I think learning this game at our age can be a bit harder, kind of like learning a language, much easier when your young. Good read though, basically have the same journey, just no kids yet.
An Adult Beginner's First Six Months in Chess
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I think it is possible to reach 1500 in a year. It has been done by other adult beginners. I remember "Gold Dust Tori" who I believe is a twitch streamer did it. She was on the Perpetual Chess Podcast.
May 16, 2021
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#24
To the OP, I enjoyed your article. I do think you’re a bit too negative about the value of endgame study. Knowing a few basic things, like ladder mates with two rooks, how to execute a king/queen and king/rook checkmate without stalemating, the principle of opposition and the rule of the square in endgames featuring races to queen pawns, all are very handy to know and will win games at the 900-and-up level. I do agree that you probably overdid it and could have spent that time on better things, but the basics are still helpful!
May 16, 2021
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#25
Oh, I also spent a little time going through “100 endgames you must know” before coming to the conclusion that each individual one is not that useful. However, what I did carry away from that book were some ideas that have been helpful in greatly increasing my opponent’s risk of stalemate when I am losing. :)
I enjoyed reading your experience. When I was a beginner I played a lot of long games. No clock no time limit. Then I moved to 45 min each side games. Almost every day. Then 25 min each side. Yes the do not study openings myth, as a beginner I studied and memorized opening key moves main lines and sidelines; and that really helped me keep improving. And of course basic endgames. I did not do tactics. But today am not a fan of woodpecker method. Why? It tends to give me bad habit of simply guessing or remembering the solution. I'd rather solve a tactic position up to 15 minutes as long as I am calculating. Not guessing!
May 16, 2021
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#27
That’s absolutely amazing man glad to see your improving at such a rate I started playing chess this February and dropped down to 600 but was able to get out after 2 weeks of struggle in which I then hit 1100 in April and I’m currently 1200 now ik one thing that helped me a lot was puzzles I started grinding them everyday and I just managed to reach 2000 puzzle rating today🥳 I’m still a kid so I can put more time into chess then you can but it’s still amazing that with the little time you have to dedicate to chess your still improving at a decent rate. I hope you get to the rating you want to be good luck:)
May 16, 2021
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#28
GrandioseStrategy wrote:
But today am not a fan of woodpecker method. Why? It tends to give me bad habit of simply guessing or remembering the solution.
But, that's kind of the point! In a game, you can't calculate every possible move. But, as you learn to recognize familiar patterns, in a real game, you'll stop and say "Wait, this arrangement of pieces looks a lot like something I've seen before" and you'll start with an idea that calculating a particular line may be valuable. Maybe what you see on the board will turn out to be similar but different enough that it doesn't help. Or, maybe even if the same solution won't work, you can figure out something that relies on the same principles.
Calculation is a necessary skill to catch potential mistakes before they happen, but you need pattern recognition plus calculation to become really powerful tactically.
@Paleobotanical Yes, simple tactics for pattern recognition. Hard tactics for calculation power. I change sets like every 3 months. For pattern recognition and for calculation. Positional and strategy is harder to train. Got to go through a lot of gm games.
May 16, 2021
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#30
GrandioseStrategy wrote:
@Paleobotanical Yes, simple tactics for pattern recognition. Hard tactics for calculation power. I change sets like every 3 months. For pattern recognition and for calculation. Positional and strategy is harder to train. Got to go through a lot of gm games.
The argument of the Woodpecker Method folks is that you don't have to be so tricky about it. But, whatever works for you!
@Paleobotanical Yep, As I said I am not a fan of woodpecker method.
May 16, 2021
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#32
Nice article. You work harder on your chess than I do. 
I do think you're a bit too negative about studying endgames. Endgame knowledge may not seem so critical at beginner levels, when both players are blundering pieces left and right. But if you keep improving, it won't be long before that endgame knowledge starts mattering. When you know your basic endings, you learn to recognize when you have the opportunity to simplify a middlegame into a winning ending. That's an awfully handy skill to have.
Overall, I like your mentality. Best of luck with your future studies! 
@Bramblyspam @Paleobotanical I did actually add a comment on the post itself clarifying my thoughts on the endgame. Firstly there is a typo in the article. I write "It can't help to know this stuff for the future" I meant to write it "It can't hurt to know this stuff for the future" I am going to edit this now.
I totally agree with both that I was too strong on this point though. It has actually helped me to know the basic mating patterns and things like king opposition, and some basics of king and pawn endgames. In fact last night in my game (that I am just about to [and dreading] analysing) I played terribly and after a series of horrific moves by both me and my opponent I completely misplayed a rook endgame as I had no idea what I was doing (and was in some bad time trouble). This loss has actually motivated me to dedicate a bit of time to endgame study. Ironic just a few days after posting the article.
Thank you both for reading the article and for your feedback. It is much appreciated.
Great article! And very close to my own story. I will try to implement some of your suggestions into my game and study.
Thanks !
I just started playing at the age of 42. I'm improving slowly but improving. I only have about an hour a day to spend on Chest or perhaps I could improve faster. I have no fantasies.of becoming titled. Starting at 42 makes it nearly impossible. My first goal is to reach 1000. I started playing here without any sort of training so my rating dropped into the 500's quickly with having no idea what I was doing. I'm winning more now and I can beat players in the 700-800 range so I'm making progress toward my goals. Now that summer is here I will have more time for Chess so I'm hoping to see larger improvement in the next few months.
Nice article, thanks for sharing!
May 18, 2021
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#37
Great article -- thanks for writing it. You do certainly work hard -- very impressive.
One thing you mention that I never heard of before is making flashcards from one's own games. That's terrific, because it's a pattern we're more likely to remember than a position from a puzzle or somebody else's game.
As for the endgames, you've already revised your remarks, but I wanted to add that you said you covered Silman's book all the way up to Class B -- which might be part of your initial negativity towards it. Take each "class" level as you get to it (or maybe one further).
Best of luck in the future!
May 19, 2021
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#38
Very interesting article, worth rereading. I really appreciate your wisdom on dealing with losses, not focusing on the points as much as the study and good habits.
Why are you questioning my improvement? Is it that unusual? I started as a true beginner and acomplished 1500 in less than six months. Without any previous knowledge (except how pieces move which I learned when I was 6) or studying before. My account was at 800 at the beginning and I dropped below to 750, 700. Just the other day I reviewed my first games and I was shocked with my play. Blundering pieces every single move. Its true I had a lot of free time, but I never took chess too serious to study it for real. I never read any book or something. The only thing I did was puzzles here, the limited amount I can do with regular account without any membership and the same thing with lessons. I have also been watching Gothamchess and GMHikaru and learning a thing from them here and there. And thats it. One of my goals was to reach 2000 in the next five years, but I dropped that because I didnt want to bother myself with numbers like that. I was bored one day and didnt have anything to do so I decided to watch Queens gambit. I finished it for one night and I was amazed with such a beatiful show. Few days later a video where Hikaru teaches xQc how to play chess was recommended on my yt account. So i watched it and thats when and how I started playing chess. About five years ago I got a little chess board for traveling as a gift and it hasnt been used till December 2020 when I started using it to play with my friends and family. Im sorry if thats hard to believe but its the truth.
Congrats, 1500 after only 6 months is very impressive. You must be a very fast learner. I am just coming up to six months playing chess and am at 1100. Will probably take me at least another 6 months and more likely closer to another 12 months before I can reach 1500 level.