Playing against a different style

I was playing an even match against a player who is well-known for a fast and wild style. When the need for playing a defensive shot comes up, he will play one. But for the most part he will choose the first shot that comes to mind, no matter how crazy. This results in unpredictable outcomes that work for him as often as they work against him. For instance, on a few of his shots he chose to hit a bank shot across the table. He made it in, but his cue-ball was hooked so that he couldn't hit the next ball. On those shots I got ball in hand which gave me an advantage against him. That being said he balances his game well by making the simple shots almost every time.

In contrast, I like to play with more finesse and planning. Thinking out all of my options and carefully choosing the one that I feel is the best shot. An example is one of my two-way shots, where I not only plan what will happen to the cue-ball when I make the shot, but I also attempt to plan what will happen if I miss the shot. This way I can tweak difficult shots so that if I miss, then my opponent won't have an easy shot to get back into the game.This makes me a slower player than the average, but I feel that I am made stronger by this methodical approach. I try to keep this approach across all of my life.

When playing against someone who plays a different style though it is difficult to stay true to ones own though. I had to constantly remind myself to stay true to my style and keep my rhythm going at my pace, not at my opponents.

While it was tough, I managed to keep that pace, and ended up winning the match by seven balls!

In the real world we also have our rhythms, and we are also surrounded by people who have different ways and speeds of going about their day. It is easy to temporarily lose our own rhythms and take on someone else's, which will not benefit us. Keeping true to ourselves is important to improving and staying happy.