Poker: A Game of Skill and Life Lessons

Published Time: 2020-12-08T07:25:36.000Z

Poker was introduced as an official competition event at the 31st SEA Games, hosted in Vietnam in 2021. This information surprised many because we often think poker is a game of luck. A gambling game where people just want to take your money, and gambling can be deceitful. Or many think poker is for those good at reading others.

Unlike other casino games typically arranged to eliminate players, where the house always wins in the long run. When playing poker, you compete against other opponents, and the house only collects a service fee from each hand. Therefore, poker is not a gambling game. Poker is a game of skill, like soccer or basketball. You need to learn and have strategies to win.

And poker will teach you many things in life and apply them to business. Like Tony Hsieh - CEO of Zappos (a company acquired by Amazon for $1.2 billion) shared through the book Delivering Happiness the similarity between a good poker strategy and a good business strategy by knowing "separating short-term thinking (such as focusing on whether I will win or lose each hand) and long-term thinking (such as ensuring I have a sound decision-making strategy)".

Combining Tony's insights, Fonos hopes you grasp 4 lessons from poker to apply to your life.

Financial Lessons

Do what is expected to have positive value, not the riskiest thing.

We face many issues managing our personal finances. Especially in Eastern cultures, very few parents have conversations with their children about money management. Then, early in their careers, they get caught in the cycle of receiving a salary to pay off debt. We grow up with extremely weak personal financial management skills. If we can't manage our own money and later start a business, we will face many difficulties managing company finances.

So according to Tony Hsieh, poker reminds you to always prepare for the worst-case scenarios. Ensure you have a large enough fund for the game and the challenges you will face. Poker and life always include unexpected variables. Ensure you have answers to the above problems before entering the game.

And a huge lesson we often make but don't realize. Does this saying sound familiar: "Higher profit, higher risk". This saying is so common that people rush into high-risk investments with the HOPE of high profits, leading to total loss and debt. When playing poker, train yourself to seek the least risky options. You need to think about the long run, not short-term goals. If you have a chance to play poker, pay attention to these things!

Lesson from Tony Hsieh: Do what is expected to have positive value, not the riskiest thing. And hope is not a good plan (especially regarding finances and strategy).

Discipline

Be steadfast with your principles.

Entering a game, everyone has principles and requires self-discipline to maintain the principles they set. Though you may not notice, when you start playing, you have a principle: just play for fun, winning or losing doesn't matter; it's okay if I don't win, but this time I'll play until I run out of money, not borrow like before. However, after 2,3 hands, when you start getting into a difficult situation or start losing. You will loosen your principles. When you constantly change your foundational principles, you will start losing.

Discipline yourself to withdraw from the game when you realize you can hardly win. And when you win, discipline yourself to ensure you don't spend all that money. When you win and have money in hand, be even more disciplined.

Lesson from Tony Hsieh: Be steadfast with your principles. However, you can still adjust your playstyle when the game's dynamics change. Be more flexible in this case.

Enhancing Focus

Players with high endurance and concentration will win.

The first 2 cards in your hand are a random arrangement. But as subsequent cards are revealed, the decision is in your hands. Focus on calculating the cards dealt. Pay attention to opponents' changes each time a card is revealed. Remember all of that.

Any sport or job requires focus. In Poker, with players around a table, you need extreme focus to read changes from other players.

When there are too many choices, too many distractions, a person with high focus will give you an advantage in work.

Lesson from Tony Hsieh: Players with high endurance and concentration will win.

Learning to Face Failure

You will win or lose in games, but what happens afterward is what matters.

Poker is a game with lessons and strategies to help you win. But the biggest lesson you learn is when you fail. And any game is like that, look back at yourself each time you fail. Ask yourself: "What will I do better next time?"

Was it choosing the wrong table from the start. A table with too many skilled players or a table with too many players you haven't observed enough. When you do business, you also have to evaluate the market before starting to play.

Always look back at yourself after each hand, don't just rush into the next hand with the sole goal of recouping losses.

Poker is a game that teaches you about long-term goals. Know that the person who wins most hands may not be the one who makes the most money in the long run. And if it's long-term, don't let yourself lose strength. If you feel tired after a hand. Take a walk or simply stop playing. In life too, when you fail, pay attention to your physical and mental health.

Lesson from Tony Hsieh: Remember it's a long-term game. You will win or lose in games, but what happens afterward is what matters.

If you already know how to play Poker, try noting these lessons for your next game! And if you've never played, try playing with friends once. Pay attention to your decisions rather than the outcome of a single hand.