Hello,

My battle horse has always been tactics. I have never got to be a great tactic guy. I tried doing tactical exercises for long though perhaps without due diligence and perseverance. I would like to hear the testimonies of people here that _really_! improved tactically to reach beyond to raise its level above 2000 elo points, an increase of more than 100 points (not being young but > 30). Is it really possible to improve tactically consistenly? What is the method you have used? And what have been the books that have encouraged you and helped you to get that increase in tactical ability? (or on the contrarie is it very difficult to improve?)

thanks

One puzzle a day keeps the blunder away

Play long time controls and make a mental list of tactics to identify. Look at every potential pin, x-ray, double-attack, etc. that exists on the board, even if it is impossible to set-up. Just knowing what potential exists in a position will affect your strategy and keep you aware when options open up. 

If you are missing tactics then it's a failure of mental discipline. Tactical practice makes finding tactics easier and faster, but brute force calculation can find them too. 

If the problem is that tactics seldom exist or the ones that do are obscure and only a computer would find them, then you need to address your middle-game or opening play to better understand where tactics come from.