I have been watching the FIDE Candidates Chess tournament the last 2 weeks.
I know, exciting stuff right?
For those not in the know, this is a tournament where the winner gets to challenge the reigning world chess champion for the title.
Now that we are on the same page, what’s interested me is learning that people study chess. I always thought chess was a game of intuition and creativity, but it turns out that there are actually systems and strategies that players can learn and apply to improve their game.
That just blew my mind.
Seems like everything and anything you want to do, you can learn how to do it better by studying the systems and strategies that have been developed over time.
This got me thinking about how we can apply this idea to our own lives. We often rely on our human nature to make decisions and navigate through life, but what if we could design systems that make it easier for us to do the right thing?
For productivity and/or time management, there are systems like the Pomodoro Technique or the Eisenhower Matrix that can help us prioritize our tasks and manage our time more effectively.
For studying, there are systems like spaced repetition and active recall that can help us retain information better and learn more efficiently.
For health and fitness, there are systems like meal planning and workout routines that can help us stay on track and achieve our goals.
Of course, there’s need for discipline and consistency but if you can also systemise those two, then you are on the right track.
Don’t count on yourself. You will fail invariably.