logo
Can teaching employees poker skills help a businesses thrive?

Can teaching employees poker skills help a businesses thrive?

CBS News04-03-2025

London — The high-stakes game of poker is making its way into the workplace, thanks to one passionate card player determined to share her skills to help employees master strategic thinking on the job.
When it comes to poker, Jo Living knows her way around the table. She grew up around cards, as both her parents were bridge teachers. She told CBS News she could shuffle at age five. But she never picked up a hand to play poker until she was in her 30's, and she never really fell in love with the game until a trip to Morocco nearly 10 years ago.
"I was pregnant and sat in a smoky Moroccan casino at four in the morning, and I'd actually just beaten 200 men to win my first international poker tournament," she told CBS News as she sat at a poker table that she uses to teach the skills of the game to others. Her big win in Africa gave her a big idea.
Living started hosting home games and teaching the often male-dominated game to her female friends, and said she "quickly saw them growing in confidence, closing client deals and landing promotions."
Shuffle forward a few years, and Living founded her company, Aces High. She runs poker workshops across the U.K., aimed at empowering employees — and especially women — to raise their game across a wide range of businesses.
"People think it's about bluff and bravado, but actually it's a lot of female skills," she said. "There's so many skills from the poker table that are transferable to the boardroom table, from negotiation, communication, deep listening."
Stepping Stone Media was one of the latest companies to get an Aces High makeover, with poker tables rolled into its London office, complete with cards, dealers and chips for betting.
"I mean, it feels good, I wouldn't mind having a poker table in more often to be honest," the company's managing director David Mynard told CBS News.
Mynard said he's all in, if it will help his employees play their best hand at work.
"I really love the idea of taking the game of poker and thinking about how that can translate, how we can learn about ourselves and hopefully develop our own skills of communication and reading other people," he told CBS News.
More than a dozen employees sat around the poker tables, some new to the game, others with experience, as Living took them through exercises in decision making, risk taking and reevaluating decisions as they played.
Head dealer Jimi Sotimehin, who's dealt the World Series of Poker, says he loves bringing the game to the workplace.
"I have got the best seat in the house, I never lose!," he jokes.
At Aces High events, there's no cash at stake. The chips are made of chocolate. Living says it's all about betting on yourself... no matter what kind of hand you're dealt.

Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

IRS quiet on payment processing delays despite more reports of bills being sent for taxes paid
IRS quiet on payment processing delays despite more reports of bills being sent for taxes paid

CBS News

time13 hours ago

  • CBS News

IRS quiet on payment processing delays despite more reports of bills being sent for taxes paid

IRS quiet on payment processing delays despite more reports of bills sent for taxes paid IRS quiet on payment processing delays despite more reports of bills sent for taxes paid IRS quiet on payment processing delays despite more reports of bills sent for taxes paid Despite continuing reports of taxpayers receiving bills from the IRS for taxes they already paid on time, the agency has remained quiet about the problem and when it could be resolved. CBS News Chicago has been checking in daily with the IRS for the past week about the processing delays as more people say they are getting IRS notices. Jasmine Walton and her family had to pay $7,000 in taxes this year. It was a painful bill to deal with once, but twice? "I will tell you, initially it sent us into a little bit of a panic," she said. "We are counting every penny that leaves our household, so to tell us we owe additional thousands on top of thousands we've paid already? It almost sent us into a tizzy." Adding insult to injury, the bill the Waltons got from the IRS already had penalties and fines tacked onto it, even though they paid what they owed before the April 15 deadline and the money hasn't been in their account since. "Watching that news segment and finding out we were not alone did give us some resolve," Walton said. Like so many others we've heard from since first exposing this IRS issue last week, Walton learned she was part of a bigger problem through CBS News Chicago reporting. An IRS agent told our producer, who was also impacted by the mistake, their electronic payment system I experiencing delays processing money sent in by April 15. They said they should be caught up by June 29, and made assurances penalties and interest would be erased. But why is this happening, and for transparency's sake, why isn't the information being shared directly from the IRS online? "Update your website," Walton said. "It takes a marginal amount of time to put a nice banner up there saying we are behind you may receive communication in error." An Inspector General for Tax Inspection report released this spring detailed an 11% reduction of staff at the IRS, with about 7,000 of those workers being probationary and thus possibly have had their jobs restored. But despite asking the IRS about that, we have yet to receive any clarification. "My ask is for them to fix it," Walton said. We were originally told the IRS would "hopefully" have information to share last Wednesday, but nothing has been sent to us since. CBS News Chicago talked with an IRS spokesperson by phone Tuesday and they told us they're still working on a response to our questions and requests. They have not provided a timeline for when those responses would be ready. We asked U.S. Sen. Tammy Duckworth (D-Illinois ) if she has heard from her constituents about this issue and she responded with a statement, writing, "My office has seen increased response times from federal agencies like the IRS for months now – and thanks to the effects of unnecessary and damaging DOGE cuts, it's likely to only get worse in the years to come. If Illinoisans are having issues with a federal agency like IRS, I urge them to contact my office so we can help them get the money they're owed or reverse any unfair penalties caused by these delays."

Latest Donald Trump approval ratings: new poll finds good news for president
Latest Donald Trump approval ratings: new poll finds good news for president

Yahoo

time2 days ago

  • Yahoo

Latest Donald Trump approval ratings: new poll finds good news for president

Registered voters like what they see from President Donald Trump, according to a new poll. A survey released by Napolitan News Service found that 51% of respondents approve of Trump's handling of the presidency. Of those respondents, 30% said they 'strongly' approve of the work Trump has done so far, while 21% said they just 'slightly' approve. The poll also found that 46% of respondents disapprove of Trump's work in the Oval Office. Among those who said they disapprove, 35% said they 'strongly' disapprove, while 11% said they only 'somewhat' disapprove. Only 2% of respondents said they were not sure about how Trump has handled the job of the presidency, according to the poll. The poll was conducted between May 27 and June 3 with a sample size of 3,000 registered voters. The poll's margin of error is plus or minus 1.8%. The Napolitan News Service is part of the Napolitan Institute, founded by veteran Republican pollster Scott Rasmussen, The organization bills itself as involved in 'rigorous, unbiased polling,' providing 'deep insights into American sentiment.' These numbers represent an incremental improvement in Trump's approval rating when compared to Neapolitan News Service's previous poll, conducted between May 20 and May 29. In that poll, 50% of respondents said they disapproved of Trump's handling of the presidency, while 49% said they approved. The previous poll's sample size also was 3,000 registered voters. It had a margin of error of plus or minus 1.8%. The last time a Napolitan News Service poll found that a clear majority of respondents approved of Trump's handling of the presidency was in May. The poll, conducted between May 7 and May 15, found that 52% of respondents expressed approval, while 48% expressed disapproval. Like the other two polls, the survey's sample size is 3,000 registered voters and has a margin of error of plus or minus 1.8%. Other polls conducted around the same time as the Napolitan News Service poll offer mixed results for the president's approval rating. A YouGov/Economist poll conducted between May 30 and June 2 found 49% of respondents disapproving of the job Trump is doing as president, while 45% approve of the work he is doing. The poll's sample size is 1,610 U.S. adults. It has a margin of error of plus or minus 3.2%. A CBS News/YouGov poll conducted between June 4 and June 6 found that a majority of respondents (55%) disapprove of Trump's work as president compared to 45% who said they approve. The CBS News/YouGov poll's sample size is 2,428 U.S. adults. Its margin of error is plus or minus 2.4%. Over 12,000 Harvard alums lend weight to court battle with Trump in new filing Mass. Sen. Warren: DOGE accessed 'sensitive' student loan data at Education Dept., calls for probe Markey: Trump using National Guard in LA to distract from big cuts in 'Big Beautiful Bill' Can the Mass. GOP flip this Taunton state House seat? | Bay State Briefing ABC News suspends correspondent over social media post critical of President Trump Read the original article on MassLive.

Digital Content Producer (Part-Time)
Digital Content Producer (Part-Time)

CBS News

time2 days ago

  • CBS News

Digital Content Producer (Part-Time)

Title: Digital Content Producer (part-time) Department: News CBS NEWS MINNESOTA is looking for a Part-Time Digital Content Producer to work on WCCO's live streaming network and other digital outlets, managing and creating content for audiences. The content producer will work with a digital team managing, optimizing and timing live and on-demand video content for mobile, desktop and OTT platforms. The content producer works in coordination with News Managers and Broadcast Line Producers during live news programs, and takes on other responsibilities such as writing headlines, conducting interviews, editing and publishing video, and maximizing SEO and shareability of all content. Hiring Salary Range: $25.45 per hour. Responsibilities include, but are not limited to: Overseeing content on CBS NEWS MINNESOTA by building show rundowns and segments, editing video and scripts whenever needed. Tracking news and events; coordinating coverage with managers and line producers. Constantly updating news stories in the stream and producing breaking news and other updates as they happen instead of waiting for a scheduled newscast Anticipating the needs of CBS NEWS MINNESOTA with regard to video, graphics, scripts and other elements. Coding/stacking rundown content with regard to video, graphics, scripts and other elements. Writing memorable headlines, scripts and segments. Working with managers and the entire digital team to develop and produce special content utilizing the resources and storytelling of the entire WCCO Newsroom. Conducting interviews in the field or over web camera, shooting video, producing stories, and editing video for audiences on digital and social media platforms. Writing content on occasion for WCCO's web site. Demonstrating expertise in timing in a control room environment. Other duties as assigned. REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS: 2+ years' experience in creating and building show rundowns in cable, broadcast or digital environment OR creating digital video content in a newsroom. Demonstrated success operating in a fast-paced environment. Ability to work under tight deadlines to write headlines and edit video for live digital broadcast. Thorough knowledge of social media and the competitive digital news environment. Familiarity with editing systems such as Edius/Stratus, Final Cut, Adobe Premiere required. Familiarity with iNews, and Cripsin Rapid Play preferred. Available for early mornings, nights, weekends, and holidays. Understanding of SEO. ONLY ONLINE APPLICATIONS WILL BE ACCEPTED Click here to apply online. (NO PHONE CALLS PLEASE) It is the policy of CBS to afford equal opportunity to all, to discriminate against none, to take affirmative action to promote equal employment and advancement opportunity regardless of race, color, national origin, religion, sex, age, sexual orientation, disability, veteran's status, marital status, or height or weight.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into the world of global news and events? Download our app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store