SUCCESS
Poker faced Editor, Luke Garner talks to a professional about maintaining your calm under pressure
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ou’ve been staring at your adversary for over an hour now. The chips are down, the cards are on the table for all to see, and yet neither of you is willing to give an inch. But all of a sudden you spot it – a slight tell that shows their weakness, allows you to understand their frame of mind, and ultimately, gives you the upper hand. With an ace up your sleeve (not literally of course), you make your play and – success! You’ve won the day and got what you came for, the big prize. You’d be forgiven for thinking we were talking about a particularly tense and crucial business deal taking place. However, the above scenario is actually about poker, a game of strategy and cunning, that often closely resembles business life. At least, that’s what UK Poker Tour star, and the youngest ever Triple Crown winner, Jake Cody believes. Our editor, Luke Garner caught up with him at the UK and Ireland Poker Tour in Bristol, to discover the similarities between poker and business, and to glean what lessons the UK’s entrepreneurs can learn from taking a seat at the poker table. The game of poker itself has a fairly simple premise – get a better hand than your opponent, and aim to take all of their chips. But, as with most things, there’s a lot more strategy and mental manoeuvring hidden beneath the surface. Throughout the UK, SME owners and entrepreneurs are making deals, negotiating, and trying to get the best out
22 October 2015
of others on a daily basis. This is where, according to Jake, being a good poker player can really help you to succeed. “People should learn poker strategy, as it helps you to read people and get an insight into their thoughts and emotions,” enthused the 27-year-old from Rochdale. “It teaches you about mental strength, not giving away your emotions, and how to stay focussed on the task at hand, even when things don’t go your way.” As with many business ideas, from small acorns often grow great oaks. For Jake, this was also true, as a fairly innocuous event got him started on the road to being a poker champion. “I played in a game with some friends at my pool club, for just a £5 buy-in, and I won. It was just a friendly game, but after that I was pretty much hooked. So a friend and I got together pretty much every day after that with a poker set and played, and played, and played. Then I entered another tournament, and won. Since then it has just continued to grow,” said Jake, before explaining that such dedication is the difference between success and failure; “If you want to be the best at anything, if you want to succeed, then you need to put in the time and effort. Nothing good comes easy, that’s why the people who are most successful in life are often the ones who work the hardest towards what they want.” As any entrepreneur will
You’ll be sat there, thinking that they’re thinking that you know what they’re thinking