Some months ago I was at a poker club in Bucharest.
The kind where the smoke from vapes and e-cigarettes hangs in the air.
And everyone thinks they’re the smartest one at the table.
Then this young Jewish kid sits down.
Couldn’t have been more than 20.
He was loud. Cocky. Talking all kinds of shit.
The kind you’d expect to crash and burn after a few rounds.
But he didn’t.
Hand after hand, he kept winning.
And not because he got lucky.
I saw him flip over garbage.
He’d laugh, talk trash, make people fold better hands.
It was infuriating.
And fascinating.
It was human psychology in full display.
He was playing the people.
But then, it happened.
One bluff went too far.
The guy across from him snapped, called him down, and turned over ducks (pocket deuces).
The kid’s face went blank.
He lost his entire stack in one hand.
Silence.
He stood up, nodded, and walked out.
An hour later, he came back.
Bought in again. Sat at the same table.
And slowly… started rebuilding.
Same confidence. Same energy.
Then came round 2.
He was playing the same guy that took his money earlier.
Except this time, he had it.
All-in. Call.
Chips flew his way.
He stacked his chips, and leaned back.
Then looked over at me, with the biggest grin you could imagine.
Ear to ear.
Like he knew it was only a matter of time.
He understood something most players, and most people, never do:
You can’t control the cards you’re dealt. The situation you’re in.
But you can control how you play them.
And that’s when I realized something…
Business and life move in swings.
Up and down.
Wins and losses.
In poker, this concept is called VARIANCE.
You see, when you make a decision.
And it’s the RIGHT decision.
You can still have the WRONG outcome.
Pocket Aces, the strongest starting hand, still lose 20% of the time in a one-on-one battle.
That’s the nature of the game.
And of life.
BUT…
When your edge is strong enough…
When your SKILL is undeniable.
It doesn’t matter what garbage hand you get dealt.
Over time, life goes your way.
That kid wasn’t worried about what he got.
He trusted his reads.
His instincts.
His edge.
That’s why your singular focus should be to sharpen your edge.
And trust in your skill, regardless of outcomes.
But here’s the twist most people miss:
This lesson matters even more during the upswing.
Because sometimes, you make all the wrong decisions…
And still walk away with the right result.
That’s when you start believing you’re better than you are.
You stop improving.
You get lazy.
And your mistakes start to show.
They become poison.
So whether the cards are running good or bad…
Fall forward.
Learn forward.
Keep refining your edge.
Because your skill compounds no matter what.
Even when the outcomes might not go your way.
Take care,
Zhihao Huang
