The Seven Deadly Chess Sins

jonathan rowson

Everyone loses chess games occasionally, but all too often we lose a game due to moves that, deep down, we knew were flawed. Why do we commit these chess-board sins? Are they the result of general misconceptions about chess and how it should be played? And how can we recognize the warning signs better?

In this thought-provoking and entertaining book, Jonathan Rowson investigates, in his inimitable style, the main reasons why chess-players sometimes go horribly astray, focusing on the underlying psychological
* Thinking (unnecessary or erroneous)
* Blinking (missing opportunities; lack of resolution)
* Wanting (too much concern with the result of the game)
* Materialism (lack of attention to non-material factors)
* Egoism (insufficient awareness of the opponent and his ideas)
* Perfectionism (running short of time; trying too hard)
* Looseness (“losing the plot”; drifting; poor concentration)

Genres chessnonfictionpsychologysportstechnical

208 pages, Paperback

First published December 1,2000

This edition

Format: 208 pages, Paperback
Published: March 1, 2001 by Gambit Publications
ISBN: 9781901983364
ASIN: 1901983366
Language: English

About the author

jonathan rowson

Jonathan Rowson is a Scottish chess player and philosopher. He is a three-time British chess champion and was awarded the title of Grandmaster by FIDE in 1999. As Director of the Social Brain Centre at the United Kingdom's Royal Society for the encouragement of Arts, Manufactures and Commerce (RSA), he authored numerous research reports on behavior change, climate change, and spirituality. He was awarded an Open Society Fellowship in 2018 by the Open Society Foundations. He now works as an intellectual entrepreneur and civil society leader as co-founder and Chief Executive of Perspectiva.