What do you do?
I work as a data scientist.
When did you play chess?
Around 8-9 years old, but it is never too early to start
How did you get to know about the chess game?
I followed my mother to do chores, and while we were at a stationary store, I saw a peculiar looking chess set. Not knowing what it was, I got my mother to buy it, brought it home, opened it up, and was initially really perplexed by a board of 64 squares and strange looking pieces. There was a manual contained in the box that I learned from, and my mother bought a book, ‘Chess for Children’ (I don’t think it is in print anymore, but I still love that book to this day – it had a lot of fun facts and stories about where chess came from), that got me started.
Where did you get chess training?
Initially, my mother discovered a local chess scene in Penang at the Berjaya Hotel, where players gathered to practice and spar. I remember being invited by Goh Yoon Wah when I was still a fledgling to play with the other adults. This starting point would forever characterize my life because it taught me to interact and socialize not only with my peers but also with adults.
Did you take any chess coaching?
I have learned from chess coaches in the local Penang scene at various points. Usually, I took a break when it was close to exam periods and picked up more before or when it got close to tournaments. I read a lot of books, and back then, Penang did not have as extensive a collection as the bookstores in Kuala Lumpur. So I had to borrow chess books from the Penang State Library to read, or make the occasional trip to KL to buy from MPH, Borders, or Kinokuniya. Occasionally, my father ordered some books from Amazon.com.
Of course, practice is also essential. I played online extensively on FICS.com, the Internet Chess Club, and playchess.com back then. These days, I play on lichess.com.
Why do you continue to play chess?
There is an excellent book by Garry Kasparov (former World Chess Champion and considered one of the greatest of all time) called ‘How Life Imitates Chess’. In this book, he describes how chess parallels so many decisions in life and in a professional setting.
To this day I can describe many examples of how to manage real life situations based on lessons acquired from chess; how do you always think one step ahead in everything you do (from planning your studies to pass an exam, planning a project, thinking of a business opportunity in terms of strengths and weaknesses), how to manage people (what are people’s strengths in different situations and how can I get them to work optimally together to produce results), to resource management (with the amount and time and resources that I have, what array of decisions can I make?)
The more I play chess, the more it inspires me to apply these ideas in life. In chess, if you make mistakes, the worst that can happen is that you lose a game. In life, the consequences are not always convenient. Chess is a great model for practicing decision-making and learning from experience.
Is chess more of a passion for you, or has it become a winning symbol?
Winning is the end goal that everyone desires. But the journey is always the part you savour the most. Personally, for me, I learned so much more from the losses and the hard work put in than I did from lifting trophies; in short, if you put in hard work in the right ways, the results will show anyway. Always be curious to learn and master things to be appropriately employed, and the results should be where they should be.
Learning to handle losses and pressure is probably the most crucial lesson I acquired. In life, there will be setbacks, and how you deal with setbacks is perhaps more important than how you win. In a chess game, a losing position is only lost if you resign. But how you continue to find ways to salvage a draw or claw for a win builds character. And even then, despite your best efforts, you may still lose. Learning to handle these losses despite your best efforts is essential, as we are most definitely bound to encounter setbacks that we can’t seem to overcome in life.
There is a beautiful video by Coach John Wooden on this subject: The Difference Between Winning and Succeeding
What encourages you to play chess?
Observing and emulating the creativity and different playing styles of other players, seeing the test of character and grit to win a game, and learning the art of being a graceful competitor, whether you win or lose.
How many tournaments have you taken part in?
I played extensively when I was a student, in school, state, and national championships every year. I think I played in nearly all the weekend tournaments held in Penang, and occasionally I would venture to international tournaments. Back in the day, there was also a Malaysian-Singapore Chess Challenge, where I nearly played every year for 10 years, with occasional pauses if they coincided with exams.
Did you attend tournaments with your parents?
There can never be enough words to express how much my mother has done for me in chess and in life. My mother has been a pivotal support pillar who has always encouraged me whenever I wanted to compete in local tournaments. She never put any pressure on me; she just loved that I enjoyed playing the game, and that was reward enough for her to see her children doing what they love.
I owe a lot to her. If I didn’t feel like playing, she didn’t get in the way. Whenever I needed new material or books, she would happily oblige. I remember she would look for chess tournaments in the local newspaper’s chess column and ask if I was interested. She would happily drive 1-2 hours to chess tournaments in Perak or Perlis and would follow me down to Kuala Lumpur for my junior tournaments back in the day.
What was your biggest win so far?
Winning the best junior award while defeating several titled players (two women grandmasters en route) at the Bangkok Chess Club Open was fun.
