Playing Chess Teaches Hard Work

Hello, and welcome to the Chess at Three Blog. We’ve been thinking about different ways that chess can enrich the lives of those who play it. In a previous post, we talked about how chess can help you discover your own style and personality. In another post, we talked about how chess is a universal language, connecting you to friends in any major city!In today’s blog, our co-founder Tyler Schwartz discusses the correlation between playing chess and building an appreciation for hard work. Here’s our next entry. Playing Chess Teaches Hard Work, a short essay from one of our Co-Founders, Tyler Schwartz.“I went to college for music, specifically jazz performance on saxophone. As a musician, I became very good at practicing for at least 4-hour chunks, a common theme of musicians. It felt good to say ‘goodbye’ to the world for a while, and practice the same song over and over again. Sometimes, I would record myself playing the song at the beginning of the session and then again at the end. It was very satisfying listening to the difference in quality that came with the commitment to practicing. I started to play chess in college, and as with every beginner, experienced a lot of losing at the outset. I would write down my games and retreat back to my apartment with the same ferocity I went to a practice room for music. I would read chess books and watch chess videos about the openings I faced and went over them again and again. At the end of these sessions, I was able to visually appreciate the beauty of the new moves and tactics I had learned in the same way I was able to appreciate songs after a long practice session.In this way, music taught me how to play chess; the ritual of practice was already choreographed in my mind. I was accustomed to the pace of slow and steady improvement. The transition to chess was incredibly easy because I was already good at practicing, I just had to change what I practiced. This is just another theme we hope all Chess at Three students learn: an appreciation for hard work, slow improvement, and commitment.”