Chess is a thinking person's sport designed for those who plan several moves ahead while having the patience to maneuver their pieces in place. I am not a chess player but chess is a sport that is played by many people including former heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis, and Don King. Chess teaches a player to anticipate their opponent's moves and think ahead. For the athlete, politician, businessman or woman who plays chess, the sport develops their strategic thinking. Thinking strategically means understanding how your opponents or competition think and trying to anticipate what they will do. By thinking strategically, you can checkmate their moves.
In chess, there is no certainty, no "best moves," for each game produces new situations. In life, uncertainty abounds and there are times that flexibility is called for. Those who are looking for formulas to lead them through life may find that sometimes those formulas do not work. Each day, like each sporting event, represent different challenges. A salesman once told me that what made his job rewarding was that he never knew what would happen. What makes each sporting event special is that you don’t know what will happen and for the business leader, each day is the unknown.
A person once told me that experience is not always the best teacher. This runs counter to conventional wisdom. Experience does matter in much of life. Experience may allow you to recognize certain patterns, but if you are in unfamiliar territory it may be a curse. Our past experience may blind us to new opportunities.
The businessman, who is used to doing things the old way, may be unable to adopt to new conditions or take advantage of new opportunities. The athlete may stop working and find himself out-hustled by the younger tiger, and the diplomat finds the world situation totally different from when he or she were younger. So in some cases, experience blinds a person from viewing the world as it is, not as a person wishes it to be.
Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - RJ
Tom, we need an Amazon link, bro...
2 - bhw
Thanks, RJ. It was in there, but there was a carriage return after the number, so it didn't show up.
3 - RJ
Thanks, bhw.
Sorry for "doubting Tom"... :-P
4 - tom donelson
R.j.
You are forgiven for doubting me- hope all is well.
5 - RJ
Things are great, TD! Thanks for askin'...
Almost done with my final exams...I'm almost* a college grad! :)
*-Well, I already have my AA, but in a week I'll have my BS...
6 - bhw
Honey, you already have lots of BS!
7 - RJ
Heh...
Yeah, but now I'll have a piece of paper to PROVE it! :)
8 - bhw
Congratulations, btw. I know you've been working full-time while going to school, which gets tiresome after a while. Good for you for sticking with it.
9 - RJ
Thanks, bhw!
I hope to get a federal gov't job (hopefully in the Interior Department) in another year or so. If this happens, I could be (finally!) moving out West...
I'm not sure I'd look so good in a cowboy hat, but I DO know I like the Mormon view on multiple wives... ;-P
10 - tom donelson
R.j. Congrat on your college degree.
11 - RJ
Thanks, TD.
Now I have only a few things left on my personal to-do list before I focus entirely on ruling the world with an iron fist... ;)
12 - Mark Sahm
Tom, Interesting mix of philosophy and game. From personal experience, I would only add that in trying to develop a strategy in chess, you often discover your weaknesses which correspond to the way you govern your life. Whether you're tentative, or overthink everything... or in my case, way too impulsive! But good stuff man.
P.S. If you like chess art, check out a piece I did last year.
13 - tom donelson
Thanks Mark for your insight and love the art, too.
14 - JR
I hope to get a federal gov't job (hopefully in the Interior Department) in another year or so. If this happens, I could be (finally!) moving out West...
The West has enough people. Best you stay home.
15 - RJ
Montana sounds pretty good to me, whether you like it or not, JR! :)
16 - bhw
You're going to rule the world from ... MONTANA?
17 - HW Saxton
Ray Charles was great at Chess! No Joke.
RJ: If you're seriously thinking about
moving out west you might want to check
out Tucson,AZ. If you like the desert at
all,that is. The cost of living is not
too out of control,there is much more
culture there than you would imagine,it
has some good schools,Las Vegas is less
than a half days drive away & the coast
of California not much further.There is
some beautiful country around there and
it's just an overall nice place. I have
lived most of all my life out West and
I think it's great. There is a sense of
freedom and renewal out west that I just
don't feel in the Mid-West or back east.
I live out in Las Vegas, NV. which used
to be a really nice place to live until
about 10 years ago when it just exploded
population wise.It is a really normal
place away from all of the tourist traps
and casinos, believe it or not.The West
is the best!
18 - RJ
Arizona would just remind me of FL. Hot weather, vast numbers of the elderly, people who speak Spanish instead of English, etc.
Naw, I'm thinking Montana, Wyoming, or Alaska.
19 - HW Saxton
Ah,you wanna go up north more. I can dig
that. I was raised in the desert so I'm
used to heat,the hispanic influence,etc.
You'd like Colorado,it's f'ing beautiful
but kinda hippied out. Fort Collins is
nice though.University town, kinda small
laid back.Close enough to Denver but it
is far enough away.Denver used to be all
right but it's too crowded now. Believe
it or not Boise Idaho is really a cool
city. Have fun going out west.I wouldn't
wanna live in Fla. either
20 - RJ
Well, I love FL because of my familiarity with it. I've lived there most of my life (though I was born in Michigan).
I can talk intelligently about nearly every city in Florida, excepting the Panhandle. That's how long I've lived here, and that's how much I've been around in this state.
But I love nature, and the West is were it's at, vis-a-vis nature. (Think: National Parks.)
So, Colorado isn't exactly off my list. Nor is Nevada. But I'm more inclined towards a more rural area, like Alaska or Wyoming or Montana.
But, who knows?
21 - SFC SKI
I lived in Colorado for about 10 years, and I am one of those who is both amazed and distraught at the overdevelopment and sprawl I see everytime I go back. When I finished HS, C-470 was a 2 lane farm road in the middle of nowhere, now it's a highway surrounded by strip malls and McMansions. Used to be North of 108th was outer darkness until Boulder, now it's damn near one suburb. I love Colorado, but if you want wide open spaces, you need to look at the Western Slope. On the flipside, Denver has grown into a decent city with plenty to do.
I have been in FL for a few months, and I love the weather, but the Tampa area is a bit too developed for me, it seems like developers and city councilmen won't be happy until every piece of land is sold and paved, but don't mention all the abandoned and underdeveloped lots downtown. That and the traffic sucks, I am so glad I work the graveyard shift and can avoid it.
AZ is nice, I prefer Flagstaff to Phoenix, though, I need trees and hills.
I can appreciate JR's sentiment, in a similar vein, I tell people that the reason the Jersey Turnpike and Parkway run thtough the ugliest parts of the state is too discourage anyone else from moving there. IN a way, it was my favorite place, Passaic County has lots of parks and openland for hiking in solitude, but is only 45 minutes from NYC.
22 - HW Saxton
SFC Ski,I agree with you about Colorado.
The growth has been both a blessing and
a curse though. Denver HAS gotten to be
pretty hip as far as culture goes but a
lot of interesting run down areas such
as 5 Points have been gentrified beyond
recognition.I've lived out west most all
my life and so many places I love have
fallen victim to this same malady.Which
is unfortunate. But like Denver you just
take the good with the bad and hope for
balance.
23 - SFC SKI
HW: " a lot of interesting run down areas such as 5 Points..."
In the 80's, "interesting" was not one of the adjectives applied to 5-Points.
If I were to live in Denver, I'd want one of the great old houses east of Capitol Hill and South of Colfax. I hate the cookie cutter look of the suburbs.
24 - Mark Saleski
rj, what the department of the interior?
what was the degree in?
the west is a good choice, even the hot parts, since they're not sticky-hot like florida.
25 - Mark Saleski
'what the' = 'why the'
duh!