What is anything at all good for?
Things simply are, people attach values to them based on their views.
What IS chess actually good for, anyway?
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Jul 5, 2016
0
#3
Once I lost my spoon (if I only use one it makes doing the dishes easier).
Anyway, so there I was with a bowl of cereal getting soggy real quick and no spoon to use to eat it. That's when I realized chess could be used as a spoon in a pinch.
So that's one thing chess is good for.
Jul 5, 2016
0
#6
The_Ghostess_Lola wrote:
....nothing.
Chess has shattered many young man's dreams
Made him disabled, bitter and mean
Life is much too short and precious
to spend playing chess these days
Chess can't give life--it can only take it away! ooooh!
"Chess has shattered many young man's dreams
Made him disabled, bitter and mean
Life is much too short and precious
to spend playing chess these days
Chess can't give life--it can only take it away! ooooh!"
So... it IS good for something after all! 
Jul 5, 2016
0
#8
Bawker wrote:
Yeah... we all know.
Chess is enjoyable, it is good to fill the hours, and it's a way of comparing wits and intellectual ability. However... it doesn't, at first glance, appear to be a very useful pursuit. I often tell people that Chess is probably the most useless activity that I regularly engage in, especially when considering how much time I have devoted to it over the span of my life!
What is Chess ACTUALLY good for in the non-chess "real world"? Anything?
This is what I've noticed.
Chess requires compex visualization of a sequential nature. Any field of study involving complex interactions over time (example: mechanical engineering) can benefit from honing these types of abilities. Chess also involves (when played correctly) evaluation of material trades, often in a variable scenario depending on the order of the trades. This seems a lot like certain elements of financial planning and other fields involving trades of volatile commodities. Finally, Chess seems to have a VAST field of knowlege that must be absorbed and applied before a player really begins to excel at the game. I cannot help but think that this aspect of Chess would tend to serve the practitioner in almost ANY real-world endeavor should he or she apply the same level of discipline, research, and memorization to it.
What do you all see as the "usefulness" of Chess? Is it truly as worthless a pursuit as most people think of It, or are there certain elements of the game that can be applied to non-chess pursuits?
Tournament chess allowed me to practice budgeting time and practice focusing for long periods.
It also encourages a critical eye to any seemingly good ideas I have, and after losing many games can teach humility.
Although it's a bit of a chicken and egg problem. I strongly suspect I stuck with chess because I enjoyed these types of things in the first place... still, it's probably not bad practice for anyone.
Chess has been heavily used to study human psychology and skill development & mastery.
Jul 5, 2016
0
#11
Sometimes chess immitates life. Also it gives you confidense on your own power, specialy if you win, or if you see the reasons of your defeat.
Jul 5, 2016
0
#15
Chess is my best defense against early onset Alzheimer's... but, I can't remember why I think that... where are my keys?
Jul 5, 2016
0
#16
Chess, like many other activities, is a fun way to exercise your mind and develop key area's within it. Now like with many other things it can be overused so as to actually cause missed opportunities for the person to engage in other meaningful or necessary things too. Balance in life is always necessary.
Jul 5, 2016
0
#17
Pay me and I'll supply you with a comprehensive list of benefits.
Jul 5, 2016
0
#18
Chess does helps in some good ways.. from passing time.. to escaping reality... to building your mind through mental torture...
Besides if we "chessplayers" All have something against it... wondering what non chess players would do then...
Yeah... we all know.
Chess is enjoyable, it is good to fill the hours, and it's a way of comparing wits and intellectual ability. However... it doesn't, at first glance, appear to be a very useful pursuit. I often tell people that Chess is probably the most useless activity that I regularly engage in, especially when considering how much time I have devoted to it over the span of my life!
What is Chess ACTUALLY good for in the non-chess "real world"? Anything?
This is what I've noticed.
Chess requires compex visualization of a sequential nature. Any field of study involving complex interactions over time (example: mechanical engineering) can benefit from honing these types of abilities. Chess also involves (when played correctly) evaluation of material trades, often in a variable scenario depending on the order of the trades. This seems a lot like certain elements of financial planning and other fields involving trades of volatile commodities. Finally, Chess seems to have a VAST field of knowlege that must be absorbed and applied before a player really begins to excel at the game. I cannot help but think that this aspect of Chess would tend to serve the practitioner in almost ANY real-world endeavor should he or she apply the same level of discipline, research, and memorization to it.
What do you all see as the "usefulness" of Chess? Is it truly as worthless a pursuit as most people think of It, or are there certain elements of the game that can be applied to non-chess pursuits?