My first child knows every flag, every capital city, and taught me the politics of Kosovo, Yugoslavia, and Serbia. My second child memorized part of the times table at 3 years old just by watching her older sister do it. My third child is a genius with motor skills - he's learned to walk at 11 months, can "parrot" conversation/song, move furniture around, throw things with his full body mass.
I think you have to find what clicks for them, what fascinates them.
I bought my eldest kid a chess set, Rubik's cube, guided her to programming. They're very interested and want to be good at it but the fascination isn't there. It's like a chore.
Also be wary that chess might have been your unique talent as a kid. You might not be world class, but you could also be in the 1% who actually liked chess as child. So just because you and other kids can do it, it doesn't mean every kid can.