Stuck at 1500

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Hiten_17

Hey I've been stuck at the rating of 1450-1500 for three months and was wonder how I can improve. I haven't read any chess books or practice tactics, the only thing I do is review my games. Should I play a different time because I currently only play 10 min. blitz or should I just work on my tactics. My goal is to be a 1700 player by the end of year. I can spare three hours a day.

RookSacrifice_OLD

Start to play over the board (tournament) chess. The experience is worth it in itself.

TheMrL
Reply #2 has it right, I think. Might consider some lessons as well. I'd recommend Silman's 'Amateurs Mind' which is an accessible book if there ever was one.
GalaxKing

I've been stuck at 1500 for 15 years! However, that being said, three months is not much time in terms of chess advancement. But the other thing to keep in mind is, everyone has their own specific natural talent limit at various endeavors. Hard work can only get you to the limit of your talent, it can't get you beyond that. Now, I do have guitar playing talent, so I have something to compare it to. My natural talent level at guitar is much higher than my talent limit at chess, which is close to non existent. So, play all you want, read books, solve tactics, and review your games, but don't knock yourself out trying to advance. Kramnik defined talent as the ability to progress rapidly. I think this is a very important thing to keep in mind. As cool as chess is, some people have it, most don't.

Skinnyhorse

 I used to play the TWO KNIGHTS DEFENSE and I was not good at it, winning only 35% or so using it.

Then I read a book about the TWO KNIGHTS DEFENSE; one of the key concepts was to bring the Queen's Knight back from a5 to c6, before proceeding with active play.  After learning that concept, my win rate with the TWO KNIGHTS jumped to about 60%.  My talent was still the same, but my understanding had improved.

     Sometimes, it is not lack of talent that is holding you back, but not understanding the most important concepts of the openings that you play.  

MayCaesar

Getting to, say, 1800+ without having read any books seems possible to me only if you have a very special talent for chess. Buy some decent book on middlegame strategy, on endgame and on openings, study them thoroughly, and you won't recognize your own play.

 

Just playing endlessly without studying won't get you too far, as you will be stuck in the same thinking patterns without much improvement.