Tight Aggressive Time Management
Today, I got something to prove – every single move was going to count.
It’s game 3 (of an undetermined series) I’m playing against my young opponent, the bright co-op student. He has demonstrated superior opening knowledge and flawless tactics. The record is 0-2 in his favour – it’s time for me to bring it on.
Perhaps he was going easy on me today, just to make things interesting. I, myself, was giving about 90% concentration level and actually trying to be intelligent with my moves, rather than my usual experimental ho-hum effort. I rocked him through superior board positions and moves that I would classify as “tight-aggressive.
The term “tight-aggressive” usually refers to a style of poker playing that is about being efficient: folding inferior hands and playing better hands harder. The downside of this style of play is that it can become predictable but it is effective against the mediocre strategy of unenlightened players. You get respect at the table for being tight-aggressive.
It is a simple idea really – and translates naturally to time management: invest in activity that has higher ROI (return-on-investment). For example, exercising and studying hard for your school work is certainly higher ROI, say, compared to watching TV and gambling at the casino.
Tight-aggressive is about discipline. Playing this style in hold’em poker requires you to fold a fair number of hands pre-flop. It takes a fair amount of resolve in order to stop yourself from playing unprofitable, “interesting” hands, just to get some action flowing. Perhaps this is where the analogy to time management falls apart, but the discipline needed to keep time is just as critical.
I certainly didn’t expect a game of chess to be so deep and educational… rather surprising since I don’t consider boardgaming to be a particularly high-ROI activity (even though I enjoy it immensely).
(Chess-playing grandmaster originally from http://flickr.com/photos/meganpru/57943941/)
