Powerful Entrepreneurial Tips From The Game Of Chess

Powerful Entrepreneurial Tips From The Game Of Chess

When I wrote the entrepreneurial lessons to be learned from the game of thrones, I thought I was done writing entrepreneurial lessons from games and movies. Here we are. We have got to do what we have got do. But we cannot remove the place certain intelligent games from entrepreneurship. The tips from the game of chess promise to be the best we have had.

Robert Kiyosaki has developed a lot of financial games. So many people have been able to develop their financial intelligence from that. The cashflow clubs all over the world confirms that assertion.

The chess game is not directly a financial game. It is way deeper than that. It is a complete game tailored towards improving your thinking level. For those who don’t play it, it could be quite boring and slow, but for active players, it pumps up adrenaline. It is very exciting.

Related: How Top entrepreneurs master the art of self-discipline

The tips from the game of chess can be used in all phases of life. That is the joy of the game.

When you watch strategists, they play chess. You look at politicians and policymakers, they play chess. People trying to master the art of seduction play chess. Everybody should play chess. That is my submission.

But our focus here is on the entrepreneurial tips from the game of chess. The question is, “what can entrepreneurs learn from the game of chess?” “What exactly can chess game teach entrepreneurs?”

In my opinion, they are quite many. We will look at these tips from the game of chess but before we do that, here is my experience.

Related: Secrets of self-made multi-millionaires in the world

My Personal Experience

I started playing chess at the age of 14. Well, that was my first romance with the game. It was not even a real chess board then. We constructed it with a drawing board. I didn’t understand the damn thing but I was intrigued by it. It was fascinating. I was still with my school father in JSS3 then.

After that year, I didn’t play till after 3 years when the game was introduced as part of our Inter-house competition. I had to start refreshing my memory and it took just a few days to do that.

I already knew the moves but it became pertinent to master the moves. I had a teacher then who was my classmate but he was not very great at teaching but he used a technique that could either make you or break you. He was more like Mourinho of Manchester United.

I decided not to quit and learned the game and its moves. To be honest, I still learn the moves as there is always something new to learn from the game.

I have played with very good players from the chess club in UNN and other great players from the internet. I know the game and these lessons are gotten from my personal encounter with the game.

I know that entrepreneurs will find these tips from the game of chess very interesting and helpful too.

Entrepreneurial Tips From The Game Of Chess

1. The success of your business is based on SWOT analysis

If you don’t do your SWOT analysis very well, I just don’t imagine you moving forward with your business. It is almost impossible. Chess will teach you to make every move based on sound judgment.

SWOT simply means {Strength, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats}. Every piece you move is in line with your analysis of these factors and so should your entrepreneurial venture. When you initiate a queen exchange, it has to be based on the fact that it is absolutely important.

Entrepreneurs will learn to make critical decisions without necessarily losing much when they master the Art of chess playing.

2. The goal is all that matters

Why do you need a business? Why must you establish a company? Why the hell do you need to be an entrepreneur? These are the questions you must answer. Every venture has a goal. Entrepreneurship has a goal and in chess, there is a goal.

You see, if you deviate from the goal, you will pay dearly for it. The goal of chess is to capture the rival king. It is not to kill every piece on the chess board. If you can capture the king without killing any piece, it shows artistry.

There are so many distractions on the way and if you are not careful, you will lose focus. Chess will teach you to put your focus on the goal. Forget the distractions and keep your eyes on the prize.

3. Sometimes, you may need to sacrifice

To win, you must learn to sacrifice. For entrepreneurs, they make that decision every day. They must decide what and who to let go to succeed.

In playing chess, you come to a point where you might let go of your pawn, knight, bishop or rook. In extreme cases, you may need to sacrifice your queen. It is a sacrifice made with the intention to gain significantly towards winning the game.

Also read: How top entrepreneurs rewire their brains for creativity

You can compare it to making investments in the entrepreneurial world. The money you invest is the sacrifice you make. You have strategically thought of how the returns will be. If everything goes according to plan, you will make gains but if they don’t, you lose.

4. It is okay to fail in order to grow

 

One of the tips from the game of chess is the place of failure in becoming a better entrepreneur. Thomas Edison tried and failed 1014 times in building the electric bulb. He continued and in the 1015^th time, he got it right. The striking thing there is the mentality. Most people would have given up but he didn’t. Dude never even saw it as a failure. He said he was closer to getting it right after every failed experiment.

In the chess game, you will need to lose some games to be able to grow. You will be beaten by some people that you are better than. That is a fact but you need that to even become better.

In your entrepreneurial quest, there is no guarantee that your startup is going to be a success. But the success story is that even if you fail, you grow. That is awesome. You only need to have that mentality. Always see the gain of failing at something.

5. Put restraints on your emotions

If I play you and can manage to annoy you, then I will always win you more than you will manage to win me. That is the reality of the game. You must learn to put emotions in check and act cool so that you can bring out the best in you. Don’t make rash decisions because that is exactly what is needed to beat you.

For entrepreneurs, they must realize the importance of making calculated decisions and not to be pushed into doing the biddings of others without knowing what they are doing.

6. Preparation is everything

It is said that proper preparation prevents poor performance. This axiom is magnified in the game of chess. Trust me, it is everything.

When you prepare for a game, you will choose your tactics. Majorly, there is the defensive approach and there is the offensive approach. It is said that invincibility lies in defense but the possibility of victory lies in attack.

Entrepreneurs must prepare to face life and competitors and make decisions every day. Some of these decisions will have far-reaching implications for you. You need to understand that.

Conclusion

Chess is a classic game that will improve your strategic thinking and make you a better entrepreneur. It will be wrong, however, to say that every chess player will be a good entrepreneur or to say that every entrepreneur will have to play chess.

For example, my principal, GT Igwe Chrisent does not play chess. I know I will humble him in the game. But he humbles me in the entrepreneurial lane and I learn a lot from him. If he can learn the game, he will be much better than he is without a doubt. Who knows, one day, I will teach him.

If you want to play, hit me up on +2347038764113.

These tips from the game of chess are not comprehensive. More tips will be added along the way.

If you happen to know the game, I want you to know that some people can use your help. Share more lessons entrepreneurs can learn from this game and help people become better. Have a nice day.

 

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