Go All In for Sensational Success
Vickie Milazzo
September 17, 2008
I've been playing penny poker with my family since I was four years old. We were serious about our pennies, so serious that we'd often have our lunch money in the pot. As a poker game heats up, winning players keep stacking up their chips until they think they have a really good hand. Then, cockily or quietly, depending on the player's personality, someone pushes all her chips to the center of the table and says "I'm all in." This heavy bettor is hoping to not only capture a big pot, but also to take some of the others out of the game.
Now the other players are wondering, "Does she really have a winning hand, or is she bluffing?" With that big pot in the middle of the table, they're wondering if they should fold or go all in too. The excitement builds around the table and the risk taker inside you comes out, especially if you believe you've got the winning hand. So you push your chips into the middle – that's what "Go All In" is all about. To win big you have to play big.
A few years ago, I was sitting at the table with my family playing nickel poker – we've upped the ante since I was four. My husband Tom showed me his hand and I whispered, "Go all in, Tom." He said, "But Vickie, I could lose everything."
If you haven't guessed, Tom's the conservative, penny-pinching member of the family who probably wouldn't go all in if he had pocket aces – that's two aces in his hand – with two aces on the board. We were playing with nickels here, a pot total of almost $3.75. I'm the risk taker. I especially enjoy going all in when I'm playing with my family and friends for nickels. It's comfortable, plus it's fun to force my twin brother out.
Between his hole cards and what was on the table, Tom had a pretty good hand but was afraid to take a chance on it. To my dismay, Tom didn't go all in. Even though he eventually won the hand, he won a much smaller jackpot than he could have. It left me shaking my head at his timidity.
Then recently, I found myself sitting at a dollar poker table in a real casino, playing Texas Hold 'Em. I was sitting there with pocket aces in my hand. Now, if you don't know anything about poker, all you need to know is that pocket aces is a "go all in" kind of hand. It's not a guaranteed winner, but it's as close as you can get in the poker world. It's the kind of hand that begs you to take all of those chips in front of you and push them out to the betting pile. So, I sat there, holding back, weighing the odds in my head.
Did I go all in? No. I didn't want to lose my dollars. I was acting as timid with my dollars as Tom had with his nickels. It was not just about losing the dollars; it was about getting knocked out of the game. That's what froze my hand to the table.
Isn't that what really holds us back from going all in with our businesses? Aren't we frozen in fear by the possibility that a client might say "no" and we'll be knocked out of the game? No world champion ever attains such status without going all in. It's an impossibility. They are willing to risk everything to become a world champion. They're willing to go all in even if it means they might get knocked out of the game, and sometimes they will. But if they're playing the right cards, they'll win big.
When you're a beginner, you have to go all in. You've got to take the risks and do what you must do to succeed. That means putting your chips out on the table for advertising and promotion.
Are you holding back, or will you go all in?
If you're a beginning entrepreneur, your previous experience and your education are your pocket aces. Don't wait for a royal flush. Those don't come that often. You've already been dealt the hand that you need to win as an entrepreneur – but you have to play it to win.
If you're a more experienced business owner, you have to put your chips out there on the table to expand your business – whether it's to hire that first assistant or to work with subcontractors or to invest in more sophisticated marketing. Remember that the pocket aces you hold are your education plus that business know-how that you've gained over the years.
When I presented a program for young women at The Oprah Winfrey Boys & Girls Club of America in Kosciusko, Mississippi, I worked with Oprah's team from Harpo Productions. We sat around talking about what a great age it is for these 14-17 year-old girls to be bold and to go for what they want. They're young, and if they make mistakes, they can learn from their mistakes, get up, dust off and move on. They are so young that they have the temerity (or audacity, courage, bravado, spirit) to go all in for whatever they want to do with their lives and careers.
A world champion poker player draws a lot of bad hands. They're not always dealt pocket aces. You'll draw some bad hands too, and when you do, think young – whether you're 35, 50, 60, it doesn't matter. We're never too old to employ the spunk of a 17-year-old, to learn from our mistakes, pick up our pocket aces and jump back in.
What happened to me that day at the dollar poker table? Instead of demonstrating the strength and confidence in my hand with audacity, I merely raised and ended up winning a smaller pot than I should have. Next time, I'm trusting my entrepreneurial instincts, and instead of acting in fear, I'm going all in, all the way!
Promise today to play big when those big hands do come your way. Go all in every day, every hour, every minute, every second, and I promise you will achieve sensational success.
Now the other players are wondering, "Does she really have a winning hand, or is she bluffing?" With that big pot in the middle of the table, they're wondering if they should fold or go all in too. The excitement builds around the table and the risk taker inside you comes out, especially if you believe you've got the winning hand. So you push your chips into the middle – that's what "Go All In" is all about. To win big you have to play big.
A few years ago, I was sitting at the table with my family playing nickel poker – we've upped the ante since I was four. My husband Tom showed me his hand and I whispered, "Go all in, Tom." He said, "But Vickie, I could lose everything."
If you haven't guessed, Tom's the conservative, penny-pinching member of the family who probably wouldn't go all in if he had pocket aces – that's two aces in his hand – with two aces on the board. We were playing with nickels here, a pot total of almost $3.75. I'm the risk taker. I especially enjoy going all in when I'm playing with my family and friends for nickels. It's comfortable, plus it's fun to force my twin brother out.
Between his hole cards and what was on the table, Tom had a pretty good hand but was afraid to take a chance on it. To my dismay, Tom didn't go all in. Even though he eventually won the hand, he won a much smaller jackpot than he could have. It left me shaking my head at his timidity.
Then recently, I found myself sitting at a dollar poker table in a real casino, playing Texas Hold 'Em. I was sitting there with pocket aces in my hand. Now, if you don't know anything about poker, all you need to know is that pocket aces is a "go all in" kind of hand. It's not a guaranteed winner, but it's as close as you can get in the poker world. It's the kind of hand that begs you to take all of those chips in front of you and push them out to the betting pile. So, I sat there, holding back, weighing the odds in my head.
Did I go all in? No. I didn't want to lose my dollars. I was acting as timid with my dollars as Tom had with his nickels. It was not just about losing the dollars; it was about getting knocked out of the game. That's what froze my hand to the table.
Isn't that what really holds us back from going all in with our businesses? Aren't we frozen in fear by the possibility that a client might say "no" and we'll be knocked out of the game? No world champion ever attains such status without going all in. It's an impossibility. They are willing to risk everything to become a world champion. They're willing to go all in even if it means they might get knocked out of the game, and sometimes they will. But if they're playing the right cards, they'll win big.
When you're a beginner, you have to go all in. You've got to take the risks and do what you must do to succeed. That means putting your chips out on the table for advertising and promotion.
Are you holding back, or will you go all in?
If you're a beginning entrepreneur, your previous experience and your education are your pocket aces. Don't wait for a royal flush. Those don't come that often. You've already been dealt the hand that you need to win as an entrepreneur – but you have to play it to win.
If you're a more experienced business owner, you have to put your chips out there on the table to expand your business – whether it's to hire that first assistant or to work with subcontractors or to invest in more sophisticated marketing. Remember that the pocket aces you hold are your education plus that business know-how that you've gained over the years.
When I presented a program for young women at The Oprah Winfrey Boys & Girls Club of America in Kosciusko, Mississippi, I worked with Oprah's team from Harpo Productions. We sat around talking about what a great age it is for these 14-17 year-old girls to be bold and to go for what they want. They're young, and if they make mistakes, they can learn from their mistakes, get up, dust off and move on. They are so young that they have the temerity (or audacity, courage, bravado, spirit) to go all in for whatever they want to do with their lives and careers.
A world champion poker player draws a lot of bad hands. They're not always dealt pocket aces. You'll draw some bad hands too, and when you do, think young – whether you're 35, 50, 60, it doesn't matter. We're never too old to employ the spunk of a 17-year-old, to learn from our mistakes, pick up our pocket aces and jump back in.
What happened to me that day at the dollar poker table? Instead of demonstrating the strength and confidence in my hand with audacity, I merely raised and ended up winning a smaller pot than I should have. Next time, I'm trusting my entrepreneurial instincts, and instead of acting in fear, I'm going all in, all the way!
Promise today to play big when those big hands do come your way. Go all in every day, every hour, every minute, every second, and I promise you will achieve sensational success.
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