Am I too weak???

Hi chess.com friends.

I am facing a very depressing problem and I believe some of you may be able to help me out.

I am currently working with Artur Yusupov's 1st book "Build up your chess - The fundamentals", as far as the chapters on tactics are concerned my results are excellent but the chapters on positional play and strategy have become real nightmares to me. 

I even struggle to solve 1 single puzzle let alone passing the test. Sometimes I just work for 3-4 hours and run away from the book cursing myself, all drained and upset. 

I don't know why but I always come back to it after some days and the loop repeats.

So this is clear that I am hopelessly weak but there has got to be a solution. Right?

Has anyone of you faced such situation with this book or any similar book? How did you manage to overcome?

I don't have an official OTB rating but I consider myself somewhere between 1280 - 1370.

Also, I am not totally unaware of strategic/positional ideas like space, time, weak squares/pawns, value of pieces, good bishop vs bad bishop, isolated pawns, doubled pawns etc etc...

 

I sincerely appreciate your advice.

 

 

Kind regards,

Mohit

My positional understanding improved a lot after reading Silman's books about imbalances.  That'd be my advice.

Thanks Joe.. I really think very high of Mr. Silman's books. I have recently started reading How to reassess your chess...just finished the introduction.

Thanks for the advice.

Maybe the book is a little advanced for you. Try again after a year orf so

@rooperi But I am able to solve most chapters on tactics with almost 100% accuracy...So the book is not that advanced i guess...

i think iam a little bit like you with positional ideas. get play winning chess and winning tactics by yasser seirawan. read both books over and over again and till most of the books are in your head. then logical chess move by move by irving chernev is then the next book to move on to. take your time dont rush you will see your play and understanding of the game get better good luck. always get back to me if you need help.

Nimzowitch`s books were of a big help to improve my positional understanding. You could try those :)

I think the "shortcut" to deeper positional ability/awareness is to study endings hard.  It's in the ending where those bad bishop/good knight-active/passive rook-structure weaknesses become fatal, and where it's a process to win, not a combination.  The ending is more about technique and economy of force, and almost all positional players I've met had strong chops in the ending.

Myself, I found Nimzowitch to be confusing--I threw away my copy of My System.  I felt it hurt my game more than helped, and I got it out of my system by going back to the games of Morphy and Pillsbury and saccing my way back.  A book I will recommend is Neil MacDonald's The Giants of Strategy; good writing combined with clear examples.

My system is a great book but you need to read it more than 2 times its a bit hard

Tu peux essayer le livre de Fritz van Seter : Les Echecs

Il te décrit toutes les tactiques des champions et personellement je le trouve assez instructif

If you are struggling with it, then that is good, as you know where you need to improve. I think reading a Silman book is a good start as it teaches all about strategy and planning. It's pointless getting upset about it, you are in a lucky position! You know your area of weakness, compared to lots of other players who don't know what their weakness is at all! This means you can work at it and therefore improve your understanding.

Hi PawnAlmighty, I am also working through the same book right now and I've (had) exactly the same issue. What really helped me is to set a clock per puzzle (for example 15 minutes), really concentrate and calculate hard during that time, and after that just PICK A MOVE. Even though you may doubt it's correct. In the end, when you see the answer, make sure you understand the difference between your guess and the right move. This works well because 1. you get to finish the book and 2. it's about the effort you put into it - calculating and working your mind - and not necessarily giving the correct answer.

Thaks vinsvis. This sounds like an excellent idea. Apart from reading silman's book I will try your method. vinsvis wrote: Hi PawnAlmighty, I am also working through the same book right now and I've (had) exactly the same issue. What really helped me is to set a clock per puzzle (for example 15 minutes), really concentrate and calculate hard during that time, and after that just PICK A MOVE. Even though you may doubt it's correct. In the end, when you see the answer, make sure you understand the difference between your guess and the right move. This works well because 1. you get to finish the book and 2. it's about the effort you put into it - calculating and working your mind - and not necessarily giving the correct answer.