Sacrifice - An Intersection of Games and Life

Sacrifice means "to forfeit one thing for another thing considered to be of greater value".   The concept of sacrifice is interesting because people often do not want to sacrifice anything even though, by definition, they should be getting something of greater value in return.

In chess it is common for a player to sacrifice, or sac, a piece or pieces.  Usually they are giving up material (pieces) for something of greater value (a better position).  Sacrifices can be the way a player tears down his opponent's defenses or might be the starting point for a crushing attack.  Without going into too much detail, there are two types of sacrifices in chess.  A pseudo-sacrifice and a real sacrifice.  Pseudo-sacs are seen frequently.  These are when a player gives up material but immediately gains the advantage they sought.  In these situations the player already knows that the "sacrifice" will gain them an advantage before they ever do it.  No guts are required for pseudo-sacs, just the ability to see them when they present themselves.

Real sacrifices are different.  These occur when a player gives up material for the hope that it will ultimately lead to an advantage later.  Real sacrifices are more rare and are not guaranteed to lead to anything good.  In fact, real sacrifices frequently lead to a player losing an entire game as he finds himself down a piece with no compensation for it.  The ability to make real sacrifices that lead to an advantage later in the game only comes with practice, a sufficient skill level, and the guts to actually trust that skill.  A player who is not confident in their abilities will never be able to convince themselves that a sacrifice is worth it when they can not immediately see the benefit.  A good question that arises from this information is, "If sacrifices are not guaranteed and only occasionally work, why would anyone do them?"  Easy answer - because sometimes sacrifices are the only way to achieve the ultimate goal of chess - to checkmate your opponent.     

Just like in chess, in life we all face situations where a sacrifice might be in our best interest or the best interest of our family.  Also like in chess, we often have opportunities for both types of sacrifices.  Pseudo-sacrifices are still easy even in real life.  Staying late at work one day to have more time on the weekend does not require any big step of faith.  This type is easy for the same reason it is easy in chess.  The advantage gained is relatively immediate and can be known before the "sacrifice" ever takes place.   We all make pseudo-sacs frequently in our lives, but are we making real sacrifices?  Do we have the guts to give away something of value now for the hope of something better?

Real life, long term sacrifices can be very hard to perform.  First off, we have to have our goals prioritized.  Making worthwhile sacrifices will be impossible without specific goals in mind.  Next, we must identify the sacrifices that we believe will lead toward our ultimate goals.  Finally, we must trust ourselves enough to make these sacrifices.  Once we complete these steps, we might find ourselves sacrificing our position at work with the hope that it leads to a better relationship with our children.  However, just like in chess, real sacrifices have components we do not always understand and plan for which can turn a sacrifice into a total loss.  This leads to the same question as before.  "If sacrifices are not guaranteed, why make them?"  It has the same answer - because sometimes they are the only way to reach our ultimate goals.

In chess the entire purpose of the game is to achieve checkmate.  That's it.  With that goal in mind, sacrificing everything except what is needed for checkmate is a perfectly reasonable way to play.  While life is more complicated than a chess game, this idea can be used in our everyday life as well.  Once we know what our ultimate goals are and how they are prioritized, we can sacrifice whatever is necessary to achieve them.