In around 1960, Mikhail Botvinnik, a former World Champion from the Soviet Union, also known as the patriarch of chess, invited a young boy to train with him.
After training, Botvinnik said, “This boy has no clue about chess. There’s no future for him in this profession.”
Such words coming from a legend and former World Champion like Botvinnik would be soul-crushing even for adults, let alone a young boy.
The legend
Many dreams would die. But not the dream of this child.
15 years later, this young kid became a World Champion. And today, he’s celebrated as one of the greatest chess players.
His name? Anatoly Karpov.
Imagine how much he had motivated himself after the crushing words he heard from a former World Champion.
How does motivation affect chess?
Most people think to succeed at chess, you need to be intelligent or be god-gifted.
However, a very big role is played by motivation. It’s a champion quality. It’s the fire in your belly that makes magic possible.
Motivation fuels long hours of practice.
Motivation encourages individuals to work on their game.
Motivation helps a player endure painful defeats and strive for continuous improvement.
So how do you go about finding it?
Finding motivation
There’s one easy question you can ask yourself to get started –
“What makes you play chess?”
Is it because you want to be the best player one day?
Is it because you love the champion’s trophies?
Is it because you want to win against your dad?
The reason can be anything that sparks a fire in you.
Once you have that reason, it will give you the strength to push on when you need it the most.
Take action
It could’ve been easy for Karpov to give up. But he didn’t.
So what’s your motivation for playing chess?
