What Magic (The Gathering) Has Taught Me

Playing Magic for almost half of my life has been very memorable and fun of course. The game has brought me not just strategies, creative thinking and innovations but also new friends, colleagues and even long-time buddies. With that, I decided to reminisce some important lessons I have learned in my nine years of being a Magic player/enthusiast. Here it goes:

1. Teamwork – This is probably the reason why I like hanging out with the community peeps here in Iloilo. They are very willing to lend you some card components needed to complete your deck. Also when preparing for big events like Regionals or the Grand Prix, they are there to help. Sharing deck ideas and tech and even crazy stuff just for laughs is what I love with these guys.

2. Patience – Waiting for a top deck burn or Demigod is one example I can compare about being patient in Magic. Good decision making is a nice effect of that, which means less error on your part and you’ll get a lot of info for sideboarding in Game 2 in case you’ll never win the current one. Just remember, never concede right away.

3. Management – What I mean with this is what we call in gaming as “Unit Management 101” or knowing how to handle your board. Playing the right spells on the right turns is one key in winning the game. Also, getting the right creatures in play to gain board advantage and knowing when to overextend or not.

4. Being Creative – Magic is not just about competition and playing to win. It is also about playing to have fun and one way to achieve it is through creativity. Dropping Progenitus through a Dramatic Entrance will surely give you a good laugh at the look of your opponent’s reaction (I’ve just saw this last Saturday and mind you, it resulted in a roar of the crowd).

5. Psychology – One of the best things I’ve learned in Magic. Faking it to give a wrong signal to your opponent which will result in a wrong play is a good example of this. Studying the behavior and reaction is one of the basis to get the right play and I find this actually fun and challenging. Fun because mind tricks will sometimes get your opponent sweating (although I know I’ll be losing the game) and challenging when it is used against a pro.

6. Business Development – The strategy I learned from Magic can also be applied in handling a business or just planning to have one. In Magic, you formulate the right mana curve in order to optimize the deck’s performance. This is also equivalent in investing to the right business strategies to be successful in the field.

I am very thankful to know the game that has molded me as an individual and the people around me. Geekiness yes, but this is life to me.

I’m proud to be a Magic player.

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