You might find it surprising to encounter a chapter on luck in a chess book. After all, the beauty of the game is attributed to supreme intelligence, and strong players almost consistently outperform weaker ones over time, making sensational victories rare.

This creates the impression that luck plays an insignificant role in chess. However, this often overlooks the fact that life itself is a game of chance (!): where the whims of fate can elevate one player over another before they even face off across the chessboard.

Consider, for example, a child from a disadvantaged background who has fewer opportunities to excel in chess compared to a child from a more affluent family. Despite identical dedication, the disparity in their access to resources can lead to significant differences in their chess skills and knowledge. While this example might seem simplistic, it underscores the point that chance can have a profound impact on one’s journey in chess.

I think everyone understands this kind of big concept. However, there are random small things that are usually underestimated but often contain no less value. Sometimes, a random book that falls into your hands can bring you much closer to your dreams.

I don’t remember how I got a book by a Russian chess master, Golovka, titled The Road to Mastery, in my library. I have never heard anyone mention this book. Still, it is one of the best chess books I’ve ever read.

The book stayed on my shelf for a long time because the author was not famous. Sometimes I wonder how many excellent books have been forgotten over time because their authors did not get enough recognition for different reasons.

I began reading this book in the summer of 2009, at a challenging time in my career, which I will explain later. For some background, even though I had earned the International Master title in 2007 and met all the norms for the GM title in 2008, I had been stuck at a 2400 rating for 2 years, trying to make the final step: crossing the 2500 rating. I was filled with uncertainty, and I hadn’t touched chess for three months.

I noticed as soon as I picked up Golovka’s book that I had been missing out on the wisdom I needed to advance! It was only a matter of time before I saw results, as I followed the author’s guidance carefully. I became a Grandmaster in June of 2010. Other things helped me reach this goal, but I am sure that this book was the main factor.

I saw the same effect on my good friend Ayaz Mammadov, a FIDE Master who had been trying to get the International Master title. I suggested the book to him, and soon after, the results came; he got the International Master title in less than a year. The same feeling struck Ayaz, too. He told me that after reading the book, he understood how wrongly he had been training for years and that changing his methods took him to a new level. He could have also become a Grandmaster, but chose a different path.

A random book was the key for two chess players to advance to the next level in their careers. Looking back, I see many other random cases. Another interesting fact: sometimes even just a sentence can change your path.

When I was 10 years old, I qualified for my first European Youth Chess Championship in Spain, after I came in second place in the Azerbaijan Youth Chess Championship. The excitement of going overseas is still clear in my mind.

The European Youth Chess Championship took place in a vacation city, where the hotel, food, and facilities, as well as the weather, were excellent. Since I had no one to watch over me, I devoted more time to different diversions instead of getting ready for the games…

Naturally, the tournament ended in failure. It was only after the last round that I began to think I had wasted the competition. A conversation I overheard that day fundamentally changed my approach. Older and stronger chess players were talking among themselves. One of them said, “When I get back home, I’m going to work on chess like an animal.” Hearing this, I thought to myself that this is why he has reached such a high level. I started to follow the advice he gave to himself, turning it into a habit. After every failure, I worked even harder, and I still do.

Interestingly, two years later, I ended up sharing a room with that young fella at another tournament. Our skills had become much closer, and I was about to surpass him.

After another unsuccessful tournament, he repeated the same phrase, but this time he added, “I always say this, but I never do it!” Oddly enough, someone else’s lie can become another’s truth and change that person’s life. It should be no secret that after a bad result, those who prepare well have a much higher chance of success. But hearing it from someone you respect can have a completely different impact on a 10-year-old child.

I could go on with similar examples ad infinitum. As you can see, a random book and phrase significantly influenced my approach. Perhaps without them and other fortunate coincidences, I would not have become a GM.

The moral of this chapter is to remind the reader of the importance of factors that are not in his/her hand. Obviously, we cannot control those factors. You never know when you will hear advice that could change your life for the better. This is the last thing I learned in my career which I wish I had known long ago.

The issue of not knowing about luck is that you will think everything depends on you! Overall, it is a good thing to take control of your life and not blame other things. But if you completely ignore the element of luck as a result, you may get depressed, which happened to me. I was thinking I did not work enough. However, there is more to success in this field aside from just working hard and never giving up: you must be lucky.

People listen to the best athletes and think they did this and that, and therefore they are number one, etc. No one talks about how lucky those people are! And usually, these athletes hate hearing about luck because they know that they put in thousands of hours of hard practice. Most of them are “Fooled by Randomness” as Nassim Taleb’s book suggests. Let’s look at this phenomenon of working hard through the lens of becoming a Grandmaster. How come there are only 2100 GMs in the world? Did only 2100 people work hard to get the title? I doubt it! Then what is the issue?

The answer people usually think of is that to become a GM, you need talent! This has been the exit door for most claimers. That’s it. The conversation is over.

What is talent?

That’s a question for another chapter.

This is a chapter from my upcoming book, “Grandmaster Guide”—which I haven’t been able to finish for years. Maybe if this gets some encouragement, I finally will.