Improving my chess

Okay. I know I am opening up a can of worms here, but I'm willing to do so if I can even get ONE response that helps me, so here goes nothin'...

I am at a stand-still when it comes to developing my chess abilities. I have books upon books upon books - most of which have at least some merit - and I am feeling paralyzed by my options.

Since taking up chess relatively seriously back in 1996, I have become somewhat of a chess book collector. My problem is that I do not actually collect chess books because of their value or their historic significance - I find myself collecting more and more books because I figure that this next book I buy is going to be 'the book' that unlocks the secrets I need to know to play better chess. Consequently, I have well over 60 chess books on my shelf and I have actually finished reading about 3 or 4 of them. As you might imagine, my chess skill has not really improved in a recognizable way since 1996.

It seems funny, and I thank my wife every day for letting me indulge in my 'habit' as we call it, but the reality of the situation is that I badly want to improve my play and just cannot find a way to do so.

I literally study on a daily basis and have been through books by Silman, Seirawan, Nunn, Alburt, Yusupov, Reinfeld, Chernev, Heisman, and Capablanca just to name a few (in a moment of desperation I even turned to Michael de la Maza's disappointing Rapid Chess Improvement) and yet all my studies never translate to any real success over the board, where it counts.

I love chess more than any other activity or hobby and though I enjoy playing no matter whether I win, lose, or draw, I would at least like to feel as though I am improving. If I lost 100 games in a row but knew that I had grown as a player from the experience, I would gladly lose those 100 games.

So... I am here to solicit methods of improvement from those players who have gone through a similar experience, or have become strong players (USCF Expert and above) no matter how they did it. If you have had a similar experience to mine and have fought through it to become a strong player, please point me in that same direction! If you are a strong player who cannot relate to my experience, perhaps you can still give some advice on how to improve.

Sorry to be so long-winded, but I wanted everyone reading this post to know the 'whole story' so to speak. Thanks for your patience! Let the games begin...

I can identify with your plight. But am not qualified to be of any major assistance other than suggest you put in really hard yards to identify your major weaknesses and eliminate them. (if you have not already given it serious effort).

I would say you should probably play slower games than the live chess games (this is what I do, and only play live chess to kill some time). From looking at your live chess game, I say study tactics and also some strategy (this is part I'm trying to learn more about). From the game, I could see some missed tactical opportunities such as in-between moves/gaining time. For tactics, I usually do the 3 a day here in the tactics trainer/daily puzzle/puzzles in the more puzzles forum, chesstempo.com, shredderchess.com, and gameknot.com

Before I say anything, Dan Heisman has some useful articles.  This one is "10 biggest roadblocks to improvement" targeted at adult players rated 1000-1600 and really has great advice.

I think I can relate, in the past I've set up impossible training schedules involving 3-4 different books, tactical drills, master games, endgames, you name it.  Not only could I not follow it, I also didn't learn much from the time I spent.  I found out later it was better to pick one single book, and not look at anything else until I had finished it cover to cover.  With this I actually learned and so my game was able to improve. 

Reb may be on to something when he says you may need more practice and less study.  Chess strength comes in two parts, theory and practice, and you have to do both to improve.  So if all you ever do is read chess books, you actually wont get a lot better.  This is most true for class players, in fact for a beginner playing (and losing) many games is the best thing they can do to improve.

This is a great attitude to have, you're willing to learn.  But your losses should also motivate you a bit...  The best players are neurotic about their mistakes, and after a loss immediately go over how they can correct so they don't happen again.  You don't have to be neurotic about it, but take each move seriously and try to find the best one you can.  No matter what your opponent replies, if he ignores your move or challenges it, your stamp of approval is on the move you made as "the best move."  That way when mistakes do happen, and you lose (we all do) you can hold your head high, these weren't mistakes because you were lazy or distracted, each will represent a personal misunderstanding, and each will contain a lesson to help you improve.  Go over these games and be willing to learn from them.  Every loss or poorly played game (even if you end up winning) you never look at again, is another free lesson you're throwing away.

Thanks very much for the input! I appreciate you taking the time to help me out.

It did just dawn on me recently that I do not play enough chess and that my theory-to-practice ratio is nowhere close to an effective mix. I think this is because playing frustrates me in one way or another. Chess here in cyberspace is filled with people who can't sit still for more than 10 minutes at a time and I cannot find people to play slower games with, while a good chess game in the real world can be very hard to find at all! When I do find the occasional game, it is usually a huge mismatch one way or the other, which isn't a lot of fun for anybody. I'm happy to report that this past Sunday I did find a local club that looks like it will be a good fit for me and I'm looking forward to playing with them a lot more.

tonydal, I can see how my post might confuse some people. To clarify, I don't consider a chess book 'finished' until I have read and studied (with a set and board) every last page in it. Many of my books, however, I have either read cover-to-cover without a set and board or have read and studied large chunks of, so that I have completed 3/4 of the book's material for instance, but I have only truly finished (as I count from my bookshelf right now) seven books.

orangehonda, that bit about 'impossible training schedules' makes it sound like you have been following me around for the past few years! Lol. That is EXACTLY what I have done a number of times, only to experience exactly what you have: confusion and ultimately disappointment. I am a college grad, and I have tried to set up a chess 'class schedule' for myself, complete with 'final exams' and such. Hey, it got me my degree, right? Surely there is some merit to a system like that... It seems funny now that I have written it here, but I've actually tried that approach a number of times and have never completed a single 'term'. Good to know that completing an entire book before moving on to the next is more helpful for you - I imagine it will be for me too.

Thanks again, everyone, for your advice. And if you're reading these posts for the first time, please don't hesitate to add to the discussion! I'm sure there are other opinions out there.

Congratulations having a local club to go to is great (and can help improve your play).  For those that don't have one local, online is a great resource to find games whenever you want... but I prefer playing over the board for sure :)