Why, oh why can't I improve?

Okay, I've been playing since I was young, but have never progressed beyond a beginner - even though I'm now 44.

The problem is as much as I do love the game, I don't seem to have the patience to learn more tactics, better strategy play and so on.

Also, other things happen in my life and I stop playing chess for months, the last time I logged on to here was 14 months ago - not long after I'd paid for Diamond membership for a year!

Then all of a sudden something resparks my interest in the game and I want to get back into it. This latest time it was this picture in Fortune Magazine of Peter Thiel (one of the founders of Paypal) sitting behind a chessboard.

But am I destined to never improve beyond being a woodpusher?

You have been a member here for 6 years and have played a total of 14 games.

I'd say that lack of practice might well be your main problem.

Exactly what I mentioned about in my third paragraph. Other things happen in my life (as well as running my own business, I am joint secretary of Chamber of Commerce, a Town Councillor, a Rotarian and on our Twinning Association) and I forget chess.

Your ego is getting in your way. You somehow think that you should be far better than you are but you lack motivation, prioritization, discipline, etc. You expect something for nothing and to be pitied.

Your screen name is apt.

Nice chess set in that photo!

chess is hard. if you dont have patience i recomend playing something else

You will only improve by playing chess.... it is actually quite rare to improve by posting on the forums.

Thanks all, that's kind of giving me the boot up the backside I need! 

"it is actually quite rare to improve by posting on the forums."

So, that's where I've been going wrong!

"Your screen name is apt."

You're probably right! :)

"Nice chess set in that photo!"

Peter Thiel (chap in the photo) has that set in his office. He was a chess champion as a child and still plays blitz chess online. 

Whoa! I resemble that remark...

If you have the time read these 2 articles about improvement

http://www.chess.com/forum/view/general/improvement-in-chess-according-to-elo

http://www.wikihow.com/Become-a-Better-Chess-Player.

According to the 1st article at your level you need to study openings and tactics. There are tons of videos on youtube. You just type the theme you are looking for and you can find many videos to watch. But watching is not enough, you will also need to practise and apply all this stuff in your own games.

It seems to me that you don't have the time to play long time games, e.g. 2 hours for the whole game + 30 seconds increment per move. Slow time controls is the key to improvement. You don't improve by blitz and rapid time controls at your level. On the other hand you are a busy man as you said. However, if you want to improve in chess you have to invest time on it. Can you give up any of the things you are involved? If not, then you can make an improvement at a slower pace. This means that you have to take your study tools at home or at the office.

Let me give you the links to download lessons for free.

You can go here, click on the right side of the page, submit your email address and you'll receive their free lessons. Every time a new lesson is released you receive a new email. I have them all in my hard disk. As I said before, at your level you need to study openings and tactics. If you ever think of spending some money, not much, there are courses for openings , beginners , calculation and others.

Another free download is here. They also offer this download for free. This is their homepage. There is a search box on the right side of the page where you can write what you are looking for, e.g. "beginner", "openings", "calculate", "endgame". They have a (non-free) lesson for calculation.

If you are more traditional and prefer books you can find huge discounts here and here.

Try solving tactics on this site http://chesstempo.com/ like many chess fans do.

A friend of mine is a diamond member here and solves exercises every day. He is very satisfied with it. The diamond membership on this site is undoubtedly great, but maybe it is not for someone who is so busy like you. That is why I told you that you will need to have your own tools for imrovement and study at your own pace.

Sounds like you have a nice life Royal_Fool.  What do you want to muck around with chess for?  It's a magnificent waste of time and it sounds like you don't have much time to waste.  Nothing wrong with being a casual player.

Wow! Some great (and homourous) responses. Thanks all.

Eh, I'm 47, devote a lot of time and still suck. I am also married, have three demanding kids (three teenagers, all girls!) and therefore a lot interferes with my concentration. For every step I take forward, I seem to very soon fall back again. I'm like Sisyphus, I swear! Cie la vie! I'm stubborn though and keep trying! :). Best of luck!

Life is busy.  Look at the order of which you list things:

1.  running business

2.  Chamb of Comm

3. Town Counsel

4.  Rotarian

5. Twin Assoc

6.  Chess ----last even with additional wording.  

No mention of family, either.  

Do you enjoy chess?  The ratings are interesting and inspiring because you are not competing against a faceless multitude, but your own self.  Progress, itself, can be an end and quite satisfactory, rather than a single won game.  

You're young.  You can set a goal that by your 50th birthday, you are going to be an accomplished player.  If you hit, say 1400 or 1500, it is likely that wherever you go, summer barbecues, etc, you'll beat most anyone.  It is only in chess clubs where you will find stronger players. 

You'll have not only the satisfaction of personal growth, but you are strengthening your brain for the final third of your life, and warring against sluggish thinking and, if doctors are correct, against forms of dementia!

I'm with you, pal. I still have the same problem, and I'm over 70. I'm the kind of player that no one wants to play with. I'm the kind of player whose opponents often say, "why did you do that?" I know what you're supposed to do and what you're supposed to avoid--I've read the books--but my play is still the object of grins and smirks. What to do? Well, maybe Chess Mentor will help. I'm thinking of signing up. 

Improvement is based on systematic work. You find your weaknesses and then you study having a target in mind. Even if your time is enough only for solving an exercise per day, it is 365 exercises per year, more than doing nothing.

I won't say any more about how bad I am, but I would be interested in hearing opinions about Chess Mentor. It seems to have everything I would need to get the most out of practice, but then, what is the opinion of a consistant and perpetual chess loser worth?

That mention of Sisyphus about sums it up (the struggle to improve at chess):

Here you go. 25 free courses (yes, that's right: free, and courses, not just lessons!).  Of course chess.com is hoping you'll get hooked on them and go diamond, but in the meantime you have free well written courses to try,

EDIT: How about that?  Chess.com giveth and it taketh away.  It's down to 15 free courses now.  Do them quickly before they disappear!

http://www.chess.com/blog/webmaster/free-chess-mentor-courses

I need to improve myself too... :(