There's a problem with learning chess when you're young: You're going to lose a lot. And, of course, ego gratifi-cation is probably the main reason why a child does anything. But if, as a young person, you can learn how to handle defeat, you can eventually learn how to win. That's one of the primary functions of a good chess teacher -- to get students through the pain of losing.
My lessons consist of a lot of silence. I listen to other teachers, and they're always talking: "Why are you making that move?" "What other options are you considering?" I let my students think. If I do ask a question and I don't get the right answer, I'll rephrase the question -- and wait. I never give the answer. Most of us don't really appreciate the power of silence. Some of the most effective communication -- between student and teacher, between master players -- takes place during silent periods.
When I do talk with students, my goal is to help them develop what I consider to be two of the most important forms of intelligence: the ability to read other people, and the ability to understand oneself. Those are the two kinds of intelligence that you need to succeed at chess -- and in life.
In my classroom, I have what I call a "hot corner." One or two students will sit with me at a board and talk chess. They are not allowed to move the pieces physically. They can't "show" me their moves. They have to tell me their moves. I make them play the game in their head. They deeply fear that moment in the hot corner -- because they don't know if they can do it. My job is to show them that, yes, they can do this impossible thing. We all can do it. We all have amazing capabilities. At first, playing the game in your head feels like work. Eventually it becomes intuition.
Record: World Champion, 1972 to 1975. Won his first U.S. Championship in 1958, at age 14. Became the World Champion after winning a match against Boris Spassky in 1972.
Review: "Fischer was a master of clarity and a king of artful positioning. His opponents would see where he was going but were powerless to stop him. I like to say that Bobby Fischer was the greatest Russian player ever. All of his great opening moves came from the Russians. He studied all of their methods. But what made Fischer a genius was his ability to blend an American freshness and pragmatism with Russian ideas about strategy."
Record: Never became a world champion but was one of the world's greatest players. Also known as Viktor the Terrible.
Review: "A master of the counterattack, Korchnoi would take great risks at the board. He played to make his opponents impatient and to lure them into issuing aggressive but unsound threats. He would then exploit those threats in a ruthless counterattack -- by thrusting out, cutting off his opponent's line of support, and trapping his opponent's piece. Although this style sometimes backfired, it made for exciting chess at a very high level."
Record: World Champion, 1975 to 1985. One of the most successful tournament players in history. Became one of Russia's youngest masters at age 15 and an international master at age 18.
Review: "Known as a negative player, Karpov sets up deep traps and creates moves that seem to allow his opponent possibilities -- but that really don't. He takes no chances, and he gives his opponents nothing. He's a trench-warfare fighter who keeps the game moving just an inch at a time."
Record: World Champion, 1969 to 1972.
Review: "One of the soundest attacking players ever, Spassky nonetheless took very few chances. Totally dominant until he lost to the irresistible juggernaut known as Bobby Fischer. After that loss, he was never the same."
Record: World Champion, 1985 to the present.
Review: "An aggressively inscrutable player, Kasparov strives to gain deep positional sacrifices: Even when he can't calculate the end result conclusively, he can make sophisticated generalizations. He does anything to get the initiative and to force the play. Inevitably, he emerges from a forest of complications -- in which his intentions aren't all that clear -- with the advantage. He's not as artful or as clear as Fischer, but his play coincides with the realities of the day, which are all about defense. Clarity of style no longer makes sense. Great players hide their intentions."
Anna Muoio (amuoio@fastcompany.com) is an associate editor at Fast Company. Contact Bruce Pandolfini by email (bpandolfini@fastcompany.com). The "Ten Commandments of Chess" are taken from Pandolfini's book "The ABCs of Chess."
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