Lessons Learned as a Scrabble-holic
I have to admit it. I’m a Scrabbleholic. I crave words. I take my handheld game with me everywhere. Long waits in doctor’s offices are made more tolerable when I try to beat my best score. Television commercials are wasted on me as I pick up my handheld and get in a game between shows. I play while waiting for the car at the car wash. But I’ve come to realize it’s not such a bad thing. Scrabble can teach you just about everything you need to know to be successful in life and work. If you think I’m kidding, consider these valuable lessons:
1. Look to your opponent to teach you something that might one day come in handy. When that pesky little computer opponent comes up with a word like qoph (a Hebrew letter) or jato (a takeoff aided by jet propulsion) I am compelled to immediately look it up to learn its meaning. Then, at the perfect opportunity, I turn the tables and use one of those words to win the game.
2. When you’re winning, take more risks. If I’m ahead by 100 or 150 points, that’s the time when I lay down a word that may or may not be in the official Scrabble dictionary or use spaces dangerously close to the coveted triple word score hoping it will still be available on my next turn. You’d be surprised at how many letters you can string together that form real words that you may have never heard of – like orra (an adjective meaning occasional) or yare (nimble).
3. Don’t get stuck in analysis paralysis. Sometimes I’ll be staring at my letters, searching for just one word that will allow me to use them all, empty my electronic tray, and reward me with those 50 extra points. But nothing appears. Then I start putting letters on the board, shifting them around, playing with words like they were putty in my hands and suddenly they form a word I couldn’t see before I took such bold action. It’s a reminder that sometimes you just have to make a move that gets you out of your head and into the game.
4. Plan ahead and think strategically. The nights when I’m dog-tired and play the game as an excuse to not have to think much more for the day, are the same times when I’m doomed to mediocrity. I may win a game here or there, but I don’t reach my personal best. As in life, in Scrabble you can’t just act for the moment and expect to get ahead in the long-term. You’ve always got to be thinking about your next move and sometimes the one after that.
5. Take the small wins. Not every move you make is going to allow you to win the jackpot. As much as I loathe having to hit the “done” button knowing a word that will bring me less than 20 points, I also know every point makes a difference. The trick is to pocket the big wins, prepare for the small ones, and at times be grateful you could make any word at all. You win some, you lose some, but you suit up for them all.
