For those who are pursuing world-class caliber, today we’ll learn from my guest, Maurice Ashley, the Chess Grandmaster. This man lives his passion through his love for chess, and he not only made history as the first African-American Grandmaster in the annals of the game but he has managed to translate his love to others as a three-time national championship coach, author, ESPN commentator, iPhone app designer, puzzle inventor, and motivational speaker. Maurice has a wealth of experience from traveling the world as an ardent spokesperson of the many character-building effects of chess.

Let’s tune in together and grab some powerful life insights from the Grandmaster himself.

Things you will learn in this episode:

[00:01 - 08:09] Opening Segment

I introduce today’s guest, Maurice Ashley

Maurice gives some background on his story

Early childhood 

Raised in Jamaica by his Grandmother 

Free-time activities 

Built a love for games 

The transition from Jamaica to the US 

Educational life

[08:10 - 14:06] So Much More Than a Game 

Maurice talks about his story of getting into chess

Going into the chess club 

Chess finds you 

The brain for the game

How chess sharpens other areas 

It’s about making good decisions on every move 

Getting inside the mind of the opponent 

Patience and diligence 

[14:07 - 25:24] Pursuing the Elements of World-Class; Insights from Chess 

Maurice talks about pursuing world-class 

Being a humble learner 

Look at the best in your field 

Don’t imitate, emulate 

Willingness to fail 

Improving at the plateau 

Process over result 

The goal to become a grandmaster 

Maurice’s college experience 

Becoming better than Brooklyn

15 years to get to that level 

Maurice explains the tiers 

The martial arts analogy 

Top of the food chain 

Beating the people with the title 

Takeaways from Chess

You can come in at every level 

So many resources online 

Having an opponent with real ideas 

The person you speak to have ideas 

Learn what others think 

[25:25 - 33:04] Closing Segment

The importance of embracing failure 

Take the lessons and grow 

How to make decisions in life?

There is no system or sequence 

Every situation has it’s own process 

Look for the expectations as well as the rules 

Think about the other person first 

Stop and analyze 

Who are people that inspire you? 

Learning through books

Tim Ferriss

Jacky Robinson 

Fredrick Douglass 

Dr. King and Malcolm 

Sports stars and business leaders 

Final words 

Tweetable Quotes: 

“Chess finds you… it’s a little bit like a virus except it’s not looking necessarily for everybody who’s gonna get obsessed with it. There are certain people’s brains work a certain kind of way, and it goes, ‘ok, I got a Live One here!’” - Maurice Ashley

“I think anyone who wants to be world-class, there are certain elements that have to be in their tool-kit. The biggest one is to be a humble learner.” - Maurice Ashley 

“It’s much more important that you get inside the other person’s head, really parse out what they’re about every time we act…. It’s always we, not just me.” - Maurice Ashley 

Resources Mentioned: 

https://amzn.to/3kSq6Dp (Mastery)

You can connect with Maurice on https://www.linkedin.com/in/mauriceashley/ (LinkedIn), https://twitter.com/MauriceAshley?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor (Twitter), and https://www.instagram.com/mauriceashleychess/?hl=en (Instagram). Visit https://mauriceashley.com/ (https://mauriceashley.com/) to learn more about his space.

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