What is steaming?
Steaming is sudden loose, aggressive play right after a hand. The marker in your play is bigger bets and fewer folds, often within one or two hands of the trigger. It is the kind most people picture first, and the easiest to see in a hand history because the change is sharp.
What is running-bad tilt?
Running-bad tilt is the slow version. A long stretch of bad outcomes wears on your decisions gradually, and the marker in your play is the opposite of steaming: tight, scared folds and stalled aggression. Because it builds slowly, you rarely notice the day it began, so it helps to compare this month's fold counts with last month's.
What is injustice tilt?
Injustice tilt is focus on how unfair a hand was. The marker is replaying a hand in your head instead of playing the current one, so the next decision gets only part of your attention. The remedy is to log the hand in one line and defer the thinking until after the session.
What is entitlement tilt?
Entitlement tilt is a sense that you are owed a win after playing well. The marker is calling because "it is my turn". Pot odds and equity do not know whose turn it is, so the fixed check on the call is the answer: run the price, then decide.
What is mistake tilt?
Mistake tilt starts with one misplay that leads to more. The marker is trying to fix a mistake with a bigger risk. The way out is to separate the two hands: the mistake is already done, and the next hand is a new decision with its own price.
How do I match the kind to a response?
The response is a rule you wrote in advance. This table gives one routine step for each kind; adjust the step to your game.
| Kind | Marker in your play | One routine step |
|---|---|---|
| Steaming | Bigger bets, fewer folds | Scheduled break before the next hand |
| Running-bad tilt | Tight, scared folds | Review ten folds against the pot odds |
| Injustice tilt | Replaying the last hand | Log the hand in one line, review later |
| Entitlement tilt | Calling because it is your turn | Run the call price before every call |
| Mistake tilt | A bigger risk to fix an error | Write the mistake down and wait one hand |
Can one hand start more than one kind?
Yes, and the order matters. A single misplay can begin as mistake tilt, turn into injustice tilt when the next hand goes against you, and end as steaming when you start to force action. Looking for the first marker, not the loudest one, is what lets a rule break the chain early. In your session notes, mark the first hand where your play moved away from the plan and write down which kind it looked like. Over a few sessions the first marker is usually the same one, and that is the one to write a rule for.
How do I find my own kind?
Read the five kinds and mark the one or two you recognize in your own play.
For each, write the marker in your play you would see first.
Write one routine step for each, such as a break, a fixed question or a written stop rule.
Questions
- Which type is the most common?
- It varies by player. Your own hands show which one appears in your play, so the quickest way to find out is to review a few sessions for the markers above.
- Can more than one type show up in a session?
- Yes. One can lead into another, such as mistake tilt turning into steaming. Look for the first marker, because that is where a rule can break the chain.
- Do I need to know the type to respond?
- It helps, but a break and a fixed question work for all of them. Knowing the type lets you add a step that fits.