I don't know whether I agree with that.  Sometimes taking that pressure off yourself is the best thing you can do to improve.

I think at some point, we all hit a wall in terms of ability to calculate the possibilities for positions in our games, as well as, for how many positions we can remember, how to properly deal with. Regardless of whether you have any other outside distractions, eventually, it stands to reason, regardless of how much we try, we have a ceiling that varies per individual.

I wouldn't put a rating number on it though. I would say, many people who could have gone higher, either couldn't or wouldn't, put forth effort regardless of the reason(s).

Couples therapy usually works.  You and Caissa.  You'll probably get a discount too.

They usually charge less for the pieces in therapy.

"Underachiever" is one of those mush-mouthed words that don't really mean much of anything anyway.

Underachiever, 2 percent-er, Parham player.  They all run together.

Just don't fall in with the wrong crowd.

The fact that it's a super hard game. I don't think I underachieve that much

Nameno1had -- I think your right about the limits on our ability to calculate, but I also think that the key is not to overcome them, but to find a way around them. Unfortunately, I suspect that one of the main keys to this is immersing yourself so thoroughly and lengthily in chess so that you develop an almost innate sense of how to proceed in a given position with minimal calculation due to having previously seen similar motifs.

In effect, while I tend to agree about the limits on our calculation capacity, I'm not convinced about the suggestion that there's a similar limit on our memory, and in fact, I suspect that the latter is the key to getting around the former.

I think regardless of whether you or I am more correct about the issue of memory as it applies generally, I can speak from experience that even after seeing the same puzzle 4 times, I still might only remember seeing it and have to recalculate it.

I'll admit knowing the strategy for openings, middle and endgame themes in general, can help reduce our need to calculate, but for me, that is quite a bit to remember. I think had I put forth the effort I do now, 20 or more years ago, it wouldn't be so bad for me in particular.