I'll make this as short as possible, since I don't like writing a lot and you don't liker reading a lot and most lengthy essays are about embellishment rather than content. Also, it's about time I contributed to the BC, since I owe it everything in one way or another.

*Disclaimer* This does not apply to those of you who are so underdeveloped as players that your B game is extremely unprofitable.

Those of you who stop playing when you aren't playing your best shouldn't.

Consider this: What is the role of the master in the student/master relationship? The master is to point out the "technical" flaws of the student and thereby aid in the greater understanding of that which is correct. In the case of us poker players, we rarely have masters. But, given enough time, we could eventually learn just about all we could about this game.

So we must be our own masters. We must hold ourselves accountable for our mistakes. We poker players are constantly subjecting ourselves to performing at a high level (playing our A games), but we often say we should stop when we are not. If we played any athletic event, or did anything remotely competitive, and decided that mid-performance we should stop because we are not doing our best, we would be the worst players in the history of that event. So why do we let ourselves get away with it?

Playing less than optimally, or making mistakes, is the easiest way to get better as a player.

This is probably rather controversial, so it must be qualified so there isn't any misunderstanding. Spew is not good. Getting it in when you're never ahead is not a positive thing. But, it does provide the opportunity for something positive to occur. Think about it. You stack off light vs. a nit. You're pissed. Your emotions are raging. You can't separate this feeling of despair from the event, when in actuality they are entirely separate. Your emotional attachment to your money fuels your anger in almost every case. Your body feels mad, but your mind has the ability to independently observe the event for what it actually was. You made a series of bets/checks/calls/raises that resulted in this dependent event. You now have the chance to criticize yourself in the same way the master. You can consider all the variables.

This goes even further, as when you are not in the correct "state of mind" you have the same chance. You can independently examine your mental constructs and determine what it is that is keeping you from being clear-headed. You can then correct the problem, or acknowledge it as a mistake and learn from it. It is so simple to play optimally when you make a conscious effort to be aware of anything your can. I am not just saying "learn from your mistakes". I am saying "control your mind to evaluate your actions and understand yourself so you can better understand your behavior."

So, the next time you're on tilt, figure out why. The answer will typically have nothing to do with how you played the poker hand (but instead the result), when in reality that is all we are concerned with as poker players. Just figure it out! You are intelligent to understand what is is you're thinking, and figuring out the "why" is such an enlightening and life-changing experience. Sure, someone can help your with this, but you never need any help understanding why your emotions occur the way they do.

Now a lot of our problems can be fixed with study and the like, but it is more effective, in my opinion, to understand the event in the immediate aftermath. So, if you want to stop playing to think about what happened, ACTUALLY THINK ABOUT IT and not just stew over it, then please do. But don't quit because you're on tilt. Figure out why you're on tilt and fix it. We humans cannot deny our emotions exist, but we cannot manage them properly either without some real attempts at manipulation once they occur. This also aids in the prevention of severe reactions.

Poker player, know thyself.