One of the things I have always loved about Chicagoans is their approach towards weather. Chicagoans have seen it all. Tornados, blizzards, drought, thundersnow—nothing is off the table when it comes to the weather in Chicago. The great thing about Chicagoans is we know how to take it all in stride.

We know it can snow it May, or be 85 degrees in March, and we have learned to take the good with the bad. You know the weather is getting weird when Chicagoans start to notice. Well, June has been weird in Chicago.

The Chicago area has gotten a ridiculous amount of rain in June, nearly twice as much rain as is normal. Even on the days where the rain has held off, the Sun has been nowhere to be found. Chicago is on pace to have the cloudiest June on record. Even Chicagoans can’t ignore it. I feel like most DFS players can relate.

I know Jeff Mans has never gone on a cold streak, but us mere mortals all know what it is like to go on a cold streak. All of your pitchers get shelled. Every hitter goes 0-for-4 while his teammates go off. You are in the money all day, only to watch your team fall just short when your pitcher gives up a late home run. We have all been there. Fortunately, I can help you get back on track.

Steve's Tips for dealing with a losing streak:

  1. Don’t Sweat the Small Stuff

I have always taken the approach that DFS should be about having fun first and about making money second. I like the challenge of putting together a lineup every day. I like discussing the matchups with my friends and readers. I like having a reason to watch the Padres play the Diamondbacks. I never deposit more money into my account than I am comfortable losing, and I usually only play about 10 percent of my bankroll in any given game, so losing streaks tend not to worry me too much.

  1. Keep the Faith

As Kacey Musgraves says, “if you’re ever gonna find a silver lining it’s got to be a cloudy day.” I guess that means there have been a ton of silver linings around Chicago lately. In all seriousness, we learned on Saturday one perfect, sunny day can make up for weeks of yuck. It almost made it worth it to slog around in the rain for a while. The same is even more true of DFS.

All it takes is one good day to completely turn things around in DFS. You don’t even have to hit the big one—I won $125 in one tournament last week to singlehandedly put me on the plus side for the month. I’m not necessarily suggesting you chase a big payday, but you can take comfort in the knowledge you can go on a hot streak at any time.

  1. Subscribe to the DFS Playbook Pro

Yes, it is a shameless plug. That doesn’t make the advice any less poignant. Seriously, if you’re in a cold streak, and you haven’t tried the Playbook Pro yet, what do you have to lose?

  1. Try Something New

This may seem a bit contradictory to my first two tips, but it doesn’t have to be. In a lot of ways it is complementary. After all, I’m not suggesting you make big, sweeping changes. The first two tips should make that abundantly clear. If you are reading this, the odds are pretty good you don’t have to reinvent the wheel. Just make a small change here and there and see if it gives you the jolt you need.

Try playing a stack, if you haven’t before. Pay up for two aces. Play a lineup of expensive hitters and two cheap pitchers. Try a new contest; or a new site. Enter a satellite. Do something to help you temporarily get out of your rut.

At the very least, changing one of these things could get you out of your comfort zone and open up a new way of thinking. Maybe you will stumble onto a new game or strategy you really enjoy. Maybe your foray into the unknown will just confirm you should stick to what you are used to. Either way, you should learn something.

  1. Take a Break

I am obviously not telling you to stop playing DFS. I do, however, see merit in taking a little bit of time to clear your head. I do the same thing when I am struggling with my writing, or with the ladies. You might be surprised how differently things look when  you don’t think about them for 24 hours.

One important thing to note: have a plan for returning to the game. I took Saturday off from DFS. I did some research and started to put a couple of lineups together and just wasn’t happy with any of them, so I stopped, knowing full well I would get right back on the horse the next day. In most cases you probably only need to step away for one day, but you can always let your schedule decide. Maybe you decide to take the work week off and come back when you have time to do more research on Saturday. You can take a break from DFS while you are on vacation, or while the in-laws are in town.  In any event, have a firm day for when you will pick it back up; you could regret it if you don’t.

  1. Play Multiple lineups

Instead of playing a $5 contest, try playing five entries in a $1 contest. You give yourself the best chance of stumbling upon the right combination of players who all go off at the same time and win lots of money for you. Also, it makes it a lot easier to get over the bad picks when you have one or two good lineups to hang your hat on. Win your Tigers stack goes off, you won’t even notice how terrible that Michael Pineda call was.

Of course, the most important tip of all is to never give up. After all, if you stick it out long enough, the weather always changes eventually.