Progress of a novice 1

Well as I noted earlier I will keep a public tally of my studies.

I have decided to study tactics heavily. I used to worry about openings but my games would usually be unraveled by a tactical move by my opponent half way through a game and I would be on the defensive until the bitter end.

I have bought books with puzzles, a membership to chess.com, and a book of Tal's games (I just like his style). I do puzzles at home or online everyday and the results are already showing. I am winning more and losing "better."

I need to stop worrying about how the grandmasters play and worry about how they studied to get there. At one point or another they must have studied tactics intensely...so will I!

On top of all of the above I plan to play ALOT more chess. I currently play online, at home, and on my cell phone (against human opponents randomly chosen for me via an app on my iPhone).