Meeting with David Sklansky

[andyfox]

[andyfox]

I think you're missing his point. No one person in any well-run organization is indispenable. An organization that is rude to its customers loses them. Even forgetting about common courtesy, it's negative EV not to say please and thank you.

In the poker world, you're a celebrity. You make a portion of your income from selling books. You've now had two opportunities to say thank you to a customer, but you prefer to tell us your theory of "oh" and "thank you." There's more to life than math, at least for some of us.

I think Mike L. may have gotten it just right.

[SunTzu68]

David,

We still have your job opening as an Actuary in NYC/NJ. Please let us know when you will be available to negotiate your salary.


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[jasonHoldEm]

</font><blockquote><font class="small">In reply to:</font><hr />
Please let us know when you will be available to negotiate your salary.

[/ QUOTE ]

I said $10 an hour! I was first! You can't have him!

Seriously though, I'm not asking for much...you can just sit there and say "Oh" the whole time...I'm sure I'd learn something just by being in the same room.

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jHE

[El Dukie]

Seriously though, I'm not asking for much...you can just sit there and say "Oh" the whole time...I'm sure I'd learn something just by being in the same room.



Poker Osmosis? [img]/forums/images/icons/smile.gif[/img]

[BruceZ]

No one person in any well-run organization is indispenable.

Was Michael Jordan indispensable to the Bulls winning 6 championships? Does this mean the Bulls were not well-run? If they were not, I think most would agree this was evidenced by them letting him go, not by his being indispensable.

Most managers state that no one should be indispensable. I think they state this either because a) that is what they are taught in manager school, b) it would place them in an extremely uncomfortable position to believe otherwise, or c) it is a bluff to keep the cost of performance down. It is true that most managers are not indispensable. It may even be true that no one in an organization is indispensable if the goal of the organization is to sell shoes or something. Fortunately for people like me, there are many organizations with very technical goals in very competitive fields which are not well-run by this definition. In fact, I don't think I have ever seen an organization which was well-run by this definition. The most succesful ones realize that it is much better to have a small number of very talented individuals than a larger number of less talented ones. The ones who do not realize this early will realize it after it is too late, and then I will be there to take their money.

[Clarkmeister]

The Bulls were far more profitable in the two years after Jordan quit (the second time) than they were in his final two years of actual playing.

I know that's not really addressing your point, but its worth noting.

[Zeno]

Pre-Christmas at the Bellagio; I was at a poker table playing 15-30. I quickly studied an individual that sauntered through the room with a racing form tucked snug under their arm. He was taller than he looks. Gray hair and beard, the beard unflattering enough to be intriguing. His eyes were dimly glazed and limpid. The most notable thing was the pensive and quizzical look on the face – as if he was about to deliver an impromptu speech, or trip over his own feet. Years of practice I mused. I then turned back to concentrate on the poker game and gave him no more thought. I have no idea who he was.

You made a mistake “asdTexas”. You should introduce yourself to another poker player by taking his money. That is the best introduction you can make. If you don’t think you can take his money – then stay away.

-Zeno

[BruceZ]

I once read this article titled "Jerks are Great People". It explained how whether you need to choose a doctor, a mechanic, or whatever, you can usually count on a jerk. The reason is, you can be sure the jerk didn't get to where he's at just by skating by on his personality. In order to succeed while being a jerk, he must be very good at what he does, or else nobody would go to him, and he wouldn't be in business. You can't always be as sure about someone's competence if they are not a jerk. I concur that I have generally been satisfied whenever I have dealt with jerks.

I did have one exception recently. I was choosing a bowling ball drilller, and I was excited to find one who was an enormous jerk. This guy would make you feel like you were an idiot that had no idea what you were even asking for. If you tried to argue with him, he'd openly insult you. He even tried to mimic me once. This was over technical issues that very few amateurs ever even consider, and of which I have done intensive study. I found he treated everyone this way, and one of my teammates was even afraid to go into his shop. He'd yell at people as soon as they walked in the door if they set their balls down in the wrong place. I was completely convinced that I had found the ball driller for me. Well, it turned out he was a poor ball driller, and nobody I know is very happy with his work or his advice. This could be the exception that proves the rule though since he worked for the bowling alley instead of being self-employed, and he hadn't been there very long. So when going out of your way to deal with a jerk, make sure it isn't likely for him to be an incompetent jerk.

[andyfox]

No one doubts that David is a great poker thinker. But a man who says he was too preoccupied to say "thank you" rather than "oh" when a customer pays him a compliment undoubtedly has other brain leakages which call into question his ability to give sound advice.