Poker faces are a challenge for lots of people, but there are ways to improve yours, by being able to keep your cool, stay expressionless and avoid showing your position. With this skill making Poker World Champions millions of dollars. A poker face can also be of utmost importance in everyday life too.

Therefore TouchCasino.com collated top tips on how to be an expert at Poker, this was done via their knowledge and in collaboration with celebrity psychic and body language expert, Inbaal.

Tips/Expert comment:
“Never is our body language scrutinized as closely as during a Poker game. All the other players are checking you out, and every little wink or gesture can feel like a giveaway.

The secret to the perfect Poker face, and Poker pose, is in being totally neutral. You’ve got to strive to appear not too happy, but not too sad. You can’t seem nervous, but equally don’t want to appear disengaged. Keeping all your systems calm, including breathing and blinking is key. Striking the balance takes a lot of focus! Make sure you don’t appear like you’re concentrating too hard, either.”

The parts of the body that give away information and how to control them:

– Eyes
“The popularity of dark sunglasses around the Poker table tells us that it is no secret that eyes are the windows to the soul. In covering up the eyes, you’re already halfway to crafting the ideal Poker face. When you’re devoid of eyewear, people can see where you’re looking, who you’re looking at, and for how long.

You can hide your true feelings by doing your best to avoid looking at the other players, but if you commit to looking at anyone, let the look linger for a second or two. Sneaking fleeting glances at the other players, quickly checking them out one by one, that can appear very nervous, and not at all neutral. Whereas resting your eyes on each person in turn, seems more run of the mill and ordinary.

Even with shades on, you’ve still got to pay attention to your eyebrows, because they tell a story too. Keep them neutral – but not stiff. Keep your eyebrows apart, not close together in a quizzical expression. And under no circumstances should you narrow your eyes, as this makes you appear concerned and mistrustful, the opposite of calm. Letting your eyebrows do the talking is very revealing – raising them together to show surprise, or raising one at a time to signify a question. But a stiff face that’s hiding behind a forced mask of fake neutrality, comes across as very insincere and untrustworthy.”

– Lips:
“One of the hardest features to control, it’s so natural to show emotions using your mouth. From a smile, to open-mouthed astonishment, and even stressed lip-chewing, the mouth expresses things unintentionally. A full smile can signify joy or nerves, as can a half-smile, and pursed lips can signify distaste or even panic.

The most important thing in keeping your face truly Poker, is context – the eyes and the lips have to match. It’s hard to do, but to keep your mouth neutral, the best technique is to keep your thoughts neutral. Try and stop your mind from getting overly excited or overly stressed – this will help you play better, while at the same time not giving anything away.

And while we’re on the mouth – if you’re playing with your tongue and teeth to alleviate stress, even with your lips firmly shut, people can tell that you’re nervous.”

– Hands:
“Tapping, twiddling or cracking your knuckles are all signs of unease. On the other hand, stiff palms, with straight fingers faced down give off an air of panic. The ideal neutral hand pose is with fingers laced softly in front of your body, but this is impossible to achieve when playing a game involving your hands. If you’re holding items in your hands during the game, don’t play with them and don’t fiddle. Aim for an arched, soft, cupped hand, fingertips on the table, and keep them still even when you get excited or shocked.”

– Shoulders:
“The way you hold your shoulders can give away so much! When we feel tense or uneasy, our shoulders naturally roll upwards and forwards, and the distance between shoulder and ear shortens. If we try to bluff and appear calm, we can appear stiff and unnatural, and this sends warning signs to our opponents.

Practice this in the mirror ahead of the game, pull your shoulder blades together, then lower them both as far as you can, and then allow them to travel back up until it looks natural and you feel comfortable. This is the stance you should aim for. Keep both sides even.

Maintaining your whole pose neutral is a hard job! But this shoulder exercise will pay dividends in teaching your body to appear calm and collected in Poker games, job interviews and first dates.”