The Takeover with Tim and Cindy

High Stakes Leadership: Adam Pliska on Leading (CEO of World Poker Tour)

• Tim and Cindy Dodd • Episode 54

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In the world of poker, as in business, it's not just about the cards you're dealt but how you play them—Adam Pliska shows us how to lead with every hand.

In this episode of The Takeover, we are beyond excited to have Adam Pliska, President and CEO of the World Poker Tour (WPT), joining us. If you don’t know Adam yet, you’re in for a treat. Under his leadership, WPT has exploded in popularity, hosting events on six continents and handing out over a billion dollars in prizes in its 21-year run.

We’ll dive deep into the theme of leadership with Adam. His journey with World Poker Tour is packed with lessons on how to grow and lead an organization to new heights. Adam’s experience is a goldmine for entrepreneurs at any stage, whether you're just starting out or looking to scale up. We know how crucial leadership and company culture are, and who better to learn from than someone who’s navigated the high-stakes world of poker with such success?

So lock in on this episode and get ready to soak up some serious wisdom from one of the poker industry's most influential leaders. This episode is full of actionable tips that can help you elevate your game, no matter what business you're in. Don’t miss it!

We'll dive into: 

  • 03:04: When did Adam know he wanted to be a leader
  • 05:38: Adam's mentors growing up
  • 10:49: How Adam got started with World Poker Tour
  • 14:35: Becoming World Poker Tour's Longest-Running CEO
  • 18:07: Delegating to focus on higher leverage tasks 
  • 29:11: How Adam has created their company culture in WPT
  • 33:38: How does WPT maintain their start-up mentality 
  • 37:40: How Adam attracts and keeps talent
  • 40:57: Challenges faced
  • 43:15: Adam on winning 


Connect with Adam and WPT!
Instagram: @adam.pliska
WPT instagram: @worldpokertour
WPT website: https://wpt.com/ 

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About The Hosts:

  • Tim & Cindy Dodd are the Co-founders of PEMA.io, based out of Miami, FL. Connect with Tim and Cindy: Instagram

About PEMA.io:

  • PEMA.io is a Inc 5000 Outbound Marketing Agency specializing in Enterprise Sales & Appointment Setting. With over 7-years and 1,000+ clients served in the industry, PEMA is the leading agency for cold outreach appointments & systems. Learn more about PEMA.io here: www.pema.io/discover

**Adam:** You have to become friends with failure. You just have to. Failure is a part of it. Business, I know so much of your podcast and your audience is about winning. And defining winning is so important because business is not a game that you win an absolute thing because as soon as you have a success, you better come up with another success. You better come up with another success or the tiger will eat you. Winning is being a person that continues to push forward.


**Host:** One of the things that I love about that is recognizing that you didn't hit the goal, right? And we do this with our team a lot. So we have our quarterly, we call them ROCs. They're these sprint goals for the quarter. And when we don't hit it, we sit down with the team and we confront the fact that we did not hit the goal. And just like Adam is saying, it's that trust that the team now has in you and then your stakeholders, people that you're surrounded by, but also the lessons learned or the lessons that you pull from the failure, right? And I feel like if you don't recognize it, you're actually missing out on a lot of the lessons learned by not recognizing it. So I love that.


**Adam:** The worst inefficiency that a business can have and they don't know they have is somebody who's been around for seven, eight years and three years ago, they had checked out. But they know how to push the buttons enough to get something, but they're not there.


**Host:** Get it done, yeah.


**Adam:** Yes, and you don't want that. So you've got to be honest and you've got to be able to say, look, there's a bunch of people who are checking to see what they want. 


---


**Host:** Welcome to The Takeover with Tim and Cindy, where we show you how to dominate every area of life and business. Let's get winning.


**Cindy:** Welcome back to The Takeover, ladies and gents. One of my favorite topics of all time to speak about, read about, learn about, is the topic of leadership. And why it is one of my favorite topics is simply because I believe very strongly that leadership can make or break organizations, but even on a personal level, who are you being led by? Having an amazing leader in your corner can completely change the trajectory of your life and of your business.


So I'm excited to have this guest with us today, who is no stranger to exceptional leadership. Not only is he the CEO and president of the World Poker Tour, he has won several awards within the industry. And what I'm most excited about diving into with our guest is this topic of leadership because he has one of the longest standing tenures of an executive in the industry of poker, which I think is phenomenal. But also he has very interesting perspectives and philosophies around leadership. So I'm excited to welcome our guest today, Adam Pliska. Welcome to the show.


**Adam:** Thank you so much. I'm delighted to be here.


**Cindy:** Yes. So we're going to dive into the topic of leadership today. I want to start at the beginning. Did you know you wanted to be a leader from when you were a kid?


**Adam:** On one aspect I did. I mean, as a kid, my parents used to. They had the World Book encyclopedias. And so I would take them down at night when I was a little kid. And I would draw leaders and draw famous people of history. And I loved that. I was a bit enamored by it. But I also remember at a very early age, and I had done a lot in Boy Scouting and things like that, would actually help me quite a bit about understanding leadership at the early age. But I remember this pressing thought, which was, I don't know how adults be adults because as a kid I remember thinking oh my god I'm so sensitive I'm so emotional that I would cry at these things that adults have to do and I do remember this double this dichotomy of this I want to be in this position and I want to be able to do things that impact people and impact things. But I didn't know how I was going to do it because I felt like it just seemed like so much pressure or so much, you know, things. And, you know, you're that's from a perspective of a young person.


**Cindy:** How did you then start on that track to leadership?


**Adam:** Yeah, well, I do think early on my parents were wonderful and they were very open to the path that I wanted to explore. And, you know, I did things like sports, which I wasn't particularly good at, but they showed up all of the time and you learn a lot about leadership, not because you're a leader, but because you learn what a good leader is and who the people you wanna follow and not. And even though it was very clear that I was not gonna win the award other than mom who brought the best sliced oranges, there's that. But when I was in scouting, I think in the year I was the youngest person to there's the top rank, which is Eagle Scout, I was the youngest person to achieve that in the US. And so I'm, you know, 12-13 years old, and I'm managing kids who are 17 and going to be 18 years old. And so that comes with a lot of challenges and a lot of personal dynamics. And you learn that leadership is a lot more than just knowing things about your relationship with other people, which is at the heart of everything.


**Cindy:** On that topic of relationships with other people, you've had mentors in your life. And I've read your story. I've been very intrigued by specific mentors in your life that I feel were pivotal in kind of getting you to where you are today. So tell us a little bit more about those mentors in your life, those leaders that you had to look up to that then kind of shaped your journey.


**Adam:** Sure. I mean, a lot of the mentors in life were, of course, when you're young, you don't know why you're being mentored. Later on, maybe in your 20s, you say, I want a mentor who can teach me X. But when you're younger, you just want to be like someone. And that's OK. That's OK. If you don't need a specific mentor, I absolutely believe it's OK to say, that person is living their life the way that I want to live. And so I had wonderful mentors, whether it was teachers or that helped me encourage me to do my business. One drama teacher who helped me start my business when I was a kid in high school. But then, you know, when I was very young, I took a class at a community college. I was still in high school, but it was a community college class. And they were doing a tribute to a famous producer who had produced many, many shows at the time he was producing Lassie, the TV show Lassie. And so they invited me and to save the $12 of getting in, I agreed to be an usher. And so I was bringing people backstage. And one of the people on the show was D Wallis Stone, who was on, who was the mother on ET. And so I brought her backstage and here's all of these, here's this producer and all these actors and all these people that were on the show and they were in the green room. And I remember thinking this was exactly the opposite of some people's perception of Hollywood, right? Cheesy people with, you know, the slimy people over in the corner talking. These were, this was like a family environment and everyone was having fun and I so wanted to be a part of that. So that day I asked some questions in the Q&A and session and then my job afterwards was to tell the people to move along as they were getting the signatures. And he came up and he said, your question was really smart and I really appreciate that. And as he was walking away, I said, excuse me. I'm with the school newspapers anyway, I could come in and interview you and he was at Universal Studios and he gave me a card and months of calling I finally get in and he has assistant head and assistant and so I finally get in and on that day I remember there was Leonardo DiCaprio had been there because he was doing something on there and they were still doing Charles and Charles and Lassie still coming and I get in and he says to me, Okay, what And I said, that's it. I just want to work in a great environment. And he became my mentor, seven and a half years of working together at Universal and Castle Rock and many shows together. And more than that, he was a mentor in life. He was just a wonderful man. His name is Al Burton. And between him and Norman Lear, who passed away at 100 years old and stuff, these were really people who shaped the way that I wanted to create community around me.


**Cindy:** That's amazing. It's so funny that you recognized that you actually went with the school newspaper, but you were honest. And that actually, that honesty opened the door to that kind of relationship that you had with him.


**Adam:** Yes. And I am a very big believer of that now. I mean, he said it's funny. He said, I recognize it because I had done the same thing with Frank Sinatra. And I went in there and I said, I have an interview. And I went in there and he ended up producing Frank Sinatra and a number of things. But I do believe. We're in such an age of marketing, right? Because now social media allows everyone to be their own branding agent. And there's nothing wrong with that if branding means educating, but if branding means polishing things should not be polished, eventually it's gonna catch up to you


. The idea that I can tell this little lie, and by the time I get to that position that I wanted to be at, I'll have figured it out is so misguided because what ends up happening is by the time you get there, the skills that you were supposed to develop, you were focused on the short-term solution and you haven't developed the skills. And the bigger part is you have undermined the trust. And trust is such an important part of business. And I think one of the things people look at WPT and say, how did you create this longevity when other shows came and went? And there's many, many reasons. We have a lot of wonderful people on our team. But I do believe one of them is from a company standpoint. We are very honest about what we do and what we say we're going to do. And people trust that.


**Cindy:** It's huge. It's huge. So I want to dive in a little bit to the nuts and bolts of the industry. You're the CEO of the World Poker Tour, but tell us about your journey. Did you start out in that industry? How did you get to this position of CEO and president of this massive company?


**Adam:** Yeah, well, thank you. So I started out in that I was, I had gone to law school and I was in law school and my partner, my partner had convinced me to go to law school and we had this idea that we were going to be, you know, both lawyers and we were going to work together. And then very quickly, she had a wonderful career. And I was like, I want to produce. I want to do these shows. And I was lucky because she said, Look, if you promise to do this and not to stop and say, you know, and be wishy-washy, she said, OK. And so I did. So I actually, I had a show that I was a syndicated show that I was pitching in my last year of law school, and that went for about six years. And then I became a lawyer. And so I started doing legal work, entertainment legal work. And I had an opportunity to work with a firm that was doing gaming law. And the World Poker Tour was coming in. And so my client became the World Poker Tour. And they were very gracious and we worked together and when they were ready to build up their business affairs department and their attorney, they asked me to come in and I was delighted to come in. And we were able to do a lot of things together. The poker boom is now almost 20 years, 22 years in. But from that initial rise, we were able to ride the wave of that. But also, very, very importantly, we knew that our job was to create things for the poker community that we weren't able to do. And so, 15 years in, the company was sold, and it was a decision that the previous president was not going to go on with the new company. And so, I was asked if I wanted to step into that position. And it was a moment of great doubt because, obviously, it wasn't something that I had... It's something I had imagined, but not something that I was like, okay, this is now my life. And so, I'm very grateful to the people who came in and were able to trust me and build a team and together we created something wonderful.


**Cindy:** Yes, absolutely. And so you're a new CEO now, which is, I think, one of the greatest blessings, but I think also, in the leadership journey, that sometimes can be the biggest curse, because you're coming in, and you've got these big shoes to fill, right? And you're this brand new CEO, and all eyes are on you. So as you're walking into that, how did you show up? Did you show up with a vision? Did you show up with, you know, this concept of this is what I'm going to do? Did you show up with a different approach?


**Adam:** Yes, I think the most important part of my approach was, you show up with listening. You listen to the people who are there. We have such a great team of people who have been around. The average person had been with us at that time for seven years. So you don't need to come in and just sweep. And that's something I've been very proud of. People come in and stay. It's not because it's some altruistic thing, it's because you don't need to break things that aren't broken. And so the idea was, okay, we're going to change a lot of things, but I'm going to listen first and understand what are the things that need to be changed? And you do that by listening. It's about creating a relationship with people. And that includes your fans. And one of the things that we did very early on is we set up some things that people wanted. One of the first things I did when I became president is I took our staff of producers and we went on a roadshow. So we went to Foxwoods, we went to Las Vegas, and we went to LA. And we invited the fans in and we said, What do you think we're doing wrong? What do you like? And that was so helpful. I mean, there were things that they were saying that we didn't have any idea about. And some of the things that they were concerned about were big things. And some of them were little things. I remember one of the things that they said is that we were doing, we had a leaderboard for Player of the Year, and we were putting it on the website. And they said, well, by the time you get to it, it's 20 minutes later than we had known. We're like, okay, we can fix that, right? I mean, those kinds of things. But that's also about trust, right? It's about trusting and going forward. And so that was one of the things we did. I think as I came in, the very important thing is to not just come in with a bag of ideas. As you listen, and you build, you need to build with some humility and some understanding of the team that you're working with. And you need to listen to the people who are working there, because they have so much experience, and they can tell you what you need to do and what not to do.


**Cindy:** And it's so important because I think so many times as new leaders, and this is something I really want to hit on because I have people on the podcast, and some of them are brand new entrepreneurs. They're new to leading a team. They've got this vision, they've got this dream, they're starting this company, but then they're also now put in a position of leadership, right? And I think so often people think that leadership is about having all the answers, right? It's about having that vision. And yes, vision is important. And yes, it's important to understand where you're going. But I think what you're saying, which is so critical, is leadership is actually about listening. It's about creating trust. And it's about being able to tap into the expertise that people already have and creating space for them to shine, right?


**Adam:** Absolutely. And understanding that as a leader, you are going to have days where you're going to be so behind, right? And then how do you handle that? Do you panic? No, that's the time to actually come out with even more humility and transparency, right? I think what people don't understand is that sometimes, you know, we have bad news, but the way you deliver that bad news and the trust and respect that you give, it builds more trust. And that is invaluable because you are going to have a downturn. You are going to have a day when something is going to go wrong. And if you have that trust and you have built that over time, that can carry you through, right? Because you can't predict every single situation. And that's why it's so important to be honest and transparent.


**Cindy:** 100 percent. I love that. So, okay, I want to ask you something, because, you know, leadership is one of those things where it has evolved over time. And we talked a little bit earlier about the mentors that you had in your life. But I'd love to know, how do you feel leadership has changed from when you started your career to where we are now? And what do you think has driven some of those changes?


**Adam:** That's a great question. I think leadership has changed in a lot of ways. And I think one of the main ways that leadership has changed is the way we look at transparency and authenticity, right? I mean, there was a time where the leader was almost untouchable, right? And you had this persona that you had to maintain. And now, more than ever, people want to see the real you. They want to see the authenticity. And that doesn't mean that you're not strong. That doesn't mean that you're not a leader, but it means that you are relatable. And I think that relatability has become so important in leadership. I think another thing that has changed is the way we look at work-life balance. I think when I started out, it was very much about the grind. And you had to show that you were working harder than anyone else. And now I think there's a much greater understanding that if you don't take care of yourself, you can't take care of your team. And I think that's a very important evolution in leadership.


**Cindy:** Yes, absolutely. And I think it's so important because I think so many times as leaders, we feel that pressure, right? To be on all the time, to have all the answers, to be that person that everybody looks to. But I think what you're saying is so important, that transparency, that authenticity, and also that work-life balance, right? Taking care of yourself so that you can take care


 of your team. I think that's so critical.


**Adam:** Yes, absolutely. And I think one of the things that I've learned over time is that you have to be able to pivot, right? You have to be able to change direction when things are not working. And that's something that I've learned is so important in leadership. You can't be so rigid that you're not willing to change. And sometimes that means admitting that you were wrong, right? And that's okay. I think that's a big part of leadership, being able to say, you know what, I thought this was the right direction, but it's not. And we're going to change course. And that's okay.


**Cindy:** Yes, absolutely. I think that's so important. And I think that's a great place to kind of wrap up because I think that's a great message for our listeners. It's okay to change course. It's okay to admit when you're wrong. And it's okay to be transparent and authentic. So thank you so much, Adam, for being on the podcast today. I really appreciate it.


**Adam:** Thank you so much for having me. It was a pleasure.


**Cindy:** Absolutely. And thank you to our listeners for tuning in to The Takeover. We will see you next time.