Recovering from a loss in a huge poker event — when you’re almost there — is as essential as it is for any other high-performing athlete, regardless of the sport.
It’s ten days after Ashira Lavine busted out of The Colossus tournament at the 2025 World Series of Poker®. It’s time to look back and replay what happened just after to further anchor her resilient recovery.
In this review, I'm hoping you'll find a way to discover the lessons within the loss you've experienced. Especially the ones that consume you from the inside out.
So let's look back.
When the Cards Are Gone, What’s Left?
The tournament ends for Ashira at 4:33pm Las Vegas time on June 9, 2025. Her chips are gone.
Action is still in play, but not for her. No more players to read, no more cards to play.
As she walks out, she hears the remaining few players shuffle their chips and say, “Call.” “Raise.” “All-in.”
Hearing “All-In” just after busting in any event can feel like a gut punch.
Why didn't I wait? Why did I push all-in with those two cards?
And in a huge event — just twenty-two places away from cashing over half a million dollars — can you imagine what is going on in your head?
Shame. Regret. Self-flagellation.
But for Ashira, what remained was power. Dignity. Certain. Unshaken and fully present.
Coaching in the Quiet Aftermath
We sat together on Zoom — less than two hours after she placed 23rd out of 16,301 entrants. It wasn’t the kind of session where we dissected hand histories, and what spilled out wasn’t strategy or regret.
It was energy.
It was alignment.
It was Spirit.
I barely recognized her. Then she began to talk:
“With the exception of the last hand, I played a 100% feel game.”
That’s how she opened. No bravado. No apology. Just truth. She went on:
“It was all about the motherfucking energy. I can do this again.”
I stayed quiet and let her voice stretch into the space between the words. Because this wasn’t post-game analysis — it was soul integration.
Spirit at the Table
She had felt the shift during the tournament — nudges from Spirit, physical sensations of yes, intuitive signals before big decisions.
One of those led to a double-up. Another carried her deeper still.
She described being below average in chips almost the entire time. But never below average in presence.
The pause wasn’t just a tactic. It wasn’t just stillness. It became a threshold. The kind that delivers a lifetime of wisdom in one breath.
Call it woo if you must. But pausing to listen might be the most grounded act of all.
In today's fast-paced world, we often fall into the habit of rushing without pausing to listen, and that is to our detriment.
That's one of the beautiful life lessons in poker. Slow down and pause. Could life be that simple?
When the Lesson Lands
Ashira went on:
“I rushed when I didn’t need to. I didn’t pause long enough.”
She didn't say this in shame.
Or in judgment.
It was in recognition.
That’s what struck me.
Most people would have obsessed over the bust-out hand, but she leaned into the truth behind it: energy flows slower in the physical world, and if you try to act before it catches up?
You lose the hand — and the message the energy carried is lost.
Already There
This wasn’t the voice of someone who almost made it. This was the voice of someone who remembered she was already there.
And when she said, “I can do this again,” I knew she didn’t mean to play another tournament.
It meant play it differently — from her gut, her grace, her alignment.
This wasn’t about poker. It was about presence. About being completely aware.
That’s the kind of win you take with you.
—
Consider yourself hugged,
I'm Donna Blevins, the MindShift Mechanic, and today I tapped into being a twice-ordained minister. 🙏
Until next time.
📌 PS — If this spoke to you, feel free to pass it on. Truth has a way of reaching the ones who need it.
More about Ashira Lavine
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