I, Zach Elwood, am available for private consultations related to reading and interpreting human behavior in competitive games and other high-stakes situations.
I’m a former professional poker player, and the author of the renowned Reading Poker Tells trilogy of books (48K+ books and 1.2K+ video series sold; first book translated in seven languages). I also host the People Who Read People podcast (65K+ views/listens per month), where I interview guests from a wide variety of professions on how they read, interpret, and make use of behavior — and where I also push back on the immense amount of bullshit in the people-reading space.
What I offer is a nuanced, no-nonsense, real-world approach to thinking about and trying to interpret human behavior. I will also tell you upfront if I think I can provide value: I’ve turned down quite a few requests for consultation due to believing I wouldn’t be of much help for their particular needs. Reach out to set up a free consultation.
A clip from a documentary I consulted for
Testimonials
“My overall view of the experience of working with [Zachary Elwood] is and was very positive… I learned a lot… I feel I got fantastic value.”
– Amir Lehavot, 3rd place 2013 WSOP Main Event
“Hiring Zach for the WSOP ME final table was a huge help in getting a feel for each of my opponents. [After going over his research], I had a fantastic feel for everyone at the table… I think working with him was a very important part of my preparation and I would absolutely recommend him to anyone about to play a big final table.”
– Max Steinberg, 4th place 2015 WSOP Main Event
“Training with Zach [was a] valuable addition to my growth as a poker player. We reviewed footage from a live cash game I was in. I gained insight into the process of how he goes about observing players [and] assigning meaning to behavior. [I also] found our discussion on poker strategy and theory incredibly helpful.
– L. Vitasovic, semi-pro poker player
Behavior-related consulting I’ve done
I consulted for Amir Lehavot during the 2013 WSOP Main Event (see testimonial above)
Some consulting gigs I’ve worked on:
- Assorted consulting/training for poker players, including but not limited to:
- Two WSOP Main Event players: Amir Lehavot (3rd place 2013), Max Steinberg (4th place, 2015)
- Three high-stakes cash game players who wish to remain anonymous
- Private poker tells training for a “stable” (a group of players with shared financial backing)
- Consulting for a documentary covering a boxer’s journey to improve at poker (watch clips)
- Consulting for a reality TV show contestant who wanted to improve her opponent-reading skills
Philosophy on poker tells training
As I make clear in my books and videos, tells are generally a small part of winning poker – especially when playing versus highly competent opponents. The best live-poker players will often go hours without basing a decision on a behavioral read. But, that said, being good at reading tells can add substantially to a win rate. For one thing, some players have major behavioral leaks and so, at the very least, knowing how to read those players well will pay large dividends. For another, even reads that are far from 100% reliable can be quite powerful, because poker is a game that often puts you in close spots from a fundamental strategy perspective. As with many competitive games, poker is a game of small edges applied over the long term.
Check out a video with praise for my poker tells work from some serious, high-stakes players.
Learn about my approach
Some resources related to my approach to helping people read people:
- Sample clips from my poker tells video series
- Episodes from my podcast about behavior bullshit/myths
- My process for reviewing poker footage with a high-stakes player
- Some possible poker tells in the 2013 WSOP ME
Questions?
Have questions or want to schedule a free initial consult? Use my contact form.