WILMINGTON — Jenny Just, one of the few self-made female billionaires in the country, asked women to double down on big risks at the poker table and in business, at this year’s Women of Hospitality Conference.
The annual retreat organized by the Delaware Restaurant Association included paneled discussions on leadership, staying calm under pressure and the power of mentorship much like it had in the past.
But this time Just, fintech entrepreneur who was once listed on Forbes billionaire list in 2022, offered insights to how taking chances and learning how to play poker will change how they view life and business. Today, Just has an estimated net worth of $450 million. She was the keynote address in a moderated fireside chat led by DRA President and CEO Carrie Leishman.
“Risk is the only option if you want something or how to change it. The truth is, you’re taking a lot more risk every single day,” Just told the women that gathered at the Queen on Tuesday. “You really have to look at yourself and decide who and where you are in terms of taking risks. The earlier you do it, the better, because the likelihood you’ll fail is high. But when is anything smooth? If you start that assessment, you’re more likely to reduce the downside more often.”
Just started her career as an options trader in Chicago in 1990, in a industry that was so male dominated, she remembered that the office fridge had beer in it. She cut her teeth on trading stock options, and she said that the fast-paced nature of the business trained her to make decisions quickly. By 1997, she struck out with a business partner to form Peak 6 with $1.5 million in seed money.
Today, the investment firm has evolved into a multibillion-dollar financial services company with products and service branches like Apex Fintech Solutions, which is the technology provider for more than half of the online trading platforms out there, as well as Apex Crypto and esports franchise Evil Geniuses, among others.
Just noted that with today’s entrepreneurs, there’s so many stories of catastrophic failure and oversized success, there’s little room for those who are making solid money for years. The truth, she noted, was somewhere in the middle for those who have a plan but are comfortable with making the jump.
“If you keep making risks, between raising your hand at a meeting or something small, they build on top of each other. Every time you do it, if you fail, you understand you can get back to the table,” she said. “I was lucky, because I was in a business where you get hit and hit and hit, and you get pretty numb to it after a while if you’re doing it over and over again.”
In 2020, Just started Poker Power with her daughter Juliette to teach women how to take that risk, as well as strategic thinking and how to allocate capital. The company includes interactive lessons through a smartphone app or through in-person lessons at a live event, as well as online club events and games.
Just was inspired when Juliette, who was 14 at the time, lost a tennis match. Her daughter’s father said that it was like Juliette didn’t realize she was playing against a player who was strategizing on the long game – and suggested learning poker in an off-the-cuff comment. Just realized that the same comment wouldn’t have been made about her son. So, Just and Juliette invited 10 girls and their mothers over to learn poker.
“By the fourth lesson, the girls were sitting up straight, peeking at their cards and nobody was going to take their chips. It was miraculous,” she said. “The most important thing is you get your baseline. The second most important thing is you find your rhythm and find how you’ll use it. Now, with restaurant executives, it’s going to look differently, but everyone sees their life in the game.”
More than half the men who play poker play, even though they never learn a long-term strategy, she added. So being at the table alone is a big win for women – but learning how to handle expensive risk will also give them a valuable tool for life.
“The difference between where we are and where we want to be is money. And you have to be comfortable with taking risks around money. And if you don’t, and the man is sitting next to you, they will get the pot, they will move on,” she added.
In Poker Power’s last four years, it’s surprising to see that no matter the age, women players through the program all have to build their confidence to become that card shark at the table. It’s almost counterintuitive to how women in leadership roles are trained to be collaborative and assist other women in the room.
“We had a senior banker play with us, and she sent me an email that thanked us but realized that she wasn’t playing to win,” Just said. “We’re so busy creating a community, we’re not really thinking how to play to win. It’s a different mindset.”
“Until we decide to do things we’re great at and not so great at, we’re not fully formed in this business world,” she added.
