I have mild cases of both ADHD and Aspergers so boredom is by far my biggest leak when I'm 'card dead' (I start to gamble for action, leading to disasterous results). My VPIP slowly increases from 16% to 35%+ over a session. I become results-oriented just brcause of impatience.

(It amazes me how live players handle the snails-pace of live play ..I would probably get drunk).

There's been a few threads on how to deal with boredom when 'card dead', with suggestions:
1. Multi-Table
2. Zoom Poker
3. When you're out of a hand, observe the play very closely (as if you're still in the hand)
4. Write down & analyze your previous hand when you're out of a hand

#3 seems like the best choice as you're learning about the other players while reducing boredom.

Does anyone know of any other "mind tricks" to deal with boredom? (one of my friends always has a movie playing in a side-window when he plays lol)

Do either of the following books discuss patience & boredom?
- Tendler's "Mental Game"
- Phillip's two "Zen Poker" books
(I quickly skimmed Tendler but I didn't notice much discussion of patience & boredom)

1 for sure, just play more tables

It's online...the games will be there later. Go outside. Seriously.

Live is easy enough to deal with by actually *gasp* talking to others at the table.

Lol yeah going outside would do me wonders after 8-10 hour sessions ..no wonder I'm bored.

Yeah when I play online and am card dead I usually just add a couple more tables. Also, I'll usually have a podcast or YouTube/twitch stream going behind all that so I can have a little something to do while waiting for hands. Analysis of opponents is also a good idea, but I find that doesn't really cure the boredom after 100+ hands of watching them play

Try to study away from the table more. Having your game constantly progress and being aware of more details at the tables should prevent you from being bored. Check out any of the great mental game literature available now.

Listen to podcasts. Preferably poker ones.
https://www.youtube.com/user/joeingram1

Read while you're playing, PS beeps when action is on you.

I think it's bad advice for people to say you should do "something that gets your attention away from the tables". Like adding more tables then your comfortable with, or watch a movie. In most pokerbooks, both mental and strategy books you will be advised differently.

It's just pushing away the problem, and not do anything about it, so it will come back again. You always want to make the best decisions, that's what makes your A-game. The best decision you can make when dealt crap hands is to fold. So if you keep doing that, you are going to make the best decision, and increasing your A-game, and in the end also your WR.

If you feel you're playing anything other then your A-game, just quit or take a break and come back some other time. Positive thing is that you found your problem, why would you keep playing if you know you can play better when you are not bored. Do something else, and come back again when you are feeling better.

Great advice, thanks. Have the discipline to quit when I realize that I'm not fully into the game. I always feel better when I start fresh. I'm an emotional, not logical person so this will take some practice.

shorter sessions

I multi-table SnGs for fun and have to focus on almost everything, so zero chance of me getting bored.

When I used to play cash games exclusively I would multi-table (6-10 tables) and read comics in digital format or watch TV shows/movies. The only issue with watching stuff is I found I was constantly having to pause it to focus on important decisions/action or go back because I missed a bit while I was focused on the poker.

I never find doing other stuff a distraction because I'm way more caught up in the poker, but I used to love reading comic books while grinding. I would also say that I feel at times it helped me to stay chilled and wait for decent spots over long periods rather than push marginal hands.

I usually time my sessions to last between 30-45 minutes and take breaks to do something else, unless it is passed 1 AM my time. PStars becomes mostly a reg and nit pond after 1 AM, so I go to bed.