Training

Please tell me how do you study chess, what concrete things help you the most to improve. I am asking because I have a feeling that I play a lot but I am not improving. Please give me some tips.

I have been engaged with Mentors Training Lessons in the adaptive mode for under a month. I has been improved my play these last 17 days in which I've ascended rapidly. Now that I that am in my third week with Chess Mentor my lessons have become difficult for me. I hope to continue my improvement; however it has really slowed down for me over the last 4 days.

Many players believe that playing those just one level above your own brings improvement. This Chess Mentor website has many resources to draw upon that allow for improvement. I have only explored some of them in the short time that I have been enrolled with Chess Mentor.

In the video section David Pruess invites players to email in their recent games. Send him your play slip of your game/s and David will show you ways to improve.

OK, thank you for your advice.

Why do we have to improve? Can't we just enjoy playing? Personally, I am fed up with trying to improve ... From now on, I will just play and enjoy as much as I can ... I am not a chess professional. I am an amauteur (from the latin root of "a-mors", meaning without death, i.e., the same word that in English is translated as "love") and I want to stay like that for the rest of my life. Loving the game, playing and thinking about the game (strategy and tactics) my playing strength will improve naturally ...

I can also solve chess puzzles ... but it is more for having an excuse to set up the board, touching my wooden pieces with my fingers, odoring the wood, enjoy the experience as much as physically as intellectually ...

when I was a kid I used to play with lead little soldiers. Now, I play with wooden "soldiers" ... :-)

hope this helps,

Alessandro

I do get fed up and burnt out. Striving too hard to improve seems to have harmed my game at least in the short term. I have stressed myself and now I need to relax. I got a download called "chess eye" that helps build visualization. It might mellow me out. It is time for me to slow down with the Mentor Training Lessons. Maybe I should watch more of the videos. Thank you for being perceptive. The wood can work wonders when it is properly appreciated.

Playing playing and playing. That's the only way how you can see certain positions, checkmate patterns and avoid mistakes. Also think deeply about middle game and endgame moves.