In my 10 years of playing chess, I have often come across players who have heart felt stories of what inspired them to learn the game of chess, or to further their game beyond their own expectations. So many of these stories have been so amazing I wanted to hear from the community here. What is your inspiration for chess? Maybe you don't have one, or maybe you need one. Whatever your position is I would love to hear where you are at in your chess career and what the driving force is that helped you get there.

I will just copy post i made on another topic, to lazy to type all that again.

It is a game, but at the same time it is much much more. I have periods when i just move pieces and dont think move or 2 in future. Sometimes i just take pieces that are free when i play much weaker players, and i have seen a lot of destroying on my side too. But that is not chess. That is just showing that i know the rules, and time killing.

But just like the other things, if I do something very often, it's just in human nature to try and be better then my opp. After all, when you say chess is a game - that is the main reason you play it. To win. You know, i played football from time to time. My best move was to stumble over ball and fall on my head. So I quit football. I played basketball too. I improved my shooting over time, learned to drible here and then. Had nice passing game, improved my vision and understanding of game. Same in chess. I would get borred or anoyed if I get destroyed over and over again. So i learn thing or two about chess too.

Chess is individual sport, you do not depend on 4 or 10 more players around you. One reason why I love online chess is cuz i can find players similar strenth as I am. I have friends who reached their max in chess, they play for some time now. But I still beat them with ease. Not everyone is made for briliance.

But same as everything, chess can be taken to lvl where it stops being a sport, and becomes an art. An art of human mind. But if do not fell that, its hard to understand. Same as Kobe Brayant 78 points in one game is art, same as Maradona runing over half football field, dribling half of England team and scoring is an art, same as Russian Synchronised swimming is an art - so a chess game can be art. Not art of move, or phisycal condition, but art of human mind. You alwasy compare greats with greats. You can say, yea Messi is better the Maradona, MJ is better then Kobe, Fisher is better the Kasparov. But all of them are the great ones.

You just need to experience a piece of briliance so you can fully understand this. Longest game I played was free game vs my friend on college. We drinked 4-5 coffes, smoked full pack of cigarets and played for full 2.30 hours. I dont remember who won, but I felt great after that game. I knew I gave my best adnd that I did something extraordinary. I understand people who say that chess is borring. It si borring for observers, but for us who play - it is far from that. Same is with me. When i look at any GM chess game, I dont fully understand it, it doesn't seem that interesting. But when I play, and when i do something 10 less good as GM does, but I feal great, I am the king of the hill at that time. And I am not talking about that mediocre games. I am talking about games when I give all that I have, and when I try as much as i can. It is true that that games come less than once/month, but I would not change that for 100 mediocre wins, and I always say, I like more to lose great and interesting game than to win borring easy one.

So you stay in your mediocre, move your pieces cuz you know how, but I will always tend to that greatness that you find so far and untouchable.