Taking that step towards master.

So OTB I'm in this rating spot where in open tourneys I play like #1 first round, then a lower rated (if i lose), then #1 of the 1 and 1's (should I win), and so on. Are there any tips of getting out of this hole? I know beyond it life is easier, and that land is not too far away. I'm already feeling its perks coming to me, but there's work left. Any tips of getting out of this 1800-2000 hole?

play good chess

Its the way the swiss system works . Raise your rating above 2100 and you will be paired " down " in the first round , in most tournies .  Which state do you play most in ?  ( OTB )  

You have to beat that #1 guy/gal at some time - so why not round 1. :)

My free lessons course explains this, it's linked as my website in the "about me" section of my profile. Essentially, you work on your game and recognize and correct your errors so your rating goes up, thus you learn from playing higher rated players. Many ways to do this, all explained. Aside from the quirks of Swiss system pairings, class events are a good way to play players close to you in rating.

When I was in the low 1800s I had several tournaments in a row like that.  It's where I first played DeFirmian, Biyiasas and Grefe.

There were a lot of class tourneys back then too though so it didn't always happen.

Thanks so much aww-rats. I really appreciate your videos and they are giving me many tips on how to analyze my games. I already look over them and I feel like I'm a lot better at time than my rating suggests. The problem is I always play either the best or the worst players, which kind of makes it difficult to get your rating to go up. I find I win a lot against 2000's and that's where I get my points. Thanks for those videos.