I am a noob at chess

Thanks @Santoy, and thank everyone I been sticking to 2 15|10 rapid games a day, winning 1 because my opponent gave me mate in 1 (I had a losing position before), so yeah the comeback has been very bad and I feel like I am starting from scratch, about to go play 2 games wish me luck.

In over-the-board competition back in the 1970s, I didn't really start improving until I decided to just stop caring about my rating.

I can see why I see a lot of people playing tons of games everyday as like there rating doesn't matter, I say this because you would think they would have at least some type of tilt after multiple games a day, but no, those people's rating skyrocket.

This is a lovely and relevant discussion.

Personally I'd appreciate stop caring about rating, but sometimes funny things do happen.

Yesterday I was playing Rapid and was just doing terribly (playing too hastily) so I have decided to go with some Blitz instead. I've played in a few games until my rating got to exactly 1500, from there I fell in love with how round the number was and stopped playing. It's super silly but I just didn't want to ruin the number!

I have a tendency to reach new heights then stop playing for a bit in fear of losing my elo.

I see what you mean, just played a game lost, but missed a mate in one at the end (in a losing position) - time trouble. Yeah I am starting to play more upset I just got another lost but everything is fine I used to be all shaky when playing now I ain't so much. No blunders in the game though however lots of mistakes and inaccuracies.

The "inaccuracies" of the game analysis don't take into consideration the context of the game at times. I've had "mistakes" and "inaccuracies" pointed out by the analysis engine and then a couple of moves later put my opponent in checkmate. Use the game review to see where you messed up as far as blunders and missed opportunities (forks and pins). What mostly causes me to lose games is a combination of the following:

1. Not reviewing my next move enough - (Look before you leap)

2. Not thinking tactics through.

3. Not always pushing my opponent's pieces back when they advance to my side of the board.

4. Not looking at my pieces from my opponent's point of view. What are my weak points?

5. Weak pawn structure and defense of the pawns in general THROUGHOUT the game.

I see, thanks for this information.

It's important to strike a balance between striving for improvement and enjoying the game itself.

My recipe for improving rating, if you care about it, is to set your pairing configs for -25/+400.

That way you're always going against somebody that's better than you, you're learning with them, if you lose but the stakes are in your favour.

If you lose, you'll lose 3 to 8 points. If you win, you'll win 8 to 13 points.

The downside is lots of times, when players see they've been matched with a low rated player, they'll abort the game, because they deem it not worth the risk.

My highest rating have been 1804 on Bullet and 1685 in Rapid in rating, but I've beat people as high as 2013 ELO by using this configuration. It's very rewarding, I think I got 15 points for that win. And if I had lost, I'd lose 2 points.

That's as good as it gets.  
Good luck!

If i truly cared about my rating, i'd have quit long ago. Sure, i'd like to play better, but enjoying the game is most important to me. To each his/her own.

I do that, with the lowest person I could verse is only 25 below my rating.

it can be hard at times (especially since ive lost a lot of elo recently) but it is best practice to not worry about my rating. it really is just a distraction to the learning process. just trust your studies and know that you are improving depsite what any elo system is saying.

I see, thank you for these words.

ELO is an objective measure of your playing strength in comparison to the surrounding pool in some particular time control. The numbers are essentially meaningless and could be translated to any scale. If you are serious about chess and wish to surpass yourself, your ELO gives you a good indication of your growth. Likewise, if you simply wish to enjoy the game, your score ought to be secondary to that goal.

On the other hand, obsessing about maximizing your score or preserving it as it is will stress you out and induce negative emotional associations with the game itself. It really isn't worth thinking about unless it's in reference to your evolution as a player.

Most people here are using a made-up name. Nobody outside of this website knows or cares who you are or what your "rating" is. Not the cashier at the supermarket. Not your doctor. Nobody in your neighborhood. If this website vanishes tomorrow, it will be as if your user name and "rating" never existed. I don't understand why anyone would agonize so much about a number attached to their fake name.

this is the most factual thing I have heard on this forum, and I have thought the same thing, but for like the longest time I just had trouble about my rating, in the last week I have lost 55 rating points, I don't care I know I will get better. Just improvement takes time.

Trust me, just play games until you find what your playing strenght is and then go from there, soon enough you will actually be 1200 strenght and then you will just continue to improve.

there is no magic to chess, it is just memorization, sure you could learn an opening or two and the positions rising from there, but having done that, are you really playing chess or are you just playing some ideas pioneered by other people ? that is just the reality of it, play million games, memorize ideas and patterns and positions that are winning and try to get there, that is kind of boring if you ask me, but that is chess, that are computers that have completely ruined the game, the novelties are not there, it is just a memory game