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 Perception in the game of Baccarat

A huge, deep and important subject in relation to gambling.  Most people will overlook it, not consider it or pay very little value to this extremely important subject.

Perception Equals Projection

Things are not always as they seem.  I am referring to reality, facts and the norm.  Not just in gambling, but in most things-but for sake of simplicity, I will stick to gambling with this.  Marketers, Casinos, Casino Hosts, Gambling Junket Operators, System Inventors and Sellers and everyone trying to sell something or convince the gambler of something, rely on this very thing to make you see things the way they want you to see them.  And almost every single time, those things will not be in your favor or within the complete set of factual reality.  It will almost every time, benefit those people and their agenda rather than the player.  Of course, after all, it is just business. 

You can meet someone and they can tell you everything you want to hear without any truth.  There are no rules, regulations or laws (at least in the USA) saying that an entity selling something has to advertise, disclose and divulge the real truth about what they are selling or providing with anything to do along side of gambling.  I am not talking about pharmaceutical drugs, item or food products, I am talking about gambling, systems, gambling tutors, methods, junket trips, etc., etc., and so on.  Those types of people can give off any perception they want. 

Here, let me break it down for you.  The world we see is generally a reflection of who we are and what we believe.  The self-fulfilling prophecy lays at the foundation of this exact concept.  A statement that alters actions, therefore becomes truth to the person at the receiving end of it.  I have said in the past and I will repeat it once again.  Someone that thinks their night is going to play out terribly will subconsciously change their actions so that this prediction is fulfilled by their very own actions!  Often the way we perceive gambling is not reality, it is perception.  Then our perception is colored by how we want it rather than simply the way it is.   

The key to proper perception in gambling, IMO, would be to include remaining completely conscious of the fact that perception does influence your wagering and desires while playing.  Take that sentence/statement I just wrote any way you would like.  But, if you look at that statement with a complete open and neutral mind frame, you will have to agree with what I just wrote.  Example, if you say all side wagers such as the 3-Card 8-9 paying 200 to 1 or the 3-Card Fortune 7 paying 40 to 1 are sucker bets and convince yourself of that very thing, you will not wager those.  Then you just happen to be sitting at a baccarat shoe where two 3-Card 8-9 hands are presented as well as 6 or 7 Fortune 7s, etc.  While your perception of those side bets convinced yourself of the casino having the upper hand and you would lose your bets, you did not wager on any of them.  Meanwhile, other players won tens of thousands of dollars with very little invested in the risk.

Again, and on the other hand, the perception of those players that won thousands and thousands of dollars with those side bets, might allow their perception to get out of control and believe that they now have the power to win and win and win and keep winning with those very same wagers.  Same thing with believing in streaks or alternating chops, etc., etc.

So, what I am trying to say is that perception drives the players behavior, desires and thoughts with most all wagering.  Sitting there at a casino and air-betting or mind-wagering or whatever you might label it, and winning wagers without actually having your chips out there, will only alter your perception and what you should actually be considering and believing.  I hope that is simple enough to understand because I really do feel that is the way it is after so many years of witnessing the good and the bad at the tables.

When the truth is blurred by misinformation and misnomers and then you believe in those very things, perception becomes reality and all is lost.  Period! What people perceive is going to be what they believe.  And that is based on what they visually see and what they hear at that instant time.  Both of those will then translate into what they will think, equaling their perception.

Is there a defense?  Is there a way around not getting sucked in?  Most all of the time you cannot control what happens at the baccarat table, but you can always control your reaction.  I am not talking about high-fiving or shouting for a monkey and getting one, I am referring to believing that you have the power to control, decipher and schedule wagers that the shoe will configure to rather than your wagering configuring to the shoe"s presentments.  Remember that.

Change the way you look at the presentments of the shoe and what it is actually doing, rather than what it should or could be doing.  Then maybe the presentments will change in your vision.  SHOULD and COULD means nothing in great baccarat play.  However, what the shoe is doing is what you need to be aligned with.  That is factual and probably the strongest trigger to get you on the positive side rather than the negative side of the game.

Falling prey to false perception, false illusion and the many fallacies of the game are all so visually pretty and mouth watering at times, but your perception will work against you each and every session for the greatest part or at least, for the most important part of it anyway.   

Think what you will, but perception is a HUGE part of the game of baccarat.