Hi everybody,

I write again with no poker news to tell. Why? Because I've taken a break for a few days, hoping to leave mi tilt apart.
During this time I have had time to review HHs, watch videos and read. One of the things I liked the most (and was yet helpful) was this article from AJKHoosier1.

My Name is Alex Kamberis & I'm on the Worst Downswing of My Career

Sometimes poker really sucks.
I mean, unless your name is Phil Ivey, sometimes poker REALLY sucks. If your name IS Phil Ivey, you can probably just go ahead and skip this article - thanks for reading, Phil, it’s an honor.
I’m writing this, my first article for BLUFF, in the middle of the worst downswing of my career. Now, it’s admittedly pretty big, but it’s not huge - since going deep-ish in the PCA this year, I’m down approximately $100,000 playing poker. Really, this isn’t much, given that some of it comes from a single $25,000 tournament (at the NAPT Venetian series) and some more from $25/$50 cash games, but still, it qualifies as my biggest downswing ever. Since this is my first article, it feels like it would be almost irresponsible to talk about anything else but just that - losing. This issue of BLUFF alone contains probably a few articles discussing, in some way, shape or form, how to win at poker. My goal here is to sneak one in about how to LOSE at poker, because for any wannabe professional, it’s just as important. I’ve broken down my thoughts on this subject, thoughts that become more prevalent after every losing session, into three basic ‘lessons’ regarding downswings and difficult losses.
LESSON #1: Who do you think you are?
The very best poker players in the world suffer terrible downswings.
Let me repeat that.
THE VERY BEST poker players in the world suffer TERRIBLE downswings.
So, really, what makes you think that you shouldn’t? Are you some kind of godly creature that simply never loses in any game you play, without exception? I thought I told you to stop reading, Phil.
Poker is unlike the vast majority of “competitions” in that the best players win at rates that usually significantly differ from what their edge in skill provides. I don’t need to tell you that poker is a game that involves an extraordinary amount of chance ... or do I? While I doubt I could get a quote out of any of them, I’m quite sure there are still a handful of well-known professionals that feel they will NEVER experience an abnormally bad downswing. This group includes mostly players who ran far above expectations to start their career (a group that includes myself) and have become jaded to the realities of the game. The fact is, that you are NOT going to be the one example of a player who has a lasting, successful career without experiencing a single major downswing. It just plain does not happen - the sooner you accept that fact, the better. Therefore, the key to a healthy state of mind is managing your...
LESSON #2: Expectations
One of the biggest winners in online poker history, Dusty “Leatherass” Schmidt, recently wrote a short book about his experiences in poker. While I can’t claim to have read it cover to cover, a friend of mine gave me a heads-up on a quote from it that he really enjoyed. Basically, Leatherass hired a sports psychologist to discuss the emotional effects of poker and how to best control them. The expert told him something along the lines of, “You obviously EXPECT to have downswings, so why would you ever be upset when you do?” Well, that sure makes sense, and it almost makes you feel like an idiot for ever letting those things get to you.
The key is to always be looking at your career as an overall timeline, not from spike to spike. The way you should think of it is to consider yourself a poker-playing machine. You are booted up on the first day of your career and you shut down when you retire. However much you win over the course of a lifetime, so be it. In between will be massive upswings, massive downswings, and just about everything in the middle, but all that matters is that ultimate bottom line.
Never let what you KNOW to be a natural downswing affect your overall view of the game. Likewise, never let an upswing lull you into a false sense of security. To be honest, I’ve been prone to the latter myself, and it can make things a lot harder when the inevitable downswing occurs. The first couple years of my poker career went better than anyone’s should. When you start off a big winner, you expect to always be a big winner, because it’s all you know. Poker has a funny way of bringing you back down to earth just when you feel like you’re floating on air.
In other words, expect to win, but don’t expect to win every day.
LESSON #3: Remembering to forget / “What doesn’t kill you...”
Immediately before I wrote this article, I had a losing poker session, bricking an entire afternoon’s worth of online tournaments. After I finish this article, there’s a decent chance I’ll start up what will eventually be another losing session, this time at the cash tables. Tomorrow, there’s a pretty good chance that I’ll cap off the weekend with another loss.
What, you think I should stop?
The past few months I’ve run drastically below my “all-in EV” (the amount one wins or loses if every showdown plays out according to its expected value) in every cash game I’ve played. I’ve bubbled the money and/or the final table of multiple huge online tournaments in just about every way possible; insane bad beats, ridiculous coolers, and of course, the occasional misstep. Obviously there are some hands or moments that hurt more than others, and when it comes down to it, we aren’t actually poker playing robots. I mean, you’re reading an article by someone who once threw a mouse across the room when he lost aces to queens for an enormous pot on the final table bubble of an $1,000 online tournament. Funny story, it happened to hit a light hanging from my ceiling, and I cut my hand cleaning up the glass ... lesson learned?.
Now, I know what you’re thinking: “THIS guy is trying to tell ME not to be affected by losing? Well, no, I’m not. If Adam Morrison can cry on national television after Gonzaga loses an NCAA tournament game, then you damn sure can bang your first on the table when you lose AK to 7-2 on the final table bubble of a tournament. There’s nothing wrong with getting momentarily upset about these things — in fact, there’d be something wrong with NOT getting upset about them. What matters is that you move on and that your play remains constant. With all the tough beats and brutal losses I’ve taken, I’m sure I’ve gone to sleep with a frown more than a few times lately. However, I can honestly say that I NEVER wake up the next day still upset, dwelling on what might have been the night before. This is a pretty major point of pride for me, and should be for you as well. As poker players, if all we are concerned with is our bottom line, then the only session we should be concerned with is our NEXT session.
So get over it! While no part of this article is anything too revolutionary, I know it’s helped me personally to put down on paper how I should be thinking, providing myself and all those who are reading a guideline for failing successfully. Maybe like me, you can come back to this article during your next major downswing, and make sure that you are abiding by these ‘rules of losing.’ If you are mentally well equipped to handle downswings, then those downswings will inevitably become briefer and rarer. Best of luck to all of you, both on and off the tables.

Source: http://www.bluffmagazine.com/magazine/My-Name-is-Alex-Kamberis-%26-I%27m-on-the-Worst-Downswing-of-My-Career-Alex-Kamberis-2010.htm

Hope you found it as useful as me. After this I'm ready to come back to crush the field and fight for a CardMaster seat.

GL everybody and see you soon.