Book completed - Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us

I recently completed Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us by Daniel Pink (Riverhead Hardcover, 2009). Given that it has been around for over 15 years at this point, it is not surprising that some of its main ideas are in general circulation and widely accepted. However, since motivation is so central to learning and improvement, I still found it valuable to read and reflect on the original source.

The core concept is that the exercise of complex, creative knowledge-based skills and one's performance on related tasks is best driven by intrinsic (internal) motivation, rather than extrinsic (external) rewards. While the book is largely oriented towards business-related scenarios, a significant part of it applies to the broader process of mastery, as reflected in Training quote of the day #60. The author enumerates three elements of intrinsic motivation; what follows is my own summation/understanding of each, which are also interrelated:

1) Autonomy - you feel you have personal agency, which means that your decisions matter and help shape outcomes.

2) Mastery - here the author, as often occurs, refers to its manifestation in the "flow" state as defined by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi in Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience - thereby demonstrating one's full engagement in a task. "Compliance" is contrasted with "mastery" as opposite approaches. The former reflects a lack of autonomy and more mechanistic approach to tasks (following instructions capably), while the latter incorporates a deeper understanding of the situation and a creative approach. One common illustration is the difference between a cook (someone who only follows recipes provided by others) and a chef in the kitchen.

3) Purpose - you feel that the goal of your work/activity is meaningful and worthwhile.

I'll offer some personal views on how this all relates to the pursuit of chess mastery:

Because "chess is hard" an improving player certainly has to feel that their purpose is worth the time and effort invested, since it will take a significant amount of both to achieve something close to mastery, with more needed the higher you go on the scale.

• As with many sports, this is one reason why there is such a dropoff in individual participation after a scholastic career is over and the external parental/school/social incentive structure is removed. Many juniors may have liked the game and achieved a measure of success, but not enough to continue the effortful study required without outside reinforcement. Others may have been very good at it, but did not actually like it for whatever reason - perhaps because it was their parents' choice, not theirs - so decide to pursue other personal interests.
• Adult improvers in contrast typically have less time to devote, but presumably are choosing for themselves (autonomy) what activities to pursue. However, this means that more will quit out of frustration at not seeing short-term gains, if they do not have a longer-term sense of motivation.

It is important to understand that a better quality of motivation does not necessarily translate into better outcomes; certainly not in the short run. The cook vs. chef example above offers an intuitive illustration of that: most people would rather eat a meal prepared by a good cook than a poor chef. For advanced-level results, however, solely following others' formulas by rote will not get you there. 

• One common practice in chess is adopting opening repertoires from a particular authority. While this is a good shortcut for opening preparation, no one source will be 100% correct objectively, and given your unique strengths, weaknesses and interests in the game, certainly no single repertoire "recipe" will be a best solution. I can't think of a single master-level example of someone who simply copies another player's published repertoire.
• At a certain point in the improvement process, concrete analysis and positional understanding has to replace common "chess principles" as the primary considerations in determining what move to play. This doesn't mean that principles, rules of thumb, etc. are not valuable - they do tend to get unfairly trashed a lot these days - but they should be a starting point for your thinking process, not the end of it.

Finally, the mental trap of focusing too much on rating outcomes is not just a common source of anxiety, but can undermine a player's long-term motivation and purpose. A rating goal is not necessarily a problem - it is an objective measure of performance level - but when it becomes the primary purpose then I believe our thinking can become excessively warped. The purpose of improvement is to grow in chess strength and understanding over time, which is eventually reflected in a higher rating due to performance achievements. Your personal strength level is intrinsic, while a numerical rating by definition is an extrinsic statistical snapshot in time and result-dependent. Obsessing over rating is similar to the mental trap of focusing on receiving a high grade on a test, and putting all your effort into "gaming the system" to try to obtain that grade, rather than on mastering the underlying material.

Annotated Game #342: A first 'true' Dutch Defense as Black

This third-round game saw me bravely use the 'true' or 'pure' Dutch Defense (1.d4 f5) for the first time as Black. I've previously played the Dutch Stonewall by transposition, but decided to adopt the move one version so I can use the Leningrad Variation. My opponent was rather hesitant during the first few moves, which indicated to me that he was not familiar with the Dutch at all. That said, he played into the main fianchetto line for White with the rare 4. f4!? thrown in, apparently in an effort to play symmetrically and reduce the chances of any surprises. As a result I equalized rather easily, but then blew the middlegame with some poor choices, including misunderstanding the best way of contesting the a-file. That has happened before in my games, so I hope I've learned my lesson there. The Dutch performed well in the opening phase, however, so the loss was not its fault; I'll need to do better by it in the future.

[Event "?"] [Site "?"] [Date "????.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "Class B"] [Black "ChessAdmin"] [Result "1-0"] [Annotator "ChessAdmin/Dragon 3.2"] [ECO "A81"] [WhiteFideId "-1"] [BlackFideId "-1"] [PlyCount "61"] [GameId "2280365257781311"] 1. d4 f5 {this is first time I am playing a "pure" Dutch Defense (as Black), with this move-order.} 2. g3 Nf6 3. Bg2 g6 {so far we are heading for the Leningrad Dutch main line, but now White deviates with the rare} 4. f4 $5 Bg7 {there is no reason Black should not continue with his development plan.} 5. Nf3 O-O 6. O-O d6 {Black has won all three database games I have from this position. With the text move, I continue to follow the main line Leningrad plan, contesting e5.} (6... e6 $5 {controls d5 but leaves Black's further development flexible.}) (6... d5 {is the engine's preference, establishing a symmetrical structure.}) 7. c4 c6 {continuing with the main line Leningrad idea of contesting the d5 square.} 8. Nc3 {by transposition, we have reached a somewhat more common position.} Na6 {is a common development idea for the knight, with ...Rb8, ...Nb4 and ..a5 as ideas for follow-up.} (8... Nbd7 {is more solid and scores better, fighting directly for the center.}) 9. a3 Bd7 (9... Nc7 {played immediately is probably better, as the knight now has no future on a6.}) 10. Qd3 Nc7 {both sides are equally developed and the position is dynamically balanced overall.} 11. Bd2 Rb8 (11... a5 $5 {would directly contest White's obvious plan of advancing his queensidde pawns.}) 12. b4 b5 $11 {Black is now fully equalized. With the rook off of the long diagonal and thus not a target for a discovered attack, this advance is possible.} 13. c5 {now there are multiple good options, but it was not clear to me what the best plan was.} Ncd5 {not bad, but perhaps not best.} (13... Be6 $5 {with the idea of occupying c4 as an outpost for the bishop.}) (13... a6) (13... Rc8) 14. Rae1 {it is a bit premature to commit the rook like this.} Nxc3 {the best move, according to the engine. My knight previously sitting on c7 exchanges itself for its better-placed counterpart, while leaving behind more space for my pieces to maneuver.} 15. Bxc3 Qc7 {connecting the rooks and influencing the center more with the queen's presence.} 16. Nd2 d5 $6 {I had a long think here about changing the nature of the position, in this case to a more closed one; however, the engine prefers not to lock things up.} (16... Be6 $11) 17. Ra1 $14 {correctly moving the rook back to the more dynamic queenside for White.} a6 18. a4 {White is now able to focus his resources on the a-pawn lever, without having to worry about his center being exchanged/dissolved.} Ra8 $6 {wrong idea - how about that a-file (again)? Black does not need to occupy the a-file to shut off White's use of it.} (18... Ne4 $14 {better to gain some minor piece activity.}) 19. Ra2 Ra7 {not realizing the looming difficulty on the a-file.} 20. Rfa1 Rfa8 21. Nf3 $16 {White is now clearly better, with his pieces more active and me having to worry about potential tactics down the a-file.} Ne4 22. Be1 {preserving the bishop, which is helping restrain any potential movement by my queenside forces.} Bf6 {played as a waiting move. Unfortunately I have little that I can do to improve my position.} 23. e3 Kg7 24. Nd2 Nxd2 $6 {I did not properly evaluate the consequences of the piece trade.} (24... a5 $5 {no pawn lever, no plan. With the knight temporarily obscuring the Be1, now was the time to try this.} 25. axb5 cxb5 $14 {now White has much less pressure and I have hopes of getting in a5-a4.}) 25. Bxd2 $16 {I thought I could hold a draw with a closed position and the knights off the board, although defending the a-file remained a nuisance. Unfortunately White still has all the pressure and winning potential.} h6 (25... e6 $5 {the engine rates as equivalent, but it would prevent the tactical trick for White that soon appears.}) 26. Qa3 bxa4 $6 {this opens things up to White's advantage.} 27. Qxa4 Bc8 {this is passive defense, but I have no good options anyway.} 28. Qa5 Qxa5 29. Rxa5 Kf7 $4 {I was starting to feel some time pressure here, but in any case missed White's next.} (29... e6 $16) 30. b5 $1 cxb5 31. Bxd5+ $1 $18 1-0

Annotated Game #341: The lurking Colle

In this second-round tournament game, my opponent initially struggles with her unfamiliarity in the opening (a Colle-Zukertort) but eventually a small error is made leading to much greater vulnerabilities and a relatively quick breakthrough for White on the kingside. Broadly similar to Annotated Game #339 and others, I've seen a recurring pattern in the Colle where White obtains no actual advantage out of the opening, but like a shark lurks in calm waters, waiting for the opponent to offer up some tasty meat. There are no spectacular sacrifices here, although there is a tactical forced end sequence - just an illustration of how White's pieces can quickly activate in a threatening, sometimes decisive manner. At the same time, analysis shows how patience and constant pressure can also be required, as in the note to move 16.

[Event "?"] [Site "?"] [Date "????.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "ChessAdmin"] [Black "Class C"] [Result "1-0"] [Annotator "ChessAdmin/Dragon 3.2"] [ECO "D05"] [WhiteFideId "-1"] [BlackFideId "-1"] [PlyCount "55"] [GameId "2277541253412298"] 1. d4 d5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. e3 Bf5 {my opponent took a long time thinking about her response, indicating an unfamiliarity with the Colle.} 4. Nh4 Bc8 5. Nf3 {by repeating the position, the ball is now back to my opponent, who again has to think again about what to do, and this time chooses the main line symmetrical option.} e6 6. Bd3 Bd6 7. b3 (7. Nbd2 {is a bit more flexible option, also controlling the e4 square.}) 7... c5 8. Bb2 (8. dxc5 $5 {is the only way to take advantage of Black's move-order with the early ...Bd6, but does not lead to much.} Bxc5 9. Nbd2 $11) 8... O-O 9. Nbd2 Nc6 10. O-O (10. dxc5 $5 {is again the best try for advantage.} Bxc5 11. a3 a5 12. c4 $14 {may give White a little more with the small space advantage on the queenside.}) 10... b6 {we have now transposed to the main line with a Black Nc6/Bd6 setup.} 11. Ne5 Bb7 12. f4 {I decided on the direct approach here.} (12. a3 {would be a useful prepatory move, controlling b4.}) 12... cxd4 (12... Nb4 13. Be2 {isn't the end of the world, but it still gives Black more than necessary, with at least an extra tempo before the knight gets kicked with a2-a3.}) 13. exd4 {keeping pieces on for a potential kingside attack.} (13. Nxc6 {is a more standard Colle approach.} Bxc6 14. Bxd4 $11 {and the dark-square bishop still has the long diagonal to work with.}) 13... Nd7 $6 {the first real error by my opponent. While still not terrible here, it's rarely a good idea to remove the Nf6 from the kingside defense if you are Black. And if you are White, look to take advantage of it.} 14. c3 $14 {the engine validates my choice here. Now b4 is belatedly controlled, meaning my bishop stays good on d3, and my pieces are poised for kingside action.} Ncxe5 $2 {while this eliminates White's centralized knight, the pawn replacing it on e5 is even stronger, while the f-file is opened.} 15. fxe5 Bc7 $2 {this compounds the problem, as the bishop is now walled off from the fight.} (15... Be7 $18 {at least the a3-f8 diagonal is now covered.}) 16. Qh5 $18 {the second best move, according to the engine.} (16. Ba3 $18 {I debated playing this first, which the engine considers stronger. Black essentially has to sacrifice the exchange, for example with} f5 17. Bxf8 Nxf8 $18 {but now White can continue to carefully build up an attack, or simply go for simplifications being material up.}) 16... h6 (16... f5 17. Ba3 Qe8 {might be Black's best practical try. One sample line:} 18. Qh3 {continues trying to press the attack} Rf7 19. g4 g6 20. Nf3 Bd8 21. gxf5 exf5 22. e6 Qxe6 23. Rae1 $18) 17. Ba3 {Black is now losing material.} f6 $2 {this allows White's next sequence, which I calculated carefully.} (17... f5 18. Bxf8 Qxf8 19. Rf2 $18) 18. Qg6 {the queen infiltrates} f5 {forced} 19. Qxe6+ $1 {is of course much better than cashing in immediately with} (19. Bxf8 Nxf8 $18 {with better defensive prospects for Black.}) 19... Kh8 20. Bxf8 Nxf8 21. Qxf5 {being up the exchange and two pawns, it was just a matter of patiently converting the win. Black's open king position and lack of escape squares made it relatively quick.} Qe7 22. Qf7 {exchanges are great for White} Qd8 23. Rf3 Rb8 24. Raf1 Bd6 {my opponent clearly saw the following sequence, but I expect was one of those juniors taught to never resign, regardless of the position on the board.} 25. exd6 Qxd6 26. Qxf8+ Rxf8 27. Rxf8+ Qxf8 28. Rxf8# 1-0

Annotated Game #340: Look for the counterattack

In this first-round tournament game, the saying "no pawn break, no plan" is proven once again, as I repeatedly fail to implement the thematic ...c5 break in a timely fashion in a Caro-Kann Classical. Once I do get it in, however, the momentum shifts and I end up missing some winning counterattacking chances, by blindly focusing on purely defensive moves only. After this experience, I got the Chessable course "Learn to Counterattack: Essential Guide to Active Defense", which is high on my list for when I get more time for studying.

[Event "?"] [Site "?"] [Date "????.??.??"] [Round "?"] [White "Class A"] [Black "ChessAdmin"] [Result "1-0"] [Annotator "ChessAdmin/Dragon 3.2"] [ECO "B18"] [WhiteFideId "-1"] [BlackFideId "-1"] [PlyCount "157"] [GameId "2277549341290178"] 1. e4 c6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 dxe4 4. Nxe4 Bf5 5. Ng3 Bg6 6. h4 h6 7. h5 Bh7 8. c3 {this was new to me, and is rarely played.} Nf6 $11 {after some thought, I saw no reason not to continue with Black's normal development.} 9. Bd3 Bxd3 10. Qxd3 e6 11. Nf3 Bd6 {it's good to look for chances in the Caro-Kann Classical to play this, rather than having the bishop more passively placed on e7, although here there is no material difference to the engine evaluation.} 12. Ne4 Nxe4 13. Qxe4 Nd7 {so far so good. Both sides are following standard development plans.} 14. Be3 Qc7 $6 {there is not enough of a point to it to place the queen on c7, although the Q+B battery looks nice. The main problem is that White can immediately reply with Qg4, which is annoying.} (14... Nf6 $11 {I was considering this, with the idea of going to g4 as a follow up, for several moves.}) (14... Qa5 $5) 15. O-O-O {my opponent is choosing to play it safe, perhaps, but also may be looking to enable a kingside pawn storm.} O-O-O {this is not optimal, but I was a little too afraid of "castling into it" on the kingside.} (15... Nf6 {followed by ...O-O is equal, according to the engine. Black would have play on the queenside with the ...c5 break and b7-b5 would also be possible. The defensive resource of ...Ng4 is also available, to block play on the g-file.}) 16. Kb1 Kb8 $6 {simply mimicing moves gives White a little too much play.} (16... Nf6 17. Qc2 c5 $11) 17. Nd2 $14 Nf6 {unfortunately played a little late, as now the queen has the nice f3 square for a retreat.} 18. Qf3 Nd5 {looking to exchange on e3 and get a BvN positional imbalance.} 19. Nc4 Nxe3 20. fxe3 {White still has a small edge, thanks to the active knight and my relative lack of scope for the bishop, other than the h2-b8 diagonal.} Rhf8 {I thought for a while here and decided it was better to play solidly. However, this is immediately contradicted on the next move.} (20... Rhe8 {it is better to line the rook up behind the e-pawn, with the idea of f7-f6 and e6-e5 to play in the center. No pawn break, no plan.}) 21. e4 {now I was afraid that White would be able to squeeze me with his central pawns.} f5 $6 {a bid for activity. Not a bad practical choice, perhaps, even if not the best.} (21... e5 {is preferred by the engine and would be a pawn break more consistent with my previous move choices, also being more solid.}) 22. Rhf1 Be7 {another long think here. I chose to preserve the bishop.} (22... c5 $5 {is the other main option.} 23. Nxd6 (23. e5 Be7 $14) 23... Rxd6 $11 {is fine for Black.}) 23. Ne5 $6 {the most obvious-looking move, heading for g6. There is a refutation which I did not find, however.} Bg5 $2 {this again preserves the bishop, but the cost is not worth it.} (23... c5 $1 24. Ng6 fxe4 $1 {an important intermediate move, with a double attack on the queen.} 25. Qxe4 Rxf1 26. Rxf1 cxd4 {the point at the end of the sequence. Now Black has re-achieved the balance.} 27. Nxe7 Qxe7 28. cxd4 a6 $11) 24. Qh3 $6 (24. Nd3 {would be simple and good. Black needs to watch his back rank.} a6 25. a3 fxe4 26. Qxe4 Rfe8 $16) 24... Qc8 $6 {another significant think. I am still too focused on static defense, not enough on counterattacking with the ...c5 break.} (24... c5 $11) 25. Ng6 {I correctly saw that this was not as impactful as it looked.} Rf6 26. exf5 $6 {I'm happy to have the tension released, and objectively am fine after capturing with the rook.} (26. Qh2+ Ka8 27. e5 Rf7 28. Qg1 $14) 26... Rxf5 27. g4 Rfd5 (27... Rxf1 28. Rxf1 {I didn't like because it gave White the f-file, but he cannot exploit it and I can get in ...c5.}) 28. Qg3+ Ka8 $11 29. Rde1 c5 $1 {finally! Although it's still equal, this provides much-needed counterplay and tips the initiative my way.} 30. dxc5 Qxc5 {around here my opponent appeared to realize that the situation had flipped.} 31. Qf3 $2 (31. Nf4 $11 {and} Rd2 $2 {no longer works due to} 32. Nxe6 $16) 31... Rd3 $6 {I thought for a while here and could not find anything decisive with the two rook moves (to d3 or d2) that generate threats, so decided to gain a tempo on the queen and then see what was available as an option.} (31... Rd2 $1 {unfortunately I did not see how strong this was, with no immediate knockout tactic. However, the threat of ...Qb5 is major, coupled with some sacrificial ideas for the rook on b2.} 32. Re4 {threatens to interpose the rook on b4, which I saw, but this can be handled effectively with} a5 $1 $19) 32. Qe4 $1 {unfortunately this now holds everything together for White.} Rd2 33. Qxe6 {my opponent thought for a while before going for the pawn. I gain a lot of pressure in return, but am a tempo short on converting it into a decisive attack.} Qb5 34. Qb3 Qd3+ 35. Ka1 a6 $2 {I missed how strong White's next move was.} (35... Bf6 $11 {gets the bishop to a more useful diagonal and covers the key e5 square.}) 36. Ne5 $1 $16 Qg3 37. Rf7 $4 {here I was expecting Nf7 (which was winning) and was confident I could defend against the threatened mate on b7. Which is true, but I fail to spot the immediate back rank capture of the Re1, instead thinking I was clever to protect b7 with the queen. Later I spot the back rank possibilities, but by then it was too late. I was getting rather low on time, and my opponent's mate threat overrode my board sight.} Qg2 $4 38. Nf3 $18 {from here, White has a won game, although it's still complicated.} R2d7 39. Rxd7 Rxd7 40. Nxg5 hxg5 (40... Qd2 {originally when calculating this variation I had thought this double threat would work, in order to recapture on g5 with the queen, but White has the backward knight move} 41. Nf3 $1 {protecting the rook.}) 41. Qe6 Qd2 {although my pieces are active, so are White's and he has both a material advantage on the queenside, and a positional one on the kingside, so can only lose (or draw) with a blunder.} 42. a3 Rd3 43. Qe2 $6 {this is the long way to win.} (43. Qc8+ Ka7 44. Re7 $18) 43... Qxe2 44. Rxe2 Rg3 {I was still determined to make White work for it in the rook ending.} 45. Re4 Ka7 46. Ka2 Kb6 47. Kb3 Kc6 48. Kb4 Rg2 49. b3 {the best move, but White will need to be a little careful with his king.} Rg3 50. a4 Kd7 51. a5 Kd6 {the idea is to keep the rook from the 7th rank.} 52. Kc4 Kd7 53. Kd4 Kd6 54. b4 {unfortunately, White is still able to make progress.} Rg1 55. Kc4 Rg3 56. Rd4+ Kc6 57. Kb3 Kc7 58. Rc4+ Kd6 59. Ka4 Rg1 60. Kb3 Rb1+ 61. Kc2 Rg1 62. Kd2 Kd5 63. Rc5+ Ke4 64. Rxg5 {after this it is pretty much over, but the finish is still instructive.} Rg2+ 65. Ke1 Kd3 (65... Ke3 {was better for swindling chances}) 66. Rxg7 Rh2 67. Rxb7 Ke3 68. Re7+ Kd3 69. Re6 Kxc3 {this does not really matter, but it made me feel better.} 70. h6 Kxb4 71. g5 Kxa5 72. Re2 Rh1+ 73. Kf2 Rh2+ 74. Kf3 Rh4 75. Rg2 Kb6 76. Rg4 Rh1 77. g6 Rxh6 78. g7 Rf6+ 79. Kg2 {now the g-pawn wins, so I resign.} 1-0

Training quote of the day #60: Daniel Pink

 

From Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us by Daniel Pink:

Mastery Is a Mindset

...For instance, consider goals. Dweck says they come in two varieties - performance goals and learning goals. Getting an A in French class is a performance goal. Being able to speak French is a learning goal. "Both goals are entirely normal and pretty much universal," Dweck says, "and both can fuel achievement." But only one leads to mastery. In several studies, Dweck found that giving children a performance goal...was effective for relatively straightforward problems but often inhibited children's ability to apply the concepts to new situations...Students with learning goals scored significantly higher on these novel challenges. They also worked longer and tried more solutions. As Dweck writes, "With a learning goal, students don't have to feel they're already good at something in order to hang in and keep trying. After all, their goal is to learn, not to prove they're smart."