I don't have that kind of time anymore and I think 3/0 games can be of a fairly high standard. I accept that you will always miss out on some truly great moves but I'm happy enough just getting to around 2500 in 3/0 and would like to know how people who have got there actually managed to do so.
Improvement from 2250 to 2500?
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The handful of strong masters I've talked to seemed to think a lot of the difference between higher rankings is positional understanding. Tactics and good prep can take you to expert or NM depending on the person but, IMHO, to continue advancement you have to really understand the game; judgment, analysis, planning, evaluation, etc. Of course, this is only what I've made of stronger players' comments.
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I didn't play much chess until I discovered online chess when I was around 18. I improved fairly quickly. Mostly learned by practicing against Chessmaster/Fritz, watching videos and then practice against similar rated players (online only). That strategy helped me move from 1500 to around 2100 fairly quickly (over 2.5 years or so). However, since then I've only improved about a 100-150 points in Blitz. Haven't played over the board much but I do play online if/when I can. I'm in my 30s now and don't have that much time to play anymore apart from the odd chess binge.
This question is for people rated 2500 and above -
What did you do to get from 2200 to 2500? I know we all plateau at some point but I'd like to think I can do better.
Note - when I mention ratings I mean chess.com blitz ratings.