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Sunday, May 12, 2013

The Gambit



Growing up I played a lot of chess. There's a tactic known as a gambit. That's where a piece is sacrificed, usually to gain a better position.

It was a hard tactic to learn. Chess is a game where maintaining a single pawn advantage is often the difference between victory and defeat. Putting oneself at a material disadvantage, on purpose, is a bold and risky thing to do.

The thing is, done right, it's a way to win the game. Once I moved my focus beyond having the most pieces to achieving victory, sacrificing towards that goal made sense.

That was a life lesson for me. It's not about the points, (dollars). It's about living a life in which you feel like a winner. Sometimes the bold move is to sacrifice money for freedom. (a better game position).

In the end, we all die and the game comes to an end. However, some enjoy playing the game a lot more than others. Victory isn't based on how many game pieces you have.

-Sixbears

12 comments:

  1. Most folks never learn that, though.

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  2. He who dies with the most toys wins... nothing.

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  3. Sounds like a good way to think about things to me!

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  4. And indeed, what's the point of accumulating more pieces than required for the game?

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  5. And despite our so called intelligence, we are the only animal species on the planet who does not get it. (well, so of us do, but nowhere near enough of us)

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    1. Once we have the basics, more doesn't make us happy.

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  6. A lovely analogy Sixbears.
    All one needs is enough and for some, enough is enough...

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  7. Agree totally Six Bears.
    I consider my most valuable possessions to be held within my mind.Those people that I love and the few real friends which I have. All else are but transient trinkets which eventually go away.

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    Replies
    1. We really want to be connected to people, not things.

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