The Grandmaster Gambit: How Being Nice to People Pays Off on and Off the Board
We've all met them: the brilliant but abrasive colleague, the incredibly talented artist who treats assistants like dirt, or maybe even the chess prodigy who smirks after every opponent's mistake. They might win battles, but do they win the war? The idea that "Being Nice to People Pays" might sound like a Sunday school lesson, but in the fiercely competitive arenas of professional life—and yes, even in the silent, intellectual struggle of chess—it's one of the most powerful, often overlooked, strategies for long-term success. The Unique Power of You First, let's address the core truth: You are unique, and so is everyone else. The pressure to "be better" often translates into a desire to prove superiority by bossing people around or dominating conversations. This impulse stems from insecurity, not strength. When you genuinely internalize that "Nobody is better or smarter than you," the flip side becomes true as well: you don't need to ...