Have you ever played chess? One player tries to outwit and outmaneuver the other by anticipating the other’s moves to gain power and eventually reach the goal of check mate. It is a strategic game. Situations in life seem to parallel this game. One can predict what the next move will be based on how well you know the opponent. Let’s take a look at opponent A and B. Opponent A is very observant, reflective, and stays calm. Unfortunately, opponent B does not know opponent A very well, so one missteps by getting overly pompous, boastful, and reveals one’s next move not once, but over and over again. The strategy is to keep your next move a secret. An element of surprise that now opponent B cannot take back. Self-control and restraint are foreign terms to opponent B. Just when opponent B is so confident that one will win, come to find that in the end that everything is not what is seems, but is a well thought out plan that will result in checkmate for opponent A.

Interesting how Chess can parallel life. Are you in a chess match?