Attack or be careful ?

Hi.

Due to my “chess nature”, if you can define it that way, I like to take the initiative ( as everyone likes it, I guess ) but not to attack head on unless there is a specific reason. In fact, I go on the attack in only two situations : when I see a clear opportunity presenting itself, or when I go into a material disadvantage. In this second case, I often try to attack hard even realizing that I'm making risky moves, because I'm often rewarded by the opponent who fails to defend himself.

So I'd like to ask you this : can be a useful habit, a good exercise, to push forward like this, trusting the opponent's mistakes that often come when he's under heavy attack ? Or even when you are at a disadvantage is it always good to choose the best move, the safer one ( or rather, the one you believe to be the best ) ? Just to know if there is a correct “mental habit” to be acquired regarding that.

Thank you.

In my opinion I would just attack.

It can help to clean the board

Sure I know Him, Tal' is a legendary figure... But from the idea I made about him, I think that even for a master it is very difficult to be inspired by such a myth of chess.

While I personally encourage an attacking mindset, the more accurate answer is probably that there is no preferred playing style. Chess is a very concrete game. A move is either a good move or not, regardless of your preferred playing style.

You say you will only attack in two situations

• When you see a clear opportunity.
• When you are behind in material

Both of them are correct. Attacking when you see a clear opportunity is obviously always good and playing more aggressive lines when you are behind is also good. The phrase I like best to describe how to play when you are behind is: “create chaos”. If you are behind and you just go through the motions normally, then after enough pieces are traded, you will eventually lose. The best way to avoid that is to create chaos and present as many threats to your opponent as you can.

Can it be a useful habit to push forward like this, trusting the opponent’s mistake that will come when he’s under heavy attack? 

No. It’s probably not a good habit to push forward, trusting your opponent will make a mistake. That’s an unreliable approach, that becomes less effective as you reach higher ratings. A good habit is to play moves that are good, even when your opponent plays well. That being said, you should try to avoid playing too passively. If you are not pressuring your opponent to make mistakes, they aren’t likely to make many.

Can it be a good exercise to push forward like this, trusting the opponent’s mistake that will come when he’s under heavy attack? 

Yes. Very much so. The evaluation of a position is based on multiple factors. Material is an important one, but it’s also dependent on king safety, piece activity and space/pawn structure. It can be a great learning opportunity, and also quite fun, to experiment with sacrificing material in exchange for positional advantage.

@Duckfest

"Create chaos" seems to me a very apt expression. Helpful suggestions, thank you.

Some openings are highly aggressive, they however, are quite risky. Like the scotch opening or the ruy lopez but others are about the positions of the pieces like the london system or the italian game. So it depends on what you would like.

I would say develop solidly and when you see an opportunity, take advantage and hit hard on the counter, like Floyd Mayweather. Don't know if he plays chess but this approach sure paid off in the ring.

This might sound general, but try both and see where each ends up. You'll eventually find the right balance - 1/2 of my risky moves are blunders and 1/2 of my risky moves are ! or !! moves.