1. Chess Makes You Smarter

Let’s start with the most obvious of all the reasons to take up chess: it can make you a lot smarter. If you’ve been frustrated by complex math and science problems in school, thousands of experts can tell you that practicing chess is all you need to improve your logical thinking, memory, concentration and self-motivation.

2. The Ultimate Competition Game

If you’re the competitive type, chess is among the best games that will truly let you prove yourself. The game is well-balanced so that no luck is ever involved, and all your wins and losses will be based entirely on your skill – well, and that of your opponent.

3. Improved Verbal Skills

One of the best reasons to take up chess – and one that has often been overlooked - is that the game can improve verbal skills, especially in children, even though it doesn't actually require any speaking during a match. Playing chess forces your mind to become more disciplined, helping you form sentences and find words much faster.

4. Unleash Your Imagination

This is also one of the few games that can skyrocket your imagination and ingenuity. With a vast set of rules and principles, as well as more than 300 billion possible outcomes in the first 4 moves alone, you can develop your own unique style, tactics and strategies according to your imagination.

5. A Progressive Way to Learn

Chess may seem complicated and almost endless – I know it seemed that way to me, when I was little and used to watch my dad and brother play for hours, hoping for them to finish so we could have some "real" fun. However, the game offers a progressive learning curve that makes it easy to finally understand even for toddlers under the age of 4. There are countless chess learning resources available for free, and, with a little work, you can master the basics quite quickly.

6. Play Anywhere and Make Lots of Friends

Whether you want to play competitively or just as a social pastime, chess can be very flexible. You can play with your friends in the park, online, on your mobile, or at home with your family. Also, there are huge chess communities where you can make a lot of new friends.

7. Learn to Organize Your Life

If your life is a mess, chess can help you organize it. The strategic thinking you develop as a chess player can be useful in any area of life, including anything from setting up your schedule to wasting less time, to rearranging furniture or getting rid of unwanted habits.

8. No Barriers to Tournament Success

One of the best reasons to take up chess, whether you’re an adult, child or senior, is that there are no age or gender barriers to hold you back. Tournament play is open to anyone, and often even a 6 year old kid can defeat a skilled Grand Master with the right training.

9. Better Understanding of Business Strategies

Finally, along the same lines with organizing your life, chess offers you the mental resources to improve your business. Chess can quickly boost analytical thinking, problem solving and organizational skills. This will help you to come up with new business strategies and learn to use your time, skills and resources much more efficiently.

Have I convinced you yet to take up chess, or, if you already play it, do you know of any other benefits this timeless game can bring?

Sources:

chess.com
quadcitychess.com
examinedexistence.com
buzzfeed.com
hamiltonchess.net
justchess.biz
careeraddict.com