When you interview at some top trading firms, they might have you play poker as part of the interview, because poker trains you in one of the most fundamental skills in trading: making decisions under uncertainty 🥸😍
Jane Street and SIG have both hired poker players.
I previously talked about Lance, a trader who’s hugely popular in Europe and the U.S. and appeared on the latest episode of Market Wizards. He talked about poker and trading, breaking it down into six lessons.
Expected value: Don’t ask whether this trade will make money. Ask yourself: if I could do it a thousand times over, would I still want to?
Results don’t equal decisions: You go all-in with a pair of aces and lose—the decision was still right.
Making money on a reckless trade is the most dangerous outcome.
Patience: For elite traders, 1% of their trades often account for 80%–90% of their annual profits and losses. They spend most of their time folding.
Position sizing: Not every trade deserves the same amount of money. Bet bigger when the opportunity is good; only go big when everything lines up.
Emotions: Don’t let one bad result spiral into five bad decisions. Getting tilted is revenge trading.
Adapt: Don’t just look at your own cards—know what others are holding.
Trading isn’t about winning every hand. It’s about making decisions with positive expected value. $NVDAB
Jane Street and SIG have both hired poker players.
I previously talked about Lance, a trader who’s hugely popular in Europe and the U.S. and appeared on the latest episode of Market Wizards. He talked about poker and trading, breaking it down into six lessons.
Expected value: Don’t ask whether this trade will make money. Ask yourself: if I could do it a thousand times over, would I still want to?
Results don’t equal decisions: You go all-in with a pair of aces and lose—the decision was still right.
Making money on a reckless trade is the most dangerous outcome.
Patience: For elite traders, 1% of their trades often account for 80%–90% of their annual profits and losses. They spend most of their time folding.
Position sizing: Not every trade deserves the same amount of money. Bet bigger when the opportunity is good; only go big when everything lines up.
Emotions: Don’t let one bad result spiral into five bad decisions. Getting tilted is revenge trading.
Adapt: Don’t just look at your own cards—know what others are holding.
Trading isn’t about winning every hand. It’s about making decisions with positive expected value. $NVDAB