OUT OF SHAPE & Losing

A couple weeks Back, I got a Bad flu!

You know the kind of flu that sends you strait to bed for hours at a time….

Anyways… I did quite playing chess for a few days-

But I’ve been struggling to get better (bronchitis)- and it all begs the Question:

Should I be Giving up on chess, while I am hacking and coughing; and Struggling to get enough Sleep?

NO!

I’m a fervent believer that getting good at chess (as an adult) is a long term project; where you may slug along for quite a long time not quite conquering your weaknesses, --- failing to similar issues of fuzzy calculation, tactical blindness, and a poor judge of what is and isn’t a sound attack…. But in all that, your slowly developing a web of experiences, and athletic strengthening of your focus,  a slowly developing “repertoire” of dashing tactics – All THAT matters…..    and as for the LOSING?

• LOSING IS A TEST OF CHARACTER:  I’ve often thought that LOSING was something that divided the COMMITTED PLAYERS from those who just had whims or those that just like the feeling of BEING BETTER than the opponent.
• LOSING A HARD FOUGHT GAME SHOWS US WHERE OUR EARNEST THINKING FAILS:  If we work to play SLOWLY and CAREFULLY outright blunders and Oversights DIMINISH.  Instead more fundamental errors APPEAR.  Places where we become PARALYZED or slowly INVADED & INFILTRATED.  
• OFTEN, LOSING imparts a small PYCHOLOGICAL ADVANTAGE.  When one is prepared to lose but determined to fight for it- they sometimes can find smaller errors that their more confident opponent will miss.  Again this is all how you view your situation.  Some people do really poorly when they feel like they are not winning- but if you can get beyond this mindset….
• LOSING teaches us to be patient, and humble in our thoughts.   Losing can teach us the IMPORTANT principle of LOOKING FOR WEAKNESSES in OUR MOVES.   I’m convinced that personally I don’t do NEARLY enough thinking about how a MOVE might lose.