You have to think critically about every move at the strategy-based gaming tables. This is why it can take so many months to get a good strategy going with blackjack and poker. Both games are going to require considerable time and effort to get good at. If you sit at the blackjack table and see that the dealer has an immediate Ace, do some thinking. When you settle for even money at the table, you are guaranteeing that you are going to get a return equal to your wager, whether the dealer has a hand-value of 21 or not. The outcome isn’t taken into account when it comes to looking at the dealer’s blackjack, or bust. If you want to win over your tablemates (and who doesn’t!?!) then consider playing out a dealer’s Ace differently. Say you take out insurance if the dealer has an Ace- that means that you are going to get $20 if the dealer does in fact have a blackjack. On the other hand what if the dealer doesn’t have blackjack? Then you end up losing your insurance wager but your blackjack is going to beat out the dealer and you get paid three-to-two on the wager. No you aren’t going to make back your entire wager, but it still is a more advantageous option than just taking the immediate even money option and running.
When you are wagering at the blackjack table you have to consider all the options. This is the only way you are going to come up with your own automatic strategy to work with. Like with other moves, if you find yourself making one or two moves automatically, be sure to think about them. Pull them apart and figure out the other scenarios and how they would play out if you took them instead. You want to always make the moves that are most beneficial to you and that could take some time to learn. Practice makes perfect in the game of blackjack though. Give yourself time to learn the skills needed, but always ask more questions about your strategy. No on eis ever “done” learning in life and the same is true with blackjack strategy. Sure it might be good, but can it be better?