Confessions: Protecting The Pot
No, don’t worry, this isn’t that kind of topic. I’m talking about a concept that is important if you are playing poker. Oh wait, that’s in the process of being outlawed as well. Too bad, the point is important and I think it will help a lot of you make some better decisions in your lives. Poker is good at helping you to learn how to evaluate a decision correctly.The Business SituationFirst, let me lay out the business decision that led me to make a large mistake. I had just had a very successful year and it was annual review time. I knew I had stepped up to fill a role above mine in the org chart and had done a fantastic job in the process. However, at my review my boss told me that I would just be getting an average review, due to policy limits on giving out good ratings.I flipped out and left the company. Basically, my boss was a complete idiot and mishandled the situation and so did I. I won’t detail the place, the people involved, the financial issues involved or anything like that. However, I will say this was before the dot com meltdown and involved stock options and so forth.Evaluating The SituationYou see, in poker terms, both my boss and myself failed to evaluate the pot correctly. Instead of folding, leaving the company, I should have called and played out my hand. I should have tried a bit harder to get a look at some more cards. At the same time, my boss should have been more forthcoming and should not have played such a silly game when the consequences were so huge.You see, what I failed to find out was that I was a shoe-in for employee of the year. I had no idea that this was the case. All it would have taken was a pat on the back and recognition that I’d been busting my behind for the company during the previous year and I’d probably still be there now. So, while I am saddened when I look back on events, all I can do is try to help other people avoid such mistakes. Don’t play cute games during employee review season. Don’t jump and run without taking a careful look around and truly evaluating the situation.Live And LearnI was young and a bit hot-headed then. Heck, I’m sure I still am a bit more fiery than some people. It’s part of my character. Anyway, to get back on topic, in terms of poker, I should have protected my pot. Though I thought I had a losing hand the pot was so valuable I should have stayed in the game a little longer and paid to see a few more cards.My life would be very different now if I had. Again, from the business perspective, many things in life are able to be applied to on-the-job situations. We shouldn’t be too quick to eliminate tools and learning aids from our lives. We should be more open to accepting that most activities, even poker, have something to teach us about life.