Once upon a time I played a good bit of poker. Mostly Texas holdem. For those that don’t know each player has two cards and there are a community of five to make the best hand.

One of the major lessons I learned is that no matter how much you wish or hope you can’t do anything to change the cards.

Your hand is your hand.

Your opponents hand is their hand.

The community is the community.

The only thing that is ever in your control is how you play your hand. Fold, call, raise, meek or strong, bluff or honest. The cards are the last thing in the world that matter, all that truly can change your odds is how you play the hand.

7/2 off suit was always my favorite starting hand, because in Texas that is statistically the worst hand you can be dealt. But I loved it because I knew with that bad deal I could still take down the hand.

So remember you can’t control the deal, but you can control your attitude and actions.