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Four useful life skills that chess teaches you

By Tami Atila

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Published: 14Feb2010
Word count: 718
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Engaging in any sporting activity is an essential part of a person's life. There are many activities that a person engages himself during his life, especially in the early part or in the young age. The primary intention of any sporting activity is to provide both physical and mental strength to a person.

If there is one game or sport that not only provides you with the required strength, stamina, energy and relaxation, but also some invaluable lessons for leading a qualitative life, then it must be Chess, the board game that is rightly referred to as the King of Games.

Probably, this is the one reason why this ancient Game of the Kings, or Chess, as it is commonly known, is considered to be one of the most popular games played across the world, even after more than 1500 years.

What does this board game teach to a person?

In simple terms, chess is a turn-based board game in which two players play across each other over a square board having 64 squares. Each player is provided with 16 pieces each, albeit in different colors for the purpose of differentiation. One of the 16 pieces is the primary or lead piece, called as the King. The other 15 pieces are meant to safeguard the primary piece. The objective of the game for a player is not only to safeguard his primary piece but also deploying his pieces effectively to corner the primary piece of the other player and say "Checkmate". One has to master the rules governing the game, including the merits, demerits, and capabilities and movement of the individual pieces across the board.

The salient feature of this board game is that there is no external influence for the game, and it is the players who make the moves, take decisions, and should abide by their decisions. One cannot corner the opponent's King in one single move and claim victory.

The game is such that one player cannot win over the opponent using his skill over the board. He can win only when the other player makes a mistake or makes a wrong move. Though you play the game, you have to rely on the other player's mistake to claim victory. Ideally, the game of chess results in only one outcome - a draw between the two players because both the players enter into the game with equal capability on the board. It is immaterial whether one of the players is aged 6 years and the opponent is aged 60 years. Not it is immaterial whether one player is weighing 100 kg and the other player is underweight with only 15 kg weight.

Across the board, as a player, you determine the fate of the game by your own moves. As such, you, as a player, need to think and think deeply more than once before deciding on making a move. In other words, you should plan your strategy of moves well in advance, react to the response of the moves of the opponent, and take independent decisions. You should be able to analyze the merits as well as consequences of each move. If you think that sacrificing a minor piece, say Knight, for the sake of capturing a pawn, might lead to better control over the board, then you should be prepared to sacrifice the knight for the sake of a pawn. Above all, you should wait for the response of the opponent after every move of yours. You need to exercise patience and should not act in haste. Only when you do these things for each and every move, then you can aim for claiming victory over the opponent, indirectly forcing him to make a mistake, and capitalizing on the same. If both the players apply the same technique, the game can only be a fascinating tussle between the two minds that can take up hours to complete and might end as a fair draw.

The things you do for each and every move will invariably inculcate the following traits in you:

- thinking before acting, - planning and devising strategies, - being patient, and - Sacrificing for larger benefit.

These four things are invaluable traits in dealing with our life as well. Thus, it is safe to conclude that the game of chess will definitely make you a better organized person with these traits.

We are passionate chess player and chess teacher, for more information on us please check out his personal chess writings at ChessXpress.

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