Bobby Fischer hated losing. So should you!
Once more our patron goddess has visited with me in peaceful sleep and honoured me by bidding me pass down her sage words for chess amateurs across the globe. On this occasion she asks that you to adopt the right attitudes. Listen well.
#4: Winning really matters…
“Winning isn’t everything… but losing is nothing”
— Edmar Mednis
However aesthetic and artful the game of chess can be, it is still, in essence, a fight. Winning is the aim and therefore winning matters. If you are one of those players who says; “I just enjoy playing really. I don’t mind whether I win or not”, then you are either lying or you’re a wimpy, pathetic loser. You clearly need to:
a.) “get some nuts!” and;
b.) learn from the attitude of one of the game’s most illustrious titans
Don’t even mention losing to me. I can’t stand to think of it”
— Bobby Fischer
#5: …but losing is an opportunity
“Don’t be afraid of losing, be afraid of playing a game and not learning something”
— Dan Heisman
You lose a game of chess because you’re weak — period. Accept it. Maybe you lost concentration or you miscalculated a variation. Perhaps the game was a bit dull for your taste, or far too complicated. Maybe you were over ambitious, or too cautious. There are so many ways to lose a game of chess. Learning how to respond to defeat first requires that you accept your weakness, not make excuses and understand how and where you can improve for the next game. Losing is tolerable if it leads to improvement.