Lessons I learnt at the poker table
These names from the corporate world know how to shuffle and
deal -be it in business or a game of cards. This is what they have to say
DIVYANK
TURAKHIA
Founder, Media.net “Going into the game, you already know you
can't win every play. Winning in the long term is about winning big, and losing
small. Without constantly learning and practising, you will lose to people that
know more about the odds of each play and have more experience. Try and play in
the circles where you can win with your current knowledge and skill level, and
as you constantly learn and evolve, those circles will become larger.Apply the
same rule to business.“
AMIT BURMAN
Vice-chairman, Dabur “You read your own cards as well as the opponent's mind constantly. This makes you very aware of what's going on around you. In business, this helps one take decisions by being keyed into the internal and external goings on. You take decisions based on a well thought out strategy.“
NITHIN KAMATH
Founder, Zerodha “In poker, when you get dealt a good hand, you
are supposed to bet hard.The smaller hands fold then. If you don't bet hard,
the smaller hands play along, and one of them can suddenly become bigger as
soon as the flop comes. You have to take risks and chances at the right time.
If you don't, there is a possibility that what didn't pose as a challenge at
the time, becomes one later on.“
JITENDRA GUPTA
MD, PayU India “The game has helped in two ways. One,
calculating the risk rather than just going by gut feel. In the initial days of
Citrus [the company he cofounded before it was acquired by PayU], I used to
take decisions based on my feelings rather than considering the pros and cons.
In poker, you learn to not play bad games. It's okay to lose one good game or
not to play one good game. But if you end up playing a bad game, you tend to
lose a lot. In short, it's okay to miss a good opportunity in business, but
don't go after the wrong one because you can risk the whole company. That's a
big learning.“
MITHUN SACHETI
Founder and CEO, CaratLane “In e-commerce, we all react to noise
too much, and it's like playing every hand in poker. The many hours of poker
that I played taught me to bide my time and wait for my hand. Fold when your
risk is high and raise when probability supports you.
In life, I often feel I was impatient and made decisions that
would come back to bite me later. Similarly, in poker, I would get over
enthusiastic and lose a hand when I always knew I had a low probability. The
virtue of patience, that poker teaches, and the ability to spot impatience in
others and use it to your advantage is a treat.“
RIYAAZ AMLANI
CEO, Impresario Entertainment & Hospitality Pvt Ltd “Poker
has taught me to play the player and not the cards.
It doesn't matter what cards you have, it's how you use them.
People who start with poor cards or a disadvantaged hand can
surprise everyone. Even if you have the best hand, it's how you read the player
that matters in the end.
This applies to life and business.“ .
etpanache Oct 19 2017
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