The Poker MBA - Greg Dinkin - Hardcover - 1ST

PART 1 Strategy of the Game The POKER FACE: READING PEOPLE In poker and business, you'll have an edge if you can figure out what your opponent is thinking. "All you pay is the looking price. Lessons are extra." That's what Lancey Howard (Edward G. Robinson) says in the movie The Cincinnati Kid when asked how he knew what his opponent was holding. Reading people is a combination of knowing the person, reading his or her body language, and uncovering his or her motives. The safety of familiarity is the reason people like doing business with people they know. But even without knowing someone, there is still plenty you can learn by just studying his mannerisms--what he does with his hands, whether or not he maintains eye contact, or even something as subtle as how he is standing. When you observe a person, you start to put together pieces of information that lead to a hunch. Then, when you add more information and combine it with knowing the person's character and motives, you develop a gut feeling. Like poker players, detectives don't solve a case based on one clue; it's the combination of many factors that takes you from a gut feeling to a sound conclusion. Whether you are recruiting a new employee, negotiating terms with a supplier, or trying to capture market share from a competitor, knowing how someone else is thinking will influence your strategy and increase your likelihood of success. It's why Abraham Lincoln said, "When I am getting ready to reason with a man, I spend one-third of my time thinking about myself and what I am going to say, and two-thirds thinking about him and what he is going to say." What sets the experts in poker and business apart from their competition is their innate ability to read people and understand their opponents. Without this skill, a good player will remain merely good. With this skill, a good player becomes a legend. "He said, 'Son, I've made a life out of readin' people's faces, And knowin' what their cards were by the way they held their eyes.' " -- Kenny Rogers, "The Gambler" Weak Is Strong and Strong Is Weak "Make a move and you're a dead man!" Notice how the guy who says that isn't the one who throws the first punch. It's the guy who doesn't say a word who you have to worry about. Typically in poker, weak is strong and strong is weak. When your opponent is looking away from you, trying to act nonchalant, he probably has a great hand and is trying to appear weak, so you will call (see the bet) and add to his pot. The opponent who is staring you down, trying to intimidate you by appearing strong, is usually bluffing and is trying to get you to fold. Even simpler, a player who is talking is usually bluffing, and one who is silent typically isn't. Mike Caro, who authored the seminal book on reading people at the poker table,Caro's Book of Tells, has this to say in Doyle Brunson's bookSuper/System: A Course in Power Poker: These people--the majority of folks you meet every day--are actors. They present themselves to you as people different than they really are. Deep within themselves they know they are not the same people they pretend to be. On an unconscious level, they think, "Hey, I'm so phony that if I don't act to disguise my poker hand, everyone will see right through me!" And that's why the majority of these pitiful people are going to give you their money by always acting weak when they're strong and strong when they're weak. You see this premise played out all the time in everyday life. When a person tells you that he'll "sue you to high heaven," it's a safe bet that he can't afford an attorney. The guy who can't stop talking about what a "player" he is probably has a tough time getting a date. And when you meet someone who is quick to tell yGitomer, Jeffrey is the author of 'The Poker MBA - Greg Dinkin - Hardcover - 1ST' with ISBN 9780609609866 and ISBN 0609609866.