Founders require far more than perseverance. They constantly solve problems, extinguish fires, take brief respites, and dive back in—despite bruised egos, mental strain, and emotional exhaustion.
Poker mirrors this intensity perfectly. Most lack the grit or patience for such endurance. Poker demands playing the long game: success isn't instant. You make decisions with incomplete information. Deviate from proven edge-building strategies, and you're doomed—especially when those strategies yield short-term losses.
My years as a professional poker player have equipped me with business advantages no college course could match. Behind a few cards, I honed tenacity, discipline, and the ability to stay composed amid chaos.
Related: 7 Ways to Persist When Everything in You Wants to Give Up
A Poker Mindset
Overcoming minor setbacks en route to major wins defines professional poker—and entrepreneurship. As both a pro poker player and founder/CEO of Ladder, a growth marketing platform, here are four hard-won lessons. Apply them to fuel your venture.
1. Stick to your principles.
Even when tempted to abandon them. Stay resilient and challenge those who don't align with your vision.
I shifted from cash games to major tournaments, including the World Series of Poker Main Event. After several events, I lost $2,000 and felt crushed by near-misses worth tens of thousands. Post-analysis revealed my strategy worked overall. Persisting, I won two of three satellite events and cashed in.
Similarly, developing our data-driven platform initially eroded service margins, profits, and focus at Ladder. Early versions overwhelmed strategists, creating extra work. Echoing my poker reflection—Why risk more amid rising emotional costs?—I recommitted to the long-term vision.
Holding firm, we emerged stronger, bolder, and more focused. Despite advice to halt tech development amid short-term bleeding, persistence paid off. Ladder thrives today.
2. Be open to pivoting on those principles.
Only with new data contradicting prior assumptions.
Poker thrives on real-time data: community cards, opponents' hands, tells like a nose scratch or hat adjustment.
Related: Do you have adaptability?
Each cue prompts strategy reassessment. Top players adapt, learning from opponents, cards, and past plays. Pivot wisely.
Listen to trusted advisors to sharpen hearing over instinct. At Ladder, weekly sprints fueled growth experiments effectively—until our 2016 service model shift made them unsustainable. Intense pace bred burnout. Switching to monthly sprints improved client ties and reduced stress. Timely pivot.
3. Accept defeats and keep going.
Business—and poker—deliver plenty. Growth isn't linear; it's jagged. Recover with insights to strengthen your long-game edge.
At 23, I placed second in my first satellite on a 50/50 coin flip—no error, pure variance. Devastated by lost Bahamas trip and millions-potential shot, I lost three more. Instinct screamed quit. Objectivity prevailed: my strategy edged ahead. Persisting, I won repeatedly.
Related: 8 daily habits to build resilience
What if I'd quit pre-wins? Cynicism has no place in business or battlefields. Unfortunate hits happen—what follows matters.
Q4 2016: European MRR cratered to near-zero. Q1 2017: One-third of total MRR vanished on renewals. Dinosaur-killer scale. Yet we pressed on. Result? 100% growth in the last six months. Catastrophes don't dictate destiny.
4. Don't let luck deceive you.
Winning streaks breed overconfidence, inviting flawed strategies. You're seldom solely responsible for losses—or wins. Skip analysis, court downfall.
Tackle anxiety head-on. Stay ahead of rivals by caging fear, not wielding it destructively. It erodes partnerships.
Ladder's non-traditional model long repelled investors. Rejection stung; pivot temptation peaked. Instead, I refocused on strengths. Resuming sales post-hiatus yielded wins—not just my skill, but marketing leads, refined processes. Poker taught me to distrust 'obvious' success narratives.
No need for poker tournaments to win in business. Heed those who've succeeded; adapt their wisdom.
That said, a solid poker face never hurts.
Related: 5 Traits of Naturally Resistant People
