Business – Poker: Analogies

The game of poker have some genuine analogies that we can align with business. I have identified lessons that can be learned. We don’t necessarily need a card game to do this, however I thought it is a cool way to draw comparisons from.

Diversify Risk

Plain and simple, diversify risk. Again we certainly don’t need a card game to compare this however it is a fundamental. Statistics say that the wealthiest people in the world generate income from an average of seven different revenue steams. Doing this without losing our quality control can be a tricky one, but an important one. 

It is a minefield out there in more ways than one. With the fluctuating global economy, budding entrepreneurs and whiz kids coming out of, or dropping out of school because they have already had an ‘exit’ on a start-up and the pace at which product and service offerings shift in the needs and wants stakes. 

We need to spread our wings wisely. Don’t put all eggs in the one basket. Diversify risk, even if this means lowering our ‘Return On Investment’.

It is better to have a positive ROI than no ROI.. Right ? As with poker it is a minefield too, and yes there is an element of luck. The skill line should cancel out the luck line for a winning player. We need to diversify our risk to cope with the variance of the ‘game’. Variance is inevitable in most things we do and especially in business at times of change, new product launches, staff retention and so on. The idea is to have our graph line continuing on an incline. Play with our chips wisely and remember when we go ALL IN, we are ALL IN!

Adapt to change

Social Media and Marketing in general changes as quick as we change our underwear or quicker for that matter. New platforms continuously hit us on our phones, tablets, laptops, desk tops wherever we are. 

As with poker, especially in the online game, it evolves every day if not by the hour. The need to adapt, learn and execute at the same speed is paramount. It is fair to say the alternative we face is we run the risk of losing traction in our market.

It is important for us to look at all new platforms, implement and adapt quickly. Drawing the analogy to our friendly card game, it is important to look at new lines to take whilst playing a hand to beat the game and stay ahead of the curve. We never know what the next platform will be, the next Snapchat, Pinterest, Tumbler, Instagram with a billion users at your finger tips maybe. 

Adapting to change in various parts of business has proven to be ardous at times and definitely debatable. Change management can be over looked in my opinion and is important to embrace those involved in the changes without being counterproductive, for the smoothest transition and optimal result to occur.  

PLAY WELL!