Rating: 
Summary: Every Move Must Have A Purpose
Review: Amazing! I began to read this book prepared to improve my chess game. What I found was a way to improve my business skills. It helped me develop a framework for thinking. Not just for chess, but for business strategies. As a chess player, I was able to relate to Bruce's chess examples. Then he helped me convert that thinking to everyday thinking. After reading this book, I feel better prepared to play the "game" of life. I am better prepared to strategize and anticipate obstacles. I am so impressed with this book; I am ordering one for each of my employees. It will not only help them with business decisions, it will also help them with their personal lives. I have already given a copy to my two adult children. My 24-year-old son could not put it down. Since it is a one hundred page book, broken into 15 very easily read chapters he finished it in just a couple of hours. He feels it has changed his life. While this book is helpful for chess players, I would recommend this book to any business person who wants to understand a basic framework for planning and being prepared for obstacles and roadblocks.
Thank You Bruce for a book that makes a difference.
Rating:
Summary: Vivid Advice
Review: Aphorisms like "A lawsuit is like a game of chess" have never been of much practical use to me (yeah, I am a lawyer) until I read Bruce's book. The chess analogy is now vivid. The chapters do not give a mechanical how-to, but rather a way to test what I am doing. For instance, "Strive for More Than You Need" is not a smart tactic in all cases, but " Should I Strive for . . ." is always a smart question. This book was useful and fun to read.
Rating:
Summary: Vivid Advice
Review: Aphorisms like "A lawsuit is like a game of chess" have never been of much practical use to me (yeah, I am a lawyer) until I read Bruce's book. The chess analogy is now vivid. The chapters do not give a mechanical how-to, but rather a way to test what I am doing. For instance, "Strive for More Than You Need" is not a smart tactic in all cases, but " Should I Strive for . . ." is always a smart question. This book was useful and fun to read.
Rating:
Summary: A Brilliant Book
Review: I found this book to be thoughtful, well written and thoroughly enjoyable. Mr. Pandolfini has identified precisely those strategies employed on a chessboard that apply equally to any business endeavor or, indeed, everyday life. His use of anecdotes from the world of chess to illustrate his points are at once amusing and enlightening, captivating the reader with their irony and teaching us a number of universal truths. While one's enjoyment of the book may well be enhanced by some familiarity with the game of chess, knowledge of chess is by no means prerequisite to appreciating the book's lessons. Mr. Pandolfini has included a glossary of common chess terms that make it easy for even the novice to understand exactly what he is saying, and his straightforward yet elegant writing style brings a touch of drama to each and every chapter. It is almost impossible not to finish this book in a single sitting. A true gem!
Rating:
Summary: BUSINESS LESSONS FROM THE CHESSBOARD
Review: I found this book to be thoughtful, well written and thoroughly enjoyable. Mr. Pandolfini has identified precisely those strategies employed on a chessboard that apply equally to any business endeavor or, indeed, everyday life. His use of anecdotes from the world of chess to illustrate his points are at once amusing and enlightening, captivating the reader with their irony and teaching us a number of universal truths. While one's enjoyment of the book may well be enhanced by some familiarity with the game of chess, knowledge of chess is by no means prerequisite to appreciating the book's lessons. Mr. Pandolfini has included a glossary of common chess terms that make it easy for even the novice to understand exactly what he is saying, and his straightforward yet elegant writing style brings a touch of drama to each and every chapter. It is almost impossible not to finish this book in a single sitting. A true gem!
Rating:
Summary: A Great Read!
Review: I really liked this book. I thought Pandolfini's observations were very insightful, and some of them were truly elegantly expressed. But it's clearly not a chess book. Rather it seems to be a motivational book about business and especially life. Though most of the anecdotes were based on chess, they had parallels that anyone could identify with. I found some of the reviews of the book ridiculous because the writers were treating Mr. Pandolfini as if he had written a pure chess book. They seemed to be disappointed because there were no diagrams or instructional examples, when clearly that's not what Every Move Must Have A Purpose is about. Frankly, I think it's a wonderful volume and couldn't put it down, all the way from Newark to Los Angeles.
--One who appreciates a great mind
Rating: 
Summary: SAY CHESS!
Review: If you're looking for that perfect in-transit book to skim through, without straining your shoulders but working your grey matter, this slim treatise (115 pages, double spaced) makes for a pretty good fit. Simply put, it draws some very thoughtful life and business lessons from Chess. Don't worry, it includes just enough chess material to keep the book relevant to the strategic game, but not so egregiously that it puts off people unfamiliar with chess (you know what a rook is though, right?) The author writes almost like a chess player: with concentration and quick, quiet decisions expressed in single sentences. Which makes this book not only a pretty neat source of business thoughts, but also one of the better self-help and self-improvement books I've ever read. You'll end up with a fistful of aphorisms if you really read, and while it may look a bit steep for its slim size, it's absolutely worth it. Highly recommended.
Rating: 
Summary: I like Pandolfini - but this book is weak
Review: Let me first say that I have read several of Pandolfini's chess books and have enjoyed them. In fact, I think Pandolfini's Endgame Course is excellent. However, this book is very poor. As a chess player: the book is hollow. His observations are so obvious that they add no real value.
As a business leader: sorry, it is even worse. With phrases like "Play the board, not the person," Pandolfini acts like he is giving great wisdom, but there is no substance. Here is how the chapters are structured. Chapter opens with an Axiom: e.g. "Play the person not the board"
Body of the chapter: Chess stories proving the value of the axiom
A few paragraphs at the end of the chapter: Bruce tries to tie this to business but clearly is out of his element
Next chapter: Repeat above... This could have been a great book if it was co-authored. Imagine... Bruce Pandolfini & Jack Welch show you how to apply chess principles to business challenges. Bottom line: This brand extension just does not work. I give it 2 stars out of respect for the man, not the book.
Rating:
Summary: Life lessons from chess
Review: Not only is this book fun to read, it's practical and relevant. Every sentence is packed with easy-to-apply wisdom. The bridges between chess and life are clearly described and certainly believable. It's one of those books you'll want to read more than once, just in case you missed something. Even if don't know much about the game of chess, this book is worth picking up - all the game's lingo and strategies are explained well and the author does a great job applying these principles to real life. I highly recommend this book.
Rating:
Summary: The Longer Diagonal
Review: The elegant technique of chess instructor Bruce Pandolfini was never more cogent than in his latest offering, Every Move Must Have A Purpose. The chapters are beautifully delineated by chess principles and deliver incisive applications of thinking methods that penetrate relations in business and other areas of life. He supports these ideas by referencing examples from historical chess moments and sharing insights from the breadth of his experience.
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