Play Games Worth Winning

I love the idea of playing a game to make money.

I think a lot of people can relate, especially guys.

I’ve been thinking about why some processes don’t excite me as much as before, despite potentially being better opportunities.

I think it’s to do with the game.

Playing games is fun.

Traditional “Work” is not.

It’s also difficult now to answer the “what do you do?” question.

Because it’s not really a traditional answer.

You might enjoy your work, but if someone offered you a way to play your favorite game instead and get paid to do it - you’d likely take that offer, especially if it had progression.

But what if you could merge these 2 concepts.

You’ve heard the concept/quote “do what you love and you won’t work a day in your life”, and obviously this has appeal but it is somewhat wrong for most people.

Doing what you love, as work, changes the dynamics of it.

Obviously.

But what about a game?

If you approached something as a game, or a puzzle to be solved, does this re-framing solve this problem?

I think it’s an interesting idea, with a couple of caveats.

1 - Play games you want to play.

You are going to select a game anyway, whether that’s the corporate ladder game, the steal stuff and don’t get caught game, the business game, the sit on your couch and collect unemployment game.

They are all decisions, even if not made consciously.

Whatever game you decide to play, make a conscious decision to actually play it.

Don’t play it because your parents expect you to, or the coins you get from one game are more than another different version.

Play whatever just consciously decide which.

All of them have upsides and downsides obviously, but being more cognisant of those has helped through the years, espically recently in this industry-change of sorts.

2 - Actually try to win.

This sounds so obvious but I really think people aren’t trying to win.

Either they don’t care about the game (point 1) or they care but aren’t really trying to progress or win.

Almost like a teenager who doesn’t try, so that when they lose they don’t feel like a failure, because “they weren’t trying”.

But this is why the “game frame” is so good.

You just aren’t a high enough level yet, it’s a skill issue.

Get better.

Try again.

But actually try to win.

Don’t clock out if it’s truly what you want to do because that’s what you feel like “everyone does”.

This doesn’t even need to be a money or career related game.

It can be an infinite game in some other area of life.

Relationships.

Health.

For me, on the “work games” side, the game that I keep coming back to is sports betting.

I’ve loved betting for as long as I can remember.

But not the “thrill of gambling” that some people have.

I don’t really understand why people go to casinos and play negative edge games, or lotteries or slots where they know, absolutely for sure, that over time they will lose.

That just seems dumb.

It’s not the gambling side, it’s the puzzle of it all.

The game of betting itself.

This is my 8th year of trying to get better at the game of betting.

The first 5 didn’t go particularly well, but I think that’s partly down to this “actually trying to win” point.

Because, early on I realised that “obviously betting on sports isn’t a real career or business” - and hence there wasn’t an all-in type attempt to try to win.

However, the game of it, the solving complex ideas, how to judge individual characters, external forces, markets, events, it’s a game I’ve loved for as long as I can remember.

It also has stakes - you are either correct and make money or incorrect and lose money.

Originally I thought this was maybe just business I loved, or the money-game in general and although I like those games, there’s something different to this.

For 3 reasons.

1 - It’s pure.

You place a bet.

There’s a winning side and a losing side.

You can be lucky and win, unlucky and still win, lucky and still lose or unlucky and lose.

But the actual betting side of things (not other things surrounding betting) it’s binary.

Win.

Lose.

2 - It’s a game.

Not the match you bet on itself, but the process of decision.

It’s almost a sport, or a puzzle or a maths problem rolled into one.

It’s a way of thinking that helps you in every area of life.

I like pushing back on “absolutes” people make - “that’s impossible”, “this team can’t lose” - if spoken like a clown, they will generally get asked “what odds do you make it?”

AKA how likely?

To which people hesitate.

I believe this hesitation is good.

Less extremes about everything, less polarisation or EGO driven opinions.

Probably would help in life in general.

I’m not about to make the argument that betting would solve alot of these types of conflicts, but there’s a reason “put your money where your mouth is” is a well known phrase.

Anyway, back to why betting is so great.

There’s different players.

Different strengths and weaknesses.

Match-ups

Game theory.

There’s a market. Odds.

There’s psychology dynamics.

There’s human emotions.

Everything is quantifiable in some way.

Yet 2 people can have the exact same data and come to the exact opposite of conclusions.

Which I think is a good thing.

3 - No perceptions, no BS.

You either win or lose a bet.

If I say I can jump further than you, or drink a pint faster or hit a bullseye, there’s no external boss, co-workers, dramas or perceptions.

I either did, or I didn’t.

If I say Argentina are going to win and they do, great.

I don’t have to sell you, a customer, a client, a boss, my nan to believe it happened.

It either did or didn’t.

So that’s the idea.

Play a game you want to play, and try to win.

One final thing.

Don’t be a casual with what you truly care about.