How to make decisions like a poker pro | Maria Ho | TEDxUCSanDiego

I couldn’t be prouder of my sister Maria for sharing her wisdom on one of life’s most essential skills—decision-making under pressure. Watching her distill years of high-stakes experience into such clear, empowering insights was inspiring. She doesn’t just excel at poker—she teaches us how to think with clarity, manage uncertainty, and trust ourselves even when the stakes are high. This talk is a must-watch for anyone who wants to level up their thinking and approach life’s decisions like a true strategist. Bravo, Maria! ♠♥♣♦

From $10K to $110K that's the minimum range of profit return every week I think it's not a bad one for me, now I have enough to pay bills and take care of my family...

I have always enjoyed watching her at the poker table! Wisdom!

Gp back to the kitchen

About her traffic jam analogy, I would still stick to the main highway as opposed to unfamiliar side roads for fear of getting lost besides which GPS has known to lead me me on some dead ends. Being armed with that information though I would let my boss know that I would likely be running late and why . I remain stubbornly risk averse but different Strokes for different folks!

Although in each action in a day-to-day life we take small and important decisions, few people think it can be strategic and any one can practice this ability.

Unsubscribed for violation of free speech.

Maria is not only a brilliant poker player but also a brilliant speaker. She’s a true ambassador for the game, making something notoriously exclusive feel genuinely inclusive. This talk was thought-provoking and refreshingly real, touching on so much more than just poker.

H to the Izzo. M to the Izzay.

Well done Maria! Thanks for showing so many people how poker can be useful for big and small decisions. I really loved the end about moving on even when you make a bad decision -- evocatively told and so true.

If you want to make great decisions, listen now to this talk!

Bravo Maria! Well done!👏👏👏

Lets go Maria! congrats!

Very well presented Maria!

Great TedTalk! Thanks & keep forging ahead. I enjoy watching you play.

Well done Maria!!

I love watching you play and now ilove watching you talk!

🎉

Maria, never thought I would see you on a Ted X Talk. Congrats Love ❤

Everyone needs to google image her face prior to plastic surgery.

Well done and well delivered!

YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSS great information🙏🙏🙏

🤡 eyes

Do we really know maria makes money from poker......need Receipts.

Great Ted Talk Maria. I love the correlation between poker and real life decisions.

Great talk Maria! next can you come explain to my parents how it's a skill game?

Stop lying….

Maria I used to respect you as a poker player now I also respect you as a person.

One of the top poker players? Really?...maybe 12 years ago and even then not in top 200...

Shes so beautiful, honestly.

Great work Maria!!!

That was the longest "bad beat" story I've ever heard. 😂

There is nothing notable or remarkable about this self-proclaimed “one of the best poker players in the world.” LMAO

They should have had Maria on here years ago. Better late than never I suppose! Great talk!

Great speech Maria, you are a great poker ambassador and good to see you doing so well in this arena also!

Beautiful soul and a wonderful mind. I love her, respectfully.

Great presentation Maria and flawless delivery, congrats!

Read Annie Duke's How to Decide. She had a degree in psychology before she started playing poker and got her PhD in cognitive psychology.

Sorta lost me when she described for the audience what her thoughts were during that hand from the World Series. 20 years ago, no one had an elaborate thought process articulating hands that way. This only started becoming a thing maybe 5-10 years ago. Curious as to why she would mislead an audience like that? Perhaps she assumed 99% are non poker players, and wouldn’t know any better. Personally, I prefer listening to valid stories.

Cool

I call it, you're dam if you do and dam if you don't.

Great speech and connecting poker to real life navigation.

I make decisions relatively quickly except for when it comes to Netflix. It could take me a good 30 to 40 minutes to decide which movie to watch

Excellent insights👋👋👋....Thanks

She gambles for a living... I'm not sure that she is the best person to ask for life advice 😂

Maria is awesome ❤

Great idea Maria! DONT THINK JUST DO IT and room temp bottle of water. 😉💃🏻

I loved how Maria explained the mind of herself as a pokerplayer. I am glad she folded. It was actually the best decision. The info she got from the guy who bluffed, was really valuable information. Great play and great talk!

oofph perfect timing, much needed reminder to not delve on the bad decisions that leads to even more bad mistakes. focus on the present and make good decisions

Have you ever made the "right" decision — but it still didn’t go well? Share below!