn my wings?

ps- Maybe you should re-think your play if you dislike casino's. I mean I have never had a bad day(in my mind) at a casino....not even at my only backoff...I scored high 5 figures and it was worth it.

My post was a general statement directed at only those that might fall into the category of it. If you are not that then I would not take what I said personal. Congratulations on being such an accomplished player, although there should not be the need to proclaim it, self praise does not a recommendation make. Nor does it prove anything over the internet. I believe that its possible to tell at least someones understanding of the game by the ideas they express and not their specific claims to fame.

As far as rethinking my play, that has nothing to do with my feelings about casinos. Don't get me wrong I enjoy what I do in a casino, but as I have stated in posts before, I get my kicks outside the casino. Inside its just a job that happens to take place in an atmosphere that doesn't give me any great thrills besides the fact of making money.

 

[eandre]

there should not be the need to proclaim it, self praise does not a recommendation make. Nor does it prove anything over the internet. I believe that its possible to tell at least someones understanding of the game by the ideas they express and not their specific claims to fame.

I was not proclaiming anything, you called my bet and I raised. The blackjack community as a whole has fallen prey to methods that were developed and refined over the last forty years... hey we didn't even have radial tires for cars back then, and color T.V. was in it's infantcy. Out dated????
Today's blackjack is not that of yesteryear and my posts are targeted at good players like yourself. I am attempting to draw out any information that may improve my play. Reading history has little value if you already learned from it and are using those lessons...I want new cutting edge stuff.
I'm not smart enough to develop it...help.