Poker is played with one or more decks of cards, and each player has a pile of chips that they bet. Each round begins with a forced bet, typically an ante or blind bet. The dealer then shuffles the cards and deals them to the players one at a time, beginning with the player to their left. Players can then choose to “call” the bet by putting in the same amount of money or to raise it by adding more chips to the pot. If they don’t want to call or raise, they can simply fold their hand.

It takes a lot of psychological fortitude to be a successful poker player because the game doesn’t always reflect your effort or skill level. In other words, you can play perfect poker and still lose because luck is a factor. But it’s also a great way to learn to accept uncertainty in your decision making. Most humans have a hard time admitting that they were wrong about something, especially when the consequences aren’t immediately felt (like when you touch fire and burn your hand). But poker forces you to recalibrate and rethink your decisions in real-time, which improves your decision making outside of the game as well.

But to truly understand the game, you have to know why you play in the first place. Is it to socialize, or is it to compete, or maybe to prove something? The reason will ultimately shape your style, which in turn will impact the results of your plays.