Improve your life by playing a game

There are numerous similarities between playing a game of chess and living in the game of life. This
book describes how psychological aspects that occur during chess playing or any other activity can
be used to improve everyday life. Garry Kasparov writes, that self-awareness is essential in order to
combine your knowledge, experience and talent and thus enable you to reach your peak performance
(Kasparov, How Life Imitates Chess, 2007). He says that very few people ever take the opportunity to
do this kind of analysis.

As an active chess player, woman grand master, doctor of psychology and university professor, I frequently
monitor my thoughts, feelings and behaviour. In doing so I see that I combine experiences
and insights I have gained in playing chess with my current academic work. Many times in my life
I have realized that my behavior can be traced back to earlier experiences in chess. I have decided
to write this book acknowledging and describing all the benefits that chess has brought to my life.
Chess has made me who I am!

This book is partly designed as an autobiographical experience focusing on the processes that arise
in the life of a chess player that have be translated into everyday life. In part, the book incorporates
psychological theories that generally explain these processes, but overall it can be seen as a guide on
how to use any activity to learn skills that will enrich your life. There are several activities in life which
can be seen in the same way if we know where and how to exploit the opportunities. The truth is that
all aspirations are interconnected when we keep an eye on the thematic links. I believe that this book
will give you a new insight into how any ability can be transferred from a particular activity to the
universal wisdom of life. It will awaken your networking skills and teach you how to turn life activities
into lifelong skills that will improve your well-being.

The course of the book follows the typical process of playing chess, starting with training, followed by
the tournament situation, the course of the game, the time after the game and the tournament. Since
I am not a poet, I have often borrowed some quotations from famous, imaginative and clever people
from all over the world. I believe that these valuable thoughts have enriched the book.