Fowler Musings

When I first read that Steve Pavlina was learning to play Chess, my first reaction was: “Hahaha! CxSP (Chess takes Steve Pavlina) We add another to the fold!” *More maniacal laughter*

Then, I saw what he got from it and thought, “Oh my goodness! He is so totally right! How did I not see that?” Because, just like in life, you cannot keep every piece and still win. You sometimes make a mistake and you have to recover from it or you have to sacrifice a piece in order to capture a larger, more valuable piece. If you manage to win a game of Chess and not lose a single piece, then you are either playing the greenest player ever or got insanely lucky with your moves. Then again, you could be a Grand Master, but even they make sacrifices in order to win.

So, as you go through your life today, try to find your board position in the game against Life. Are you in a really good position and losing a piece seems highly unlikely? Are you setting yourself up to take one of Life’s pieces? Or are you in a bind and have made a few mistakes, losing yourself the board advantage? Maybe you could even be down to your last few power pieces and pawns and Life has a huge advantage.

Whatever your position in Life is, always know that against Life, and in Chess, every game is one you can learn from. No matter how badly you lose, you can always look back and find out what went wrong, why it went wrong, and how you can change it the next time you play.