Chess Lesson 2 ("You ain't gotta take it")

"The shit's chess it ain't chekers!!" .... One of my favorite quotes from the movie Training Day. Many novices to the world of gaming see the alternating squares and think the games are the same, when they are worlds apart. One of the biggest differences is in chess... You almost never have to take an opponents piece, while in checkers if you don't you will not only lose your piece but also your turn.

In chess as in life, there are times when material gain is offered to those unsuspecting and oft times too eagerly accepted with no regard to the position that it will leave them in. Material superiority does not win the game.. Positional superiority does... granted, more material can help you achieve a stronger position, but as we learned in lesson 1, we have to keep in mind what is important.

Nothing in life is free.... Words to live by right there. Now yeah maybe your opponent had a mental lapse and left one of his pieces wide open. But I'm not referring to those times.. rather I'm referreing to a "good game". In any case its imperative to ask yourself "what kind of position will I be left in if I take this piece". I've witnessed games where Queens were sacraficed so that a positional advantage can be gained... If it looks to good to be true, it probably is...

These first few lessons are very basic... In terms of both life and chess... they are (well they should be) common knowledge... We will start going deeper, and touch on some of the more intricate secrets that we can learn from the chess board... things like "the advantages a pawn has over a queen" and "why bad moves are the best moves" ... but thats down the line. We just gettin our feet wet right now.

Peace

p.s. if you need real chess lessons, (ie. how the pieces move/ basic strategies) just contact me... its been a while, but I still think I can teach u.

Chess Lesson 1 ("Object of the Game")

The most important thing to remember is "what is the object of the game... what is it that you are trying to accomplish". With this in mind, you'll be able to start formulating your plan, and strategies designed to execute said plan.

While this may sound simple its amazing how many times we lose track of this. Finding ourselves chasing that which is not essential to our goal. Some think.... if I can capture the queen, the game is won, or that trading a bishop for a rook will give me the material advantage needed to claim victory.... when in fact, all these things are pointless if ultimately they do not lead to the accomplishment of that which we have set forth to do.

I oft times say "Its all a game.... life, love, happiness... just sometimes the stakes are higher, and the rules are not as clear cut" but if we are able to remember this first lesson, all these things are achievable.