Life Lessons from an Unlikely Source

I like being able to look back at something which became popular and say “I knew it”. The first time I watched “The World Poker Tour” on TV, I said “The producers of this show have made a major breakthrough, poker on TV is going to be BIG”. Their breakthrough was showing the audience the “hole cards”. What makes it compelling TV is that it takes something many people know how to do (play poker), and lets the viewer into the game, while providing drama and expert commentary. When you add camera close-ups of players gulping and sweating as they agonize over decisions, often for huge amounts of money, you have a modern day reality sports show. Here’s a clip

Note: These are some of the top players in the world, (including Daniel Negreanu, Phil Ivey, and Patrik Antonius), and if one of the announcers sounds familiar, it’s Gabe Kaplan (Welcome Back Kotter). TV poker sparked an international poker boom. There are many tournaments, many TV shows, plus books, videos, magazines and everything else that goes with something popular. The game played in casinos and on the TV shows is Texas Hold-em....each player gets two cards and you bet, next, three cards are “flopped” in the middle of the table, which are community cards, and you bet, then a fourth card (called the “turn”) is turned over as a community card, and you bet, then a fifth card (the “river”), another community card, and you bet. This is a variation on the games people play at home. You are trying to make the best possible poker hand. The key difference is no-limit betting — at any point, a player can bet all or part of their stack, forcing the other players to decide whether they are willing to match it, or drop out and lose what’s already in the pot. This single rule transforms the game into a study of pressure, judgment, and nerve. It also greatly affects strategy.

As an aside, there was a great poker movie a few years ago, where they played Texas Hold-em. It was Rounders, with Matt Damon, Edward Norton and John Malkovich.

Worth renting if you’ve never seen it.

I’ve played in some tournaments and in casinos a few times, though not for a lot of money, because frankly, I don’t consider myself a great player….YET. I do enjoy it and have been doing things to improve my game: mostly watching videos, and of course playing and reviewing.

When studying and thinking about poker, analogies to life and business regularly appear, IF you’re tuned in to look and learn. Some people think that once you know the basic rules, poker is mostly about luck. When playing no-limit Texas Hold-Em, if you think it’s just luck, you’ll be as successful as people who think life and business are mostly about luck. I know, in life and business you can “work hard”, and a little luck can help. For those with higher aspirations across the board, here are some lessons I’ve learned playing poker:

1. Poker is a series of decisions, large and small. When to bet and how much, when to raise, when to fold, when to bluff, how is your opponent likely to react and how will you respond? The best players make a higher percentage of better decisions. That’s it. Of course, it helps to be aware when you are facing an important decision, which isn’t always obvious. This skill improves with awareness and attention.

2. Be aware of the personalities and tendencies of people you are dealing with, and be aware of how these people perceive YOU. Even in limited involvement situations (poker and business both present these), you are creating your image as you go.

3. Certain situations start out promising, and you can capitalize on them, BUT, those same situations can turn into your worst disasters. As things unfold you have decisions at your disposal, IF you stay aware and flexible.

4. Selective aggression. Pick your spots and be the initiator. Much good can come from this. Patience has a place, but selective aggression creates opportunities. If “aggression” doesn’t sit well for business or personal use, substitute “pro-active” and the upside is clear.

5. Take time to think. In poker you do not have unlimited time to think, but you have time to think through what’s happened so far, who is doing what, and what you could/should do. Life is easier, we often have more time, but it sure helps to know when an important decision is at hand.

6 . Very often, you are playing your opponent more than your hand......sometimes WHO is more important than WHAT.

7. Keep your eye on the long game. There are shifts in success or failure. Even if you are playing soundly, unexpected occurrences (bad luck) do occasionally intervene. Stay calm and keep making good decisions!