This is the full transcript for Episode #318 of the Wild Business Growth podcast featuring Ashley Lynn Priore – Chess for NFL Teams, Queens Gambit & Queenside Ventures. You can listen to the interview and learn more here. Please note: this transcript is not 100% accurate.
Ashley Lynn Priore 0:00
You have to take the risks.
Max Branstetter 0:02
Risky Business, welcome back to the Wild Business Growth podcast. This is your place to hear from a new entrepreneur every single Wednesday morning who’s turning Wild ideas into Wild growth. I’m your host, Max Branstetter, founder and Podcast Producer at MaxPodcasting, and you can email me at to save time with your high-quality podcast. This is episode 318, which you have to say in that voice for some reason. And today’s guest is Ashley Lynn Priorer. Ashley is the founder and CEO of Queens Gambit and Queenside Ventures, as you might guess from the names she got her start as a chess phenom. She’s a chess champion. She started teaching other girls and other women how to succeed at chess that turned into coaching and consulting others on how to succeed in life, including NFL teams, on how to succeed on the field and off the field, because maybe, just maybe, there’s a few strategy lessons from the game of chess. In this episode, we talk all those things, including her work with my beloved Cleveland Browns, how realistic or unrealistic The Queen’s Gambit show was on Netflix. And, of course, chess tips. On chess tips, it is priori, enjoy the shoe. Alrighty. We are here with Ashley Lynn Priore, pronounced pre or E, which is one of my favorite phonetic pronunciations. Ashley, founder and CEO of Queens Gambit & Queenside Ventures, the real life chess mogul we’ll call you and in business leader, Ashley, thank you so much for joining. How you doing today? Good.
Ashley Lynn Priore 2:16
Thank you so much for having me. I’m just so excited to be here, and I can’t wait to dive in you. One, correctly pronounce the name, which is perfect, because we don’t often get that. And then two, you know about Pittsburgh, which is great, because some people just don’t know a lot about us. Yeah,
Max Branstetter 2:35
of course. Well, I have to give you credit for both of those, because you taught me how to pronounce, correctly pronounce your name, even if you can’t pronounce the word pronounce. And secondly, because, you know, I know it will get to you kind of your interesting NFL fandom bit later in the episode, but your family’s big time Steelers fan, and I know about Pittsburgh very well. One, because Steelers kicked my browns ass every year. And two, because my cousins, the Hebrews, live in Pittsburgh, so shout out Squirrel Hill in Pittsburgh. So anyway, yeah, lots of love and lots of ass kicking before we get to Queen’s gambit and queen side ventures. Obviously, a thread that’s consistent throughout your career is chess. And I’m someone who probably, like many, is no basic info about chess. Was a big fan of the net, Netflix show, of course, but also, like, I haven’t played it that much in my life, but I just know there’s so much strategy involved. It’s such an intricate but, like such a storied game, it’s just awesome, really, really cool stuff. So much to learn from it. You started chess at a very early age. Can you share how that unfolded? Yeah,
Ashley Lynn Priore 3:40
of course, of course. So I first remember learning how to play when I was about four. And I come from a family of chess players. So my siblings played. My brothers first started, they competed. And I just remember my dad and I playing, and I said to him, hey, I want to play some chess. He’s really young, and my brothers were in the other room. They were watching, I don’t know if you remember this, The CW show Smallville.
Max Branstetter 4:07
Yeah, that’s the one that’s, like, involves, like, Superman or something like that,
Ashley Lynn Priore 4:12
exactly, exactly. And Superman, they were, you know, watching that. My mom was in the kitchen doing dinner. And I just said, my dad, hey, I want to, you know, play a game. And he really was like, Well, you don’t really know how to play, but I was just so determined to do it. And I remember, within a few moves, I had one, I had beat him, and my mom was, like, peering over, like, really interested. And my they were said to my brothers, you and guys, have to play her. And it was just, they were just excited. And I think it was because I never really had, like, a formal, formal lesson, or at least, I don’t remember having one. I think I just observed my siblings playing, my brothers especially, and understanding the moves, and being really fascinated by that, and it took off from there. So Pittsburgh itself is a very and used to be a very competitive chess. People from all over would come to play here. They have a ton of scholastic opportunities. So my siblings and I would go to tournaments. And it was just a part of our our childhood. We would go to tournaments every weekend and come back with with the prizes, right? It was just a really exciting time to be a chess player, and it was really fun. But at the same time it it’s a lot, it’s a lot to be in the competitive chess space, and as a young woman in that space, it also was a lot, right? My sister and I would go to tournaments. 200 people there would be the only young women, right? So that has an impact on how you interact with the community in the space, so that had a huge impact on us. It was just a lot. It was an exciting time, but it was challenging too. It
Max Branstetter 5:47
sounds like a lot, a lot of fun and a lot of like, Heebie Jeebies or butterflies in your stomach, but what was the most a lot, if you will, like, what was the most daunting part of competing in those tournaments? It’s
Ashley Lynn Priore 5:58
funny, I think it was the, I will always remember this. It was the first tournament I ever competed in, and it was at some church, like, in, like the, I think was like the North Hills area of Pittsburgh, like, far out. And I had won it with the tournaments four rounds. So I had won three games, and I was in the very beginner section. So at that point, it was unrated beginner, like you didn’t officially have a rating yet. You were just starting out. It was my first tournament, and I think I was the only young woman in that division, right? And I was very, very young, like five or six at the time, and my chess coach at the time he was running the tournament, he saw me in the hall. I was reading the spread to see, okay, who was I playing in that last round? Because I had a chance to win first place in my first tournament. I read the night. I was reading the name, and it was this other young man that was in the chess classes with me. We both the same chess coach, and I remember my chess instructor screaming down the line, like, Ashley, you can beat him, like you can do this. And I was just like, Oh my god, there’s so much pressure. We have our chess coach who’s kind of wants me to win, right? He said, You can do this. You’re better than him, right? He’s screaming this down on this line, and I’m going in, and I’m like, oh my god, this is so much pressure, right? And it was a tough game, but at the same time, I knew deep down I could win, and I ended up winning, right? It was the first tournament I had won first place. Most people would be like, Oh my God, that must be so great, right? And I’m like, yes and no, right? I mean, it was so great and exciting. But when it’s your first tournament you win first place, you have to keep that momentum going. You have to, like, continue to reach that height, because if you don’t, you’re going to feel like, what’s next, right? You have to strive for greatness beginning at the onset. But I’ll always remember that it was a lot of pressure. My chess instructor being like, you should be him. I mean, I did, thankfully, would have been really awkward if I didn’t. But still, that was a whole that was a whole journey. And I think that was the most intense moment of chess careers. First tournament, your chess instructor says that, and you win first place,
Max Branstetter 8:09
and now you hate chess today, you’ve never done anything with chess again in your life, never spoken to anybody about it. Exactly. Chess flows really naturally into what’s like your full time career now, which is, which is awesome. And so I want to hit on Queen’s gamut as well, which I am trying to say Gambit, there is a B in there, but it keeps coming out as as gamt like, damn it. So sorry about that. But anyway, and queen side ventures as well. So you got a couple different ventures there in the space. But what was the insight like the moment that you first realized that, hey, there’s lessons from chess that can actually apply and help people out in the real world, not that chess is not the real world, right?
Ashley Lynn Priore 8:52
Exactly, exactly. I love that question. And a lot of people try to talk about chess related to life. There’s tons of people that that try to make those connections. And if you look at any strategic presentation or business book or finance whatever, they always have nights or make a chess analogy, right? Even if they don’t play chess, I always was aware of that. And I think when I first went into the chess community, I knew that there was this underlying sexism, right? Chess is a very white, male dominated game, and so one of my first lessons in leadership was, okay, chess is very male dominated game. I’m a woman in this space. How do I ensure that other women can join the community and feel empowered and feel safe? Right? So that was, that was one thing on the side that was always aware like that was just something that I knew I wanted to be a part of a community of empowering women how to play chess, right? That was on that side. But I don’t think I realized the life skills application until I started to teach it right every chess. Has this next path they can decide to continue in the competitive chess space, right, which, for some people, Magnus Carlsen, right, whatever, you can make a lot of money, get deals like any other sport, or you can go into the coaching side of things. And I made that decision to go into the coaching side. Not that I didn’t love the competitive side, but because I felt like I could really make a big impact there. And my whole motto is that you don’t have to be the best chess player in the world to use the skills to apply it in your own life. So when I pivoted to the coaching space, I saw the impact that it had on these students. Right? They were not only getting higher maths and reading scores, but they were applying things to their own life. They felt empowered. They felt like they had control over something. And the best chess quote, in my opinion, is Susan Polgar, one of the greatest female chess players of all time. Her saying, you know, chess is like a miniature version of life, and to be successful, you need to apply these different skills, seeing how students were impacted, seeing that I could start an organization based off the skills that chess provided for me, right? Thinking Ahead, understanding that one move is going to change the directory of every single thing that you do in life, right? That was huge for me. So I started Queen’s gambit. We were here before the mini series. I do like to say that, but I cannot take credit for the name, right? It’s an opening in chess. It’s a gambit, right? You’re you’re taking a risk, and that was big for me. Are you sure you’re pronouncing
Max Branstetter 11:25
Gambit correctly?
Ashley Lynn Priore 11:28
Exactly, right? That you know, looking back, that would have been a nice alternative name if, you know, drop, the drop to be in that right? But, um, it was an interesting moment in my life. So it’s 14. Most people were like, if you start an organization now, you’re going to go to college, it’s going to fall off, right? But I knew I wanted to stick with it, so I started the organization, and it was all about, how do we empower young people? How do we teach young people these skills and ensure that they have them to do whatever they want to pursue in life? It’s not about having them be the next. Bobby Fischer, sure, we’ve had students that are great and continue to excel that way, but that’s not what it’s about. It’s about chess as an application. It’s a tool in their tool kit to have them get to that next point in their lives. And there are people that are amazing chess players, but they don’t necessarily apply these skills in their own life, just like there’s people that aren’t maybe amazing at chess, but they can apply these skills, so we’re there to help bridge that gap and say, Hey, chess can be a tool to help you. It was not until I had graduated from Pitt University of Pittsburgh in 2022 I was meeting with my mentor, and I said to her, you know, I don’t necessarily want to go the route of just applying to these jobs, right? Because I was like, you know, just like any when you graduate college, like, sure, you have a not, you know, I had the nonprofit, and I was doing all these other things and consulting, but I still felt this need to go to the traditional route, because that’s what we’re taught, right? We’re taught to go into this traditional space. And I said to her, like, I don’t know why I’m applying to these jobs. I hate event planning. Why am I applying to be an event planner, to this in this position? Why am I applying to be an office manager when I know I would be bored in certain aspects of these things, right? I didn’t know why I was doing it. And she said, you know, you’ve had such a unique path. Why are you applying to these jobs that you obviously don’t want, and it’s going to take away from your time utilizing chess as a tool for empowerment. So instead, I said, you know, let’s do something else. So I started queen side ventures, and the Queen’s very important to me, as everyone knows, right? The Queen represents something. It’s the symbol for power. And with queen side, I said, let’s see what we can do with adults. Let’s see how we can apply it to business. What can we do next? I’ve always loved sports. I’ve always loved the connection between chess and football and all of these things. So I decided, you know, let’s do a firm. Let’s create a consulting firm where chess is the vehicle to which we help people. Could be helping athletes. It could be helping businesses, whatever that looks like. It’s this vehicle. It’s the tool that we utilize to help people. So really, to answer your question, going back, I don’t think I realized it until I actually started to make strategic choices, that I was like, wow, chess is really helping me. And didn’t see it until I saw the impact that it was having on the lives with people. So
Max Branstetter 14:21
it’s really cool here. Like, if, if I’m, like, very much simplifying this, if you look at a high level, you have, like, your business for kids and then your business for adults, and obviously there’s, there’s differences there. But like, I’m really intrigued first by starting a business at 14. Like, I’m trying to think what I was doing at 14, and I think it was like a lot of striking out playing baseball and Tony Hawk Pro Skater. So, you know, I always liked entrepreneurship, but at 14, it was like, nowhere near my mind. So that’s really, really cool that, like, you created something, then what was the biggest challenge in like, getting something like that up and rolling and like, turning into a real thing? And. A teenager,
Ashley Lynn Priore 15:00
there are two big things. The one I think a lot of people can relate to is just the financial element, right, getting funding that’s hard for any organization when you’re first starting out, right? It’s hard for anything. But it was especially hard because at that point, when you’re that age, especially in Pennsylvania, you have to be you can be 16. If you want to start an organization, you still have to get signing off from somebody over 18. But you know, you can’t just do all these things right and get funding ages. Age is a barrier, right for different reasons, financial, you know, legal, fiduciary responsibilities, whatever that looks like. Getting funding is hard, but when you’re a young person, young person, then getting funding is extraordinarily hard, because there are these assumptions. And during this time, I became very passionate about youth leadership and intergenerational diversity, and that term is not talked about enough people mix intergenerational with multi generational. Multi generational means that there are different age groups at the table, and they’re there. They’re present. Intergenerational is how those groups are connected. So I would literally reach out to as many leaders as I could. In the summer of 2018 I remember sending cold emails to like, every leader in Pittsburgh, right? I was like, I need to connect with these people and ask them, How did you do it? How did you create an organization? How did you, you know, how did you get the funding? All these things, and the common thread was that most of the people in those positions did not start an organization. They came into the organization when it already had funding. So that was an obstacle, right? And it didn’t the best. And for a lot of young entrepreneurs listening, this might feel discouraging. It’s not meant to but it literally took time to get that funding. It took relationship building. It took people trusting the organization and the outcome and the people behind it. It just took time. That was the biggest challenge, age, people making assumptions, saying that you can’t be, you know, a great leader, because you are still learning, right? I always heard that they were like, you’re still in school, you’re still doing all this, but the best way people learn is actually going out there and doing it themselves. And I think I’m curious if you agree with this or not. You know, sure, school taught us a lot of things, but I don’t think we really learned or fully grasped the concept until we were out there doing it on our own.
Max Branstetter 17:23
Yeah. Well, my wife, Dana, is a teacher, so I have to be very choiceful with my words, no, but I like, I even think to all the way through, like college, like that transition from college to the real world, like you learn really quickly. And whatever your first job is, or if you know you’re starting a business right away, you learn really quickly. Like, what skills you’re gonna need and are super valuable, and then which ones aren’t so relevant anymore. And so for like, I think back to my time in college, and like, I think one of the biggest things college did for me was, like, it got me to come out of my shell, like I was so shy, and I went to the point from being, like, freshman year super nervous for any in class presentation, as they say, to like, in my internship, had an internship in Dallas, and like, I was like, like, I want to be one of the people giving this final pitch as part of it, and now I won’t shut up for a living. So so I think about that, but I also think about, like, how me, personally, I’m not using calculus very much, or pre calc algebra or anything like that. So there’s a wide variety. So totally true. Like, there’s so much value in, like, the hands on, and actually, it’s like, doing stuff yourself and learning that way. I’m curious, from your standpoint, like looking back so far, like the Queen’s gambit journey, and then now to queen side ventures, like, what’s the biggest thing you learn from from the gambit, we’ll call it, that has fueled this birth of queen side ventures. You
Ashley Lynn Priore 18:51
have to take the risks. I mean, there’s that you know saying, you know, no risk, no reward, all those things, but you have to to settle in the uncomfortableness. There’s going to be so many moments where you are uncomfortable, you feel like you can’t do something, where you feel like it’s really, really hard. And you’re going to have to make choices that it’s the say, it’s like the opportunity cost, right? You have to decide, like, how can I make the most impact? How do I do things without compromising my values? But how do I also know that I need to do some sort of risk every day you should be doing something that makes you feel a little bit uncomfortable, right? And make that and have that risk, people would always say to me that you’re not going to continue on with Queen’s gambit once you’re in college, or once you finish college. And I never thought that was true, because I always thought it would grow with me. The organization has certainly grown with me. It’s adapted, it’s changed. It’s fueled different passions, like queen side, right? But when I hear the gambit. It. I think of you’re doing a risk now for greater reward later on, and that’s exactly what it’s about. And I think any work that empowers young people is what it’s about. Because you might not see that impact in one to two years, but you’re going to see it when they grow up and they say, Hey, I did chess when I was a kid, and that really helped me get that job, or have better interviewing skills, or feel like I could accomplish something, right? That’s huge, right? Every single risk that we take, it might not be the immediate reward, but you’re going to see it at some point. Reaching out to all the people that I did when I was a senior in high school only had the biggest impact later on, because I met them and they remembered me a couple years later, and I could ask them for help or for resources, right? So doing those steps, feeling uncomfortable and taking risks is very key.
Max Branstetter 20:51
You segued swimmingly into one of the things I’m most fascinated by, because if you look at your clients for queen side ventures, like you’ve worked with multiple NFL teams, not to shout out the Cleveland Browns, you know, the best team ever, if you look at the 1960s How did you start to get like, literally, big name like NFL clients like that. How did you get those onto your repertoire of clients in the first place? It’s
Ashley Lynn Priore 21:13
a great question. So I have always loved football. As you can see in the background here, I’ve always loved football.
Max Branstetter 21:18
For those just listening, there are about 17 different versions of Tom Brady behind Ashley’s hair.
Ashley Lynn Priore 21:25
It’s true. There are, and it’s
Max Branstetter 21:27
one for every hairstyle. No, exactly.
Ashley Lynn Priore 21:29
I mean, it’s true. It’s true. And you know, what’s so funny is that people have such reactions when I say Tom Brady, and I get that right, there’s people have different feelings or reactions.
Max Branstetter 21:42
Well, this is the first time I’ve heard of him
Ashley Lynn Priore 21:45
as a Browns I mean, as a Browns fan. I mean,
Max Branstetter 21:52
I think we beat him once. That was the best year ever. Yeah.
Ashley Lynn Priore 21:58
Well, you know what? It’s so funny to me, the people have different reactions. When I was at Pitt, I majored in English literature and political science, and I used to say that I’m in the field of because I did it so much. When I was a political science major and I dabbled in politics, it was a really interesting time. But I did it. I say that that was a challenging time, but the more challenging time is when I talk about Tom Brady and anything I do, because so many reactions to that. And I’ll start with that, because anytime I watched him play, I would get so, you know, anxious, but I felt like he was playing on the field and represented something to me, because there were so many people who did not like him, and so many people that felt like he, you know, just wasn’t. What’s the best word to say here? Like he was, is a great player, but they were all, you know, cheating scandal, or all these other things surrounding him, right? And I felt a very similar connection, because when I was first starting Queen’s Gambit, there were tons of naysayers, right? There were tons of people that said, oh, you can’t do this. There were tons of people that actually didn’t think I should start an organization, because they didn’t think that I was the best chess player in the world. Chess Player in the world, right? And that was my point. Was that you don’t need to be the best chess player in order to achieve, you know, what you want in the chess game, right? So it’s interesting to me, but in terms of how I got the clients, I had always had a passion for football. I had always loved the connections. I grew up watching Tom Brady and Bill Belichick, and they even made chess references, right? Pittsburgh’s own, you know, Mike Tomlin, he would say, we’re playing chess, not checkers, right? They would say that. And I would be very curious about what that meant. I remember talking to my mentor saying, I love sports. She said, why don’t you do this with football? You love football. You love chess. Why don’t you make the connection? Why don’t you go out there and do it. So I literally sent cold emails to NFL teams. That’s what I did. I just sent the cold emails. And it was a good timing, because there was an article in The New York Times that said chess is the new Madden. That was an article that was out. It was talking about how footballer, football players love chess. And it was an easy segue. And I said here, I’m a competitor. I’m a former competitive chess player 10 years playing. I understand football very well. I know how to make the impact. I know the connection here, and what I think I can do is talk about how chess and football aligns, how chess teaches adaptability, problem solving, critical thinking, and one of the first teams that I worked with was the bucks timberway Bucha nurse. Now it was this first season that Tom Brady was not there because he had retired. So that was a little sad for Ashley. It was a little sad we did still have some Tom Brady things up, which was great. It’s like,
Max Branstetter 24:38
like, two ships passing in the night there.
Ashley Lynn Priore 24:42
It’s so true. But what I love was that I heard tons about the impact he had on them. He and and that’s something that made me feel really inspired and powerful. So I love that the bucks are one of the first teams I ever worked with, and they are amazing chess players. And what we did was we talked about, how does chess help you adapt? How does it help. You, you’ll pivot, and as when you start, I started with one team, then I just got connected with the others. One of my dear friends works at the Cleveland Browns, and she has been just this pillar of support, and I can go to her and ask questions, because she not only understands the inner workings of football, but she also understands the impact that chess can have so having advocates in the space is so important, having a connection to it, right? I will say that I started with football because I love the sport and I have a deep understanding of it, and that’s what was so helpful, and that’s what people saw. They knew that I wasn’t there just to say, here’s why chess is wonderful. I was there to say, here’s how it fits in, here’s how it connects and here’s how it can help you, right? And that’s, that’s what’s so key. So it really built from there, and it created this beautiful journey and space. But I always have to say it’s the athletes, at the end of the day, they’re the ones that are doing this incredible thing. They’re doing this work. They’re building the skills that they need. And stress is just another tool in their toolkit, and that’s why I’m I’m here. I’m here to help them and support them. The
Max Branstetter 26:06
like kid in me is is living through because I feel like writing to an NFL team is like something I would do as a kid. It’s like a, you know, it’s like a Santa’s wish list type thing. But can you shout out your friend’s name on the browns? Because I know you interviewed her for your podcast, and I listened to that as prep. It was awesome. Oh,
Ashley Lynn Priore 26:23
really. Oh, awesome. Yes, Sahaana. Sahaana is a player services coordinator for the browns, and she is absolutely incredible. She has amazing journey, and she supports players every day. She just is the embodiment of somebody that works at a team and is there to support the players in and out. We don’t talk enough about the people on the back end that are doing the work to empower players, right? But we should. NFL has player engagement directors, and they’re the ones that are helping players with everything, from teaching them financial literacy and educational support to helping them get a ticket for their family to go to a game, like they do everything. So, um, shout out to her, because she is, she is awesome. Yeah,
Max Branstetter 27:06
shout out. And I know we got some listeners to this podcast who are big Browns fans, so I want to make sure that people can check that out. And Ashley’s podcast is called QueenMe! It’s awesome. So that’s a that’s a great place to start. You kind of hinted on it, but overall, like when you’re talking to NFL teams, for example. In addition to adaptability, like, what other lessons from chess? What other insights are you pulling out for them that can inspire these players?
Ashley Lynn Priore 27:29
You know, I always say there’s, there’s the key things that chess teaches right, problem solving, critical thinking. When you’re playing chess, the dendrites in your brain grow that actually make you smarter. That’s one of the coolest things about chess. Like, literally,
Max Branstetter 27:40
hold on, what is a dendrite? The
Ashley Lynn Priore 27:43
dendrite is the part of the brain that links to memory and concentration.
Max Branstetter 27:47
That’s why I couldn’t remember
Ashley Lynn Priore 27:48
it. You know what’s amazing though about chess? And this is just a little side note. Chess helps with so many conditions like Alzheimer’s and dementia. Chess literally hits parts of your brain. And this is why people say, Oh, couldn’t you use any other board game or game to teach these skills? And my answer is no, because chess, we have research that shows that it hits parts of your brain that other games just don’t do right? And that’s what’s so powerful, and that’s what’s so key. What I always like to say here is that, you know, when you’re playing chess, I want you to think about all of the different pieces as different moments and obstacles in your life. Maybe the the rook represents stat that you want to achieve. Maybe the pawn represents injury that you have. How you know, whatever, whatever those pieces represent for you. How do they interact with each other? How do they challenge each other? How do they uplift each other? And what we find is that each piece needs the other piece to achieve something, right? It’s, it’s teaching teamwork is really what it’s teaching, teaching you how to, you know, respond in a moment of uncertainty and respond quickly, right? There’s a thing that we have called speeches, and speeches is a great tool for people. It’s when you are you’re playing any other game, except you have a clock. So you’re playing chess, but you have a clock, and the typical thing is it’s set to five minutes, so you are moving the pieces, and you always have to hit the clock. That’s what you see in movies, right? They move it up and they press the clock right? I love talking about speed chess, because football players, in that moment, they have to learn how to make decisions quickly and effectively and not go back on those decisions. So when they’re on the field, right, they’re utilizing the skills that they learned in chess, because they’re saying, Okay, I’m going to do this move because somebody’s over here attacking me. Somebody over is over here. I need to defend this guy. I’m going to go forward. Right? They’re responding quickly, and chess is helping them with that practice, right? Chess is truly a miniature version of life, but for them, it’s a miniature version of the football field, right? One of my favorite quotes from Larry Fitzgerald, amazing football player. He loves chess. He says, you know, people assume that football players are dumb. He said, People assume that football players are barbarians, right? He said that, and he said, people make all these assumptions about football players, but when they see you playing chess, they’re like, Wow, you must be really smart, and it’s key, because, yeah, people that play chess, that’s great. But you you know, football players are critical thinkers. They’re strategic leaders, they’re problem solvers. They are ones that know exactly what they need to do in that moment. Chess is just a tool to help them continue to build those skills.
Max Branstetter 30:29
One of the skills that I am constantly working on is getting better and better on YouTube, which is why I go to the gym so much, right? Anyway, if you want to check out the video versions of these podcast episodes. Go to YouTube. It is at max Branstetter, and make sure you hit subscribe, and you can check out amazing wild entrepreneurs. I kick myself every time I say amazing. I use that so much. But they’re amazing wild entrepreneurs, including Ashley. And you can find them all on YouTube at max. Branstetter, the video versions certainly add a visual wrinkle. And in this case, you can see 17 versions of Tom Brady, a man who has crazy good expertise. Speaking of expertise, let’s dive more into Ashley’s expertise. Expertises. So let’s continue to leverage your expertise, and I would say, like World Class credibility and chess regimen to continue to build those skills in all of us. I want to dive into chess a little bit more. And you know, sometimes on the show, we do a segment called the unusual. And for this, I’m just going to call it the pawn usual. So apologies in advance, which really is just a way of saying. I would love to dive into some more, some some chess tips. And like, for starters, what’s like, a kind of a good rule of thumb, or like something that’s always served you well in a competitive game of chess. Love that
Ashley Lynn Priore 32:07
practically it’s not moving the same piece more than once in the opening, being very thoughtful about getting diverse, diversifying the pieces you have on the board, right? So many people move the same piece over and over again because they’re worried about getting their pieces out, and that’s just not going to help you, right? You need to make sure that you’re balancing the board right. You get the pawn out, the knight, the bishop, you Castle, utilize your rooks, right? We have that rule of thumb of you don’t get your clean out too early. Along with that is you make sure that you get your other pieces out and your balancing development. The other tip that I have is you can’t just be focusing on your goal. In the game, so many people only focus on whatever goal they’re trying to achieve. And it’s so funny, because almost every class I have, I see somebody move a piece out, and I’m like, well, make sure you’re focusing on what your opponent’s doing. And they say, It’s okay. Now I have a plan. That’s like their famous thing to say, I have a plan. And I say, Well, wait, you have a plan. That’s great, but just like in our own lives, right? You and I, maybe we have a plan to meet at 9am for a podcast, right? Something happens in my life, right? I’m delayed. Something happened in your life, right? I had to push it back.
Max Branstetter 33:32
This is strictly hypothetical, by the way. This would never happen. This totally
Ashley Lynn Priore 33:38
weird. I had to respond to all these things in my life, right? And my plan got pivoted, right? Don’t just think about one plan. Think about what your opponent’s doing, and think about any other potential things that could harm your plan, because if you don’t, you’re not going to end up achieving your goal, right? No. Goal is no nothing has ever worked strictly to plan. There’s always been curves and routes that we’ve had to take to get there. It’s a winding road. So I always tell people, don’t just follow through on just one plan. Make sure that you’re responding to what your opponent’s doing and looking around the whole board. That’s very key, because that’s the one of the key reasons people lose a chess game. I know the
Max Branstetter 34:19
obvious answer for this next one is to practice, practice, practice, practice, practice. But So besides that, not to put you into constraint answer here, but what is the best way besides practicing to get better at chess? Love
Ashley Lynn Priore 34:35
that. There’s two things I always recommend. One is a daily puzzle. Go to Lichess.org, chess.com, whatever it is, and do a puzzle every day. Puzzles are wonderful for improving in chess because they allow us to focus in on one position and understand how each piece is working together, what each piece’s purpose is, right? So puzzles are perfect. The other thing is chess books. There’s tons of books out there. I. Three that I’m going to read this year, three really wonderful books. You don’t just have to read chess books that are including like puzzles and different things, right? You can read books that also are just about the overall mindset of chess. So Maurice Ashley, wonderful chess master, really impressive human. He wrote a book called move by move, and the goal of the book is to talk about his own journey and how chess helped him. Why I recommend that for people is because it’s in it’s creating new ways of thinking, right? It’s helping people understand that, wow, when I’m playing a chess game, I should not just be thinking about the pieces as just pieces. Maybe it’ll help me to understand, well, this piece could represent this in my life, or this piece could represent something else, or, Oh, I remember when Maurice Ashley talked about the position on their chessboard and it applied to something else in their life. When we use the bigger picture, it can really help our chess game, because I think sometimes we’re so focused on one position, we need to think outward, respond bigger, right? So puzzles, books, very key. People say practice and practice is good, but I would also say throw in some speed chess games too, because that’s going to help with time management. That’s going to help with thinking on your feet, responding quickly to things, and any other sort of memory games. People love connections are Wordle from New York Times. Do that do something that’s gonna get your brain thinking in different ways too?
Max Branstetter 36:26
That stainless nightly routine, and sometimes we tag team it too. Yeah, it’s a lot of fun. It’s like, it’s such a great time. There’s so many games like that that are just little, like, quick little puzzles that are like, low energy, low intensity, but it like, really gets your gets the gears flowing in your brain. Those are great tips there, all right. And then last one here, before we put you off the actually, before we bring you to the real hot seat. So stay tuned for that. When you’re playing somebody in chess, how do you, I guess, get quicker to the moments where it’s like, you just know that you’ve won the game. You know, it’s like, you could see it. You could see it in the show where, where Beth is, like, like, I got it. Like, I like, you know, really early that you won this jazz match. What are some tips for kind of, like, getting to that place quicker? That’s
Ashley Lynn Priore 37:14
a great question. One of the things the mini series did for people is, I love that it sparked this interest in chess. I have mixed feelings about the mini series, because I don’t think it fully grasp what it’s like to be a woman in the chess community, but I will say that what it did do was, of course, inspire people to think about chess and want to play again. But it takes a long time to get to the point that Beth did right takes a long time to get to that point. Some people know they’re going to win in a certain amount of time because they can think through positions so much faster. What I tell people when they say, I want to know within the 10th move of the game if I’m going to win the game or not is to and it takes work, but it’s to literally go through every single potential move in your mind and almost do like a chart and draw out all the potential different situations. And what you’re going to find is, is that each of those potential situations might get into this common position on the board, and that’s the position that ultimately is either going to win or lose the game for you, right? Once you start to hone in on positions and puzzles can help with this. You’re going to start to think things through faster and understand, hey, in the 20th move of the game, oh, I know there’s no way that I can win this. I’m going to resign, right? Some people don’t like to resign. Some people think it’s respectful to your partner. I think if you know that you’re going to lose the game, you can certainly hope that you won’t, but it’s more respectful to just bow out respectfully. But I would say, hone in on positions. Take the time to slow down your game. Do a practice game and just say, I’m going to stop this position and write out every potential move that can happen. And as you continue to do that, it’s going to process faster in your brain. You’re then going to get to the point where you’re going to say, Hey, okay, I can see that I’m going to lose this game. Of course, there’s luck, like things with the clock and maybe your opponent misses something. But we can’t do chess games solely on luck, right? We have to, you know, make sure that we have other, you know, other ideas of potential things that could happen. So that’s what I would say. But it takes time, and don’t feel like you need to get there in order to be a really amazing chess player, but just slowly, take the time to understand the potential moves that that are there that can determine whether or not you’re going to win the game.
Max Branstetter 39:33
All right, so now that you’re off the hot seat, it’s time for hot seat. 2.0 I’m so sorry about this, but rapid fire Q, a, love to wrap up with some rapid-fire Q & A, this is not limited to chess, but I can’t promise that there won’t be overlap. You ready for it? I’m ready. Let’s do it. Okay, all right, spell Queen’s gambit? No, I’m just
Ashley Lynn Priore 39:51
gonna there’s no B in it, right?
Max Branstetter 39:56
No. Dog. Dog. Gamt. What? Let’s get wild. So I know there’s obviously a lot of fictional and it is fiction, but Queen’s gambit show, and I know there’s a lot of there’s a lot of issues and inaccuracies with it compared to real life. However, what was something from the series that you were like, You know what this part is like? Pretty accurate the
Ashley Lynn Priore 40:18
frustration that Beth felt as she was preparing for the tournament, like having all those chess books and just sitting there on the bed being like, Oh my God, I need to practice whatever my opponent’s doing. Very accurate, understanding what your opponent did, and like reading through all their games and becoming very familiar about their mistakes, very accurate. Oh, that’s
Max Branstetter 40:37
that’s an awesome answer. Speaking of awesome, or maybe not awesome, you went to college in your hometown. What’s your favorite part of that? And what’s your least favorite aspect of that? My
Ashley Lynn Priore 40:48
favorite part of that is that we have tons of cats at home, and I’m a big cat person. That’s the other thing that I’m huge about. I have two tattoos. I have I have a cat and I have a queen chess piece. That’s awesome. We live very close to Pitt, so I was able to commute, save money and be with my cats. That’s the plus. The downside is that I was the only person in my family not to go to Duquesne University, which is just down the road from
Max Branstetter 41:11
University of Pittsburgh, really. Oh, my god, family rivalry. Yes,
Ashley Lynn Priore 41:15
all my three siblings went to Duquesne for undergrad and grad school. My dad went to Duquesne. So I would say when it comes to just like sports games, or just like, you know, discussions at the dinner table, not going to the same school, but the same school that’s in, like the same city that’s very difficult and very hard, and being very close to another rival school is difficult. So nothing on pit, just more so my family being very intense that I didn’t get into game.
Max Branstetter 41:45
Oh, that’s amazing. You mentioned some NFL players throughout this, but through your work, and also, I don’t even know if you can answer this, because NDAs, but who? Who’s an NFL player that, like, maybe, hypothetically, you were fortunate to maybe possibly meet that you were pretty starstruck by and if you can’t say it, just maybe put a couple letters out there that might be their initials.
Ashley Lynn Priore 42:12
That’s a great one. And you know, what’s interesting is that I don’t often get starstruck like because I view them as just the people and amazing humans that they are. I will say that it wasn’t necessarily a player that I was Star Trek by. It was just somebody, a part of the organization. That’s all I’ll say
Max Branstetter 42:32
amazing. And we know it’s your friend on the browns. Thank you. Last one, of course we have to end up with Tom Brady. I think this is going to be the most difficult question for you. You know, there’s a very famous or infamous Roast of Tom Brady over the past year. If you were to roast Tom Brady, what is one thing you would roast him on, obviously full of love that
Ashley Lynn Priore 42:56
he put me through the stress of retiring two times. Not fair. How dare you I could say that’s the biggest thing I could do. Yeah,
Max Branstetter 43:09
unfortunately, there’s a long history of that in the NFL, going back to Brett Favre retiring every other week. And, yeah, there’s a lot of that. But no, obviously, obviously, he’s the goat, and we’ll stop there. But Ashley, thank you so much that this has been amazing. Just love what you’re doing and endlessly fascinated by everything you do in the chess in the business world, and then the crossover into the NFL world is just like fires me up in the best way as well. So thanks for for coming on and for all you do. Where’s the best place if people want to learn more about either of your two main businesses, as well as just connect with you online. Where’s the best place for them to do that? I’m
Ashley Lynn Priore 43:44
really loving LinkedIn lately, especially because now they have games on there that you can play. There’s a game they do
Max Branstetter 43:50
that’s funny. When you were when you mentioned the little puzzles, I was thinking about those. LinkedIn so
Ashley Lynn Priore 43:55
fun. They’re so fun. So I’d say LinkedIn is a great place. Or feel free to go to our website, Qg chess.org, or queenside ventures.com, feel free to, you know, try to reach out. And I love connecting with people and hearing your experiences. So that’s, that’s the best way, but really encourage people to to connect. And I appreciate everything that you’re doing with this show. It’s amazing. It’s, it’s just really great to be a part of. So I appreciate it. Thank
Max Branstetter 44:20
you. Thank you. It means a ton. Well, chess NFL experts like you is what make the show amazing. Every guest we have on the show is a chess NFL No, I’m just going,
Ashley Lynn Priore 44:29
but that’s so cool. Yes, there you
Max Branstetter 44:33
go. Could be the next season of Queen Me! But last thing, final thoughts, it could be a quote. It could be words of chess advice, there’s words to live by, whatever you want. One line send us home here. You
Ashley Lynn Priore 44:44
know what I’ll do? One that’s from Tom Brady, that’s on my wall that literally says I didn’t come this far, to only come this far. And I love that. That can mean a lot of things, but I want you to think about it in essence of your chess game, right? You’ve you’re in the middle of the game, you’ve done a lot of work to get. There. Don’t just give up and make a stalling move or a silly move just to get it over with. Take a minute to think about what else that you can do that’ll be the best way to move forward. And it’s a Tom Brady quote, so you can’t go wrong with
Max Branstetter 45:14
that. Once again, never heard of the guy. Thank you so much, Ashley for coming on the podcast, for all you do in the world of chess and business and life and inspiring and Primanti Bros. sandwiches and thank you Wild listeners for tuning in to another episode. If you want to hear more Wild stories like this one, make sure to follow the Wild Business Growth podcast on your favorite app and subscribe on YouTube. YouTube is @MaxBranstetter. You can also find us on Goodpods, where I don’t talk about this enough, but we have been named the number one all time creativity podcast on Goodpods. So if you you feel an extra creative and for any help with podcast production, you can learn more at MaxPodcasting.com and sign up for the Podcasting to the Max newsletter that is short and sweet every Thursday where podcasting meets entrepreneurship meets creative puns, creatively bad puns, and you can sign up at MaxPodcasting.com/Newsletter Until next time, Let your business Run Wild…Bring on the Bongos!!
