Neeraj Pandey’s M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story, the much-awaited biopic was released on 30th September. Millions of cricket fans have watched the movie which portrays the journey of a small town boy of becoming India’s most successful cricket captain. Apart from cricketing moments and dramatic life incidents, the movie has some crucial inspiring lessons for poker players. From sweating it out behind the wickets to working as a TC (Ticket Checker) for the Indian Railways to becoming the face of Indian cricket, the story of a pump operator’s son is truly inspiring.
Here we discuss a few poker lessons that we can learn from the biopic of the Captain Cool MS Dhoni:
Dream Big to Achieve Big in Life
Dhoni’s father worked as a pump operator. When his son got a job in the Indian Railways, his happiness knew no bounds. However, Dhoni had a big dream because he didn’t want live an ordinary life. This very dream led him to be India’s best captain. It is therefore they say, aim for stars and you might hit the moon. It is also true with poker champions. The 14 WSOP bracelet winner Phil Hellmuth started it out with small home poker tournaments, but had a big dream of playing at the WSOP. With his hard work and dedication, he not only managed to play but also to win 14 prestigious bracelets so far.
Don’t Always Listen to Your Parents
When Dhoni got a job in the railways, his father was overjoyed. But after realizing that his job was holding him back, he immediately quit it, despite his father’s protests and arguments. Similarly, there are so many examples where brilliant minds from across the country, despite several protests from parents, are making a career in poker. If you have believed in your skills, you may have to go against your parents and relative. It is exactly like they say, where there is a will, there is always a way. The day you are successful, you’ll find everyone joining the celebrations.
Stay Humble & Learn from Your Peers
Another interesting lesson that movie shares is that you should always keep learning a game, be it cricket, poker or any other game. Dhoni learned the Helicopter Shot from his friend, which later on became the trademark shot for him. You also must have so many friends from the poker circuit who can also help you learn new tricks and strategies to improve your game. So why not learn from your peers and hone your poker skills.
Accept Your Failures & Learn from Them
Everyone’s career sees some ups and downs precisely what we call variance in poker. Life is a like a roller-coaster and you are always bound to face failure at some point like Dhoni did. Yes, he could not make it to U-19 team and everyone around him was disappointed. But Dhoni decided to throw a party and determined to work hard ahead to turn his failure into success. Eventually, his hard work paid and he went on to become the Captain Cool of India.
Follow Your Heart
Dhoni didn’t care about what people said about him. He followed whatever interested him. He went all the way to follow his interests and hobbies. He went to Aurangabad to spend some time with Sakshi without caring for reactions from other people. Poker might be taboo for some in your locality, but if this game of skill excites you and you have a temperament to learn and excel at it, don’t hold yourself back. Keep playing, keep improving. Who knows, you may bring India’s first WSOP gold bracelet.