Poker is much more than a game of luck—it’s an activity that tests your logical thinking and reasoning skills. All it takes is someone with a lot of experience in the field—such as Dr. Tricia Cardner—to help you realize all the complexities of poker brain science. Holding two PhDs in psychology and criminology, and specializing in the neurology of Texas Hold’em, Dr. Tricia is the perfect person to explain how playing poker can make you smarter.
The Secret to Poker Success Lies in Emotional Intelligence
According to Dr. Tricia, becoming a poker pro begins with one simple thing—emotional regulation. She claims that our emotions are the first ones to appear, and they come way before any rational thinking can take place. Thus, mastering your emotional state takes precedence over complex poker strategies and hands.
When processing information, such as gauging the cards we’ve been given, we have an emotional reaction right away. It comes as an instinct, and it pops up before we can take a second to think rationally. It’s only after being faced with emotions that the information can travel onto the brain’s logic centers, such as planning, reasoning, and decision-making.
Do You Need a High IQ to Play Poker?
There’s a widespread belief that people engaged in any form of gambling—be it Bitcoin gambling or playing for fun in online or land-based casinos—need to be very smart to be successful. But Dr. Tricia explains that, while you need to have some understanding of math and logic, other types of intelligence are just as important when playing poker.
Take social intelligence as an example. High social intelligence has been shown to improve a player’s results, and vice versa. In fact, many professional poker players have high IQs, which most people refer to when they hear the word ‘intelligence.’ However, standard IQ accounts for around 20% of the variance in success, as pro poker players who worked on their social skills could see a significant improvement in results.
How Playing Poker Can Make You Smarter?
Whether you are a casual player or a seasoned pro such as Phil Hellmuth, you stand to gain a lot from poker. Generally speaking, there are six main ways in which playing poker can make you smarter.
For starters, it will teach you how to analyze like a pro. Many times, playing poker entails pressure, as you will be in a position to make quick decisions that will be made with a lot of uncertainty. Therefore, you will have to work on memorizing every win and defeat by analyzing every hand of your opponents. You’ll be put in a situation to guess the strength of the hand your opponent is holding, and you’ll want to perform a detailed analysis before doing so.
Secondly, you’ll become better at managing your money. That’s right—poker isn’t all about spending loads of money as, with responsible gambling practices, you can become an expert at managing your bankroll effectively. This skill also goes hand-in-hand with risk management, as you’ll have to assess when to bet, fold, or raise. These decisions will be made based on the strength of your hand, and the potential risks that come with each move. Ultimately, this will serve a great purpose in your everyday life, as you’ll find it easier to manage your finances.
Poker is a social game. Therefore, it will help you engage with like-minded people and become an expert at mingling. Poker players are constantly interacting with each other, which creates an opportunity to learn more about your opponents. This is universal for both land-based establishments and the best online casinos, as many software providers have created live poker games. These skills will translate into your business life, as well, as poker will give you a chance to hone your negotiation skills.
If you’ve had trouble concentrating in the past, you might be able to solve this problem by playing poker. The game demands complete focus and concentration, as you have to keep track of the bets players are making. Once the game starts, players usually put their phones and smart devices aside, as there can be no distractions during the game. There’s also a chance you will improve your memory by playing this fan-favorite game, as you have to remember previous hands before making a move.
Likewise, playing poker will help you become more self-disciplined and keep your emotions out of the picture. Poker is a game where you will constantly alternate between winning and losing. Being on the winning side is easy, but staying calm and composed when losing is an art in and of itself. You’ll want to keep your anger in check, and never let it tarnish your reputation as a poker player. Instead, take a moment to analyze your game, find the areas where you could use some improvement, and fix the problem.
Finally, you’ll learn how to become a strategic thinker who adjusts his/her approach to every situation. The game itself requires long-term planning, so players must observe the game and create strategies accordingly. That’s precisely what sets apart a good poker player from an average one, as a great player will have no problems creating a good plan and executing complex strategies without issues.
A word of warning—you must count on other players being just as smart as you. Likewise, you should always go into the game presuming that other players will be using bluffing—a poker method that’s as old as the game itself.
Whether or not you use this technique is up to you; however, learn how to recognize the tell-tale signs that someone is bluffing in poker. Usually, you’ll learn everything you need to know by observing a player’s body language, as someone who is bluffing is likely to talk too much and act quickly.
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