Playing cards is a centuries-old tradition that has now permeated virtually every culture and become an almost universally beloved pastime. With a variety of games that can be skill or luck-based and sometimes contain elements of both, it’s a wide-ranging activity that can be enjoyed by a group of friends, or even alone.
While it’s become synonymous with gambling, playing cards can also just be a fun game and have a wide range of skills and benefits that can be learned from it. Here’s a look at seven skills you can learn from playing card games.
1. Strategic Thinking
Many card games require players to develop critical thinking skills and the ability to strategize. Among them, famous casino games like blackjack and poker are especially well known for this. The popularity of these games has soared in the 21st century as a result of the massive success of online gambling sites. According to Lewis Humphries, the US doesn’t offer legalized online gambling in most places, including major states like Texas and New York.
However, that doesn’t stop enthusiasts in such states from playing at offshore sites. As a legal gray area, for example, it means a player seeking a New York online poker game can play at any online casino that’s licensed offshore. With most sites offering demo modes so players don’t have to use real money immediately, it’s a great way to learn different tactics and practice strategies before attempting games with higher stakes.
Between games like blackjack and poker, critical strategic thinking skills can be sharpened considerably over time. They require players to analyze and make snap decisions based on not just the cards in their hands, but also what’s on the floor, the state of play at that time, their bankroll at any given time, and even things like other players’ expressions and body language. While luck does play into it an awful lot too, having a good strategy is key to winning at games like poker, blackjack, and even non-gambling since games like Bridge can encompass strategic elements too.
2. Risk Management
As an excellent way to help learn risk management skills, card games can often require players to do things like manage a bankroll, decide which card is the best to throw, or make crucial decisions at crucial times. These decisions can often be the difference between winning or losing a game, so they require some proper thought based on a variety of factors.
For those playing at a real money online casino or gambling at their favorite hangout, the stakes can be a lot higher. Gambling games inherently require taking risks so learning how to effectively manage those risks are crucial components of them. This can require strategic thinking skills and decision-making that require upper brain functions to do well. By playing card games that constantly engender these skills, players can improve their risk management skills through the practice of making crucial decisions in card games.
3. Mathematical Skills
Many card games also require mathematics skills whether we’re even aware of this or not. Between being able to quickly calculate the sum of cards in our hands plus what we’d need to win in games like blackjack or being able to count your tally at the end in other games, mathematical skills very often feature in card games.
By playing them from a young age, players can learn better arithmetic, how to add or subtract faster, and other great core skills like pattern recognition or even statistics as well. As some games can get quite complex, learning to quickly calculate odds can become a crucial factor in decision-making or deciding what strategy to employ in some card games. Deciding if or when to do things like bet, fold, or stay in gambling games can also make a huge difference to your bankroll so mathematics plays an important role in how successful some players are.
4. Social Interaction
Games night has become a staple of many family homes all over the world. Even when it’s just a group of friends, most game nights usually consist of card games. With many that can be played among large groups and promote a social aspect, card games can be a wonderful way to build a social circle, strengthen one, or just learn how to be social and hang out in a group.
Social interactions centered around playing cards, whether it’s just between two good friends, a group, family, or a parent and their kids, can be an amazing way to forge close bonds. Social interaction often enhances the fun of games, adding in dynamics of tactics, and more competition, but also banter and joking around that can create a festive or celebratory atmosphere during such nights. On the other hand, it can also teach people how to socialize better, control their competitiveness, and stay calm under pressure.
5. Patience and Discipline
Building on those last aspects, card games can often require patience and discipline to ensure better outcomes in a game. Rash decision-making or impulsive actions can be disastrous to a player’s chances of winning a card game—especially with gambling games where such behavior can literally cost you money. Even when exercising many of the other skills mentioned here, patience and discipline can become overarching ones that are required to master those.
Some games like poker can last for a long time and require patience and strategic play to manage a bankroll and wait for the best opportunities to take large risks. Players who get this wrong run the risk of being knocked out of games early or making it easier for other players to anticipate their gameplay. Patience and discipline are core social skills too, so mastering them can help a person navigate everything from interpersonal, romantic, and professional relationships.
6. Observation and Memory Skills
With a famous card game that can be played alone literally called “Memory”, it’s obvious that card games can go a long way in training one’s memory. Being able to keenly watch which cards fall and which cards remain in a deck, or monitor crucial moments like which player throws which card at which time can all improve a person’s memory.
At the same time, observation and deduction skills can be trained as well. These can help a person develop great cognitive skills that are beneficial to most working environments. Memory and observation skills come standard with most card games and learning how to train them by playing cards can help players in a variety of other aspects of their lives.
7. Coping with Loss
If you’ve ever heard the saying that you can’t be a winner until you learn how to lose, it’s easy to understand why learning to cope with loss is such a crucial skill for anyone to learn. This is true of life as much as it is for card games, though card games are a great way to truly learn how to develop this skill. Of course, it means having to lose, perhaps even in nail-biting or emotionally crushing ways that make the moment a far harder pill to swallow at times.
However, these are specifically the kind of losses that winners in the long run use to better themselves. Not only do they learn how to lose and cope with the loss but also how to rally themselves, learn from their mistakes, and learn how to bounce back from disappointments. Life isn’t always smooth sailing so learning how to accept bad times and take dark moments in our stride can be a crucial life skill—one of many that you can learn by playing card games!
Conclusion
Card games offer learning aspects that help us hone crucial life skills, develop better cognitive skills, improve our decision-making, and control our emotions better. Aside from all these great perks, they also foster better socialization elements in our lives and can be a great way to learn how to cope with loss. Whether you prefer gambling, skill, or luck-based games, there’s something for everyone in card games and a plethora of lessons and traits that can be learned just by playing them.