World Chess Day is on July 20, and it’s a great opportunity to reflect on the modern-day impact of this 1500-year-old game that continues to entertain, teach, and shape strategic decision-makers of all ages and backgrounds across the globe.
The game is going through a significant resurgence in popularity based on a combination of new technology (online access, apps and education), entertainment (The Queen’s Gambit, a Netflix series about a chess prodigy in mid-century America), and adoption by pop cultural influencers. In fact, in addition to well-known visionaries and businesspeople (e.g., Bill Gates, Carl Icahn), many world-class athletes across sports (e.g., Joe Burrow/Cincinnati Bengals, Luka Dončić/Los Angeles Lakers), talk of their love for the game and how it helps sharpen their strategic decision-making skills.
My father first introduced me to the game of chess when I was a child, and while I don’t play nearly as often as I once did, I regularly reflect metaphorically on the game’s strategic approach, learnings and takeaways that I find relevant to my day-to-day leadership role in healthcare public relations. The following are five tangible learnings from chess that translate to the day-to-day art of public relations.
Maximize Your Team’s Collective Strengths:
Every chess piece – King, Queen, Rook, Bishop, Castle, and Pawn – brings unique strengths and weaknesses to the game. Those who creatively leverage and maximize the role of each piece across the board excel in chess. Similarly, in PR, leaders who recognize and showcase each team member’s special skill sets and talents (e.g., strategic thinking, creativity, media relations, writing) frequently produce the best work products and results.
The PR Takeaway: Identify each team member’s strengths and weaknesses and place them in the best possible position to succeed within the team.
Carefully Plan Your Approach – The Opening Gambit:
In chess, the first few moves are thoughtful and intentional and go a long way in defining how a game flows momentum-wise (it’s an advantage to go first if you have a plan). In PR, careful planning and consideration are needed in launching programs or campaigns that aim to introduce, elevate, amplify or otherwise differentiate a company, product or service.
The PR Takeaway: Set a thoughtful vision, plan or approach to an opportunity or challenge to ensure you deliver against the results you are seeking.
Think Multiple Moves Ahead: In chess, every move is made with the anticipation of how it may strategically impact several turns ahead, while avoiding a reckless decision that puts the game or player in a vulnerable position. Do you find yourself always reacting, or are you making moves that require your competitor to adjust to you? In PR, it’s important to think ahead across the board “before letting go of the piece” to ensure you are considering every counter move or blind spot your decision will influence.
The PR Takeaway: Careful scenario planning is critical. A single move can have a cascading effect that is positive or negative on various stakeholders who may/may not react (e.g., employees, shareholders, the media, or competition).
Expect the Unexpected (Tactical Creativity): One of the most important strategic skills honed in playing chess is adapting to a competitor’s moves and carefully/thoughtfully adjusting your game plan when the game board suddenly changes. In chess, every move is designed to exploit a competitor’s weaknesses or mistakes, while advancing one’s own position or protecting one’s vulnerabilities.
The PR Takeaway: Poise, patience and the ability to strategically pivot from Plan A to Plan B when the landscape changes are critical to seizing an opportunity. or defending risks.
Know When to Give Ground for Greater Gain: In chess, players sometimes sacrifice a board piece in order to force a move or gain a better position on the board to “checkmate” the opponent. In PR, there are times when it’s beneficial to pull back, regroup and relaunch an initiative for greater success going forward (e.g., pulling back on a campaign not delivering as expected, or changing the timing of a major news announcement or program).
The PR Takeaway: Always maintain a big-picture perspective on what you are trying to do and recognize that sometimes, giving some ground can lead to longer-term successes.
In summary, chess is an entertaining and thought-provoking game to play that’s been shared and enjoyed through the centuries. If you have never learned how to play or are interested in picking it back up again, there’s no better time to get started than now. To learn more about chess and experience the game yourself, please visit the International Chess Foundation. Before long, you may find yourself “playing chess while your competition plays checkers.”
