The first time I played, I lost in eleven moves. I didn’t even know I could lose that fast. My friend smiled and said: “You’re trying to win. Try just seeing what’s there first.” We live in an age of instant extraction. Want the summary? Ask AI. Want the ending? Skip ahead. Want to know if you’re right? Post and let the comments decide.
A figure is a number or a shape. But to figure is to slowly, clumsily, patiently make sense of something. We’ve turned figuring into “solve for X.” Go reminded me that real figuring looks more like: place stone, lose stone, pause, breathe, place again. Your turn You don’t have to play Go to borrow this.
Then go figure. Liked this? Share it with someone who needs permission to move slower. — Jamie igo figure
April 17, 2026
You can attack every stone your opponent places and still lose. Sometimes the winning move is to leave them alone and build your own quiet corner. I think about this now in meetings, in relationships, in creative work. The first time I played, I lost in eleven moves
Here’s the catch — the board has 361 intersections. More possible games than atoms in the universe. You can’t memorize your way to winning. You have to read the board, not recite it.
I Go, Figure: What an Ancient Board Game Taught Me About Modern Life Try just seeing what’s there first
Then another.
When I don’t understand something, my instinct is to attack it — read faster, click around, ask three people at once. But last month, a friend taught me the board game Go , and suddenly I heard myself saying something I almost never say:
4 minutes I’ve never been good at just sitting with confusion.