about improving for beginner . • page 3/3 • General Chess Discussion • lichess.org

Well he is a little intolerant, but I mean I agree. It really is a useless point to give Capablanca's mythology as a basis for improvement. And you could argue giving Capablanca in any form of improvement would be like giving Carlsen as a normal improver.. When you know Carlsen and any like him are way above a normal improver. And claiming Capa played 100 games and poof was a good player is completely bad in falsification. We have no idea what he did when he first started playing. Morphy is another example. All of those greats out there that we have mythology built around probably didn't go around and just "look at the board for 5 minutes and then have the ability to beat master level players". The mythology is fun for sure, but not good in practical sense.

@pointlesswindows Well he is a little intolerant, but I mean I agree. It really is a useless point to give Capablanca's mythology as a basis for improvement. And you could argue giving Capablanca in any form of improvement would be like giving Carlsen as a normal improver.. When you know Carlsen and any like him are way above a normal improver. And claiming Capa played 100 games and poof was a good player is completely bad in falsification. We have no idea what he did when he first started playing. Morphy is another example. All of those greats out there that we have mythology built around probably didn't go around and just "look at the board for 5 minutes and then have the ability to beat master level players". The mythology is fun for sure, but not good in practical sense.

pointlesswindows

#22

@MeWantCookieMobile He is not "a little" intolerant. Yes exactly, Morphy, Capablanca, Carlsen were improving fast but did not falsificate it.

unknown5

#23

I know that my rating is below the OP, but I'm still writing this for anyone who's just starting:

I have never read any chess books, and I don't believe that they are helpful for the majority of us. I believe that reading chess books is only useful if you are at a very high rating level (maybe starting at 1800?) and need to start studying theory to improve.
If you are below 1600, then you are not improving because you are blundering pieces and missing tactical opportunities. If you want to improve, you need to start recognizing these mistakes. I recommend first watching John Bartholomew's Chess Fundamentals series and then Climbing the Rating Latter series. When I was at my lowest (around 900-1000), I watched these series, and within a couple of months, I was able to reach 1400. I also started analyzing my Lichess games with Stockfish (a chess engine), and although I wouldn't say has helped me as much as John Bartholomew's chess series, it has made me realize how many blunders I make and how I can prevent them from happening next time. You can also watch ChessNetwork's fundamentals series, and it will help.
I recommend watching chess games in your free time. My favorite channel is Chess With Suren. Watching these games has taught me a lot about openings, and I didn't have to read any boring books to learn many openings and their variations. Understanding the games of masters will help you improve as well, but if you have a low rating, then understanding these games won't help you as much. Also, you don't have to just watch FIDE masters' games. In fact, I found that watching games of people who were a couple hundred rating points higher than me helped me much more than watching FIDE master games. My recommendation is Chess With Suren's Lichess games on his channel to start.
Make sure to finish the "chess basics" section in Lichess. It will teach you many fundamentals.
Play LOTS of chess games. When I was in the 1400 rating level, I could not improve my rating for some reason. However, because of how enjoyable I found chess, I continued to play at least one game every other day. Note: I'm not saying that you should play chess everyday: in fact, if you are experiencing a losing streak over many days, it may be due to playing too often. Anyway, my point is that play quality games, and at least once every other day, if you can. Analyze these games afterward, looking at different variations of the game with the engine (what would happen if you played a different move on move 15?, seeing where you made mistakes, and understanding what you could have done in place of those moves. Because of playing quality games, and often, I realized how many blunders I made, which allowed me to improve by 100+ points.
After playing a bit and getting to a certain rating (at least 1400), I recommend playing in the Lichess tournaments as well. I, personally, find them very enjoyable, and I am a competitive person, so you know.. Anyway, I know many of you may be thinking: why would I participate in these tournaments if I'll never win? The answer to this is you will get to play higher-rated players, and even if they crush you, your mistakes will be made clear, which will allow you to improve. However, make sure to play the tournaments that are in your rating range because if you play in tournaments with too highly rated players, it may demotivate you after constant losses. For example, if you are 1600, then play in the <1700 tournaments. One more thing about tournaments: chances are, your tournament games will be of low quality, so don't rely on tournaments for regular chess games. They are just fun in my opinion, which is mainly why I recommend them.
Another important thing: as a beginner, make sure to play classical or rapid (WITH an increment) because you don't want to be playing badly simply because you're low on time. When I was around 900-1000 all the way to 1400, I used to play classical 15+15. Now, I play rapid 15+10, and I recommend for you to do so as well. You can see my ratings are very low in bullet (around 900), and that's because I, as well as the majority of us, don't do well under time pressure. Only play bullet and blitz once you've gotten comfortable in rapid and classical chess.

Anyway, I hope I've helped some of you in your chess journey. Feel free to message me if you want any more advice! :)

I know that my rating is below the OP, but I'm still writing this for anyone who's just starting: 1. I have never read any chess books, and I don't believe that they are helpful for the majority of us. I believe that reading chess books is only useful if you are at a very high rating level (maybe starting at 1800?) and need to start studying theory to improve. 2. If you are below 1600, then you are not improving because you are blundering pieces and missing tactical opportunities. If you want to improve, you need to start recognizing these mistakes. I recommend first watching John Bartholomew's Chess Fundamentals series and then Climbing the Rating Latter series. When I was at my lowest (around 900-1000), I watched these series, and within a couple of months, I was able to reach 1400. I also started analyzing my Lichess games with Stockfish (a chess engine), and although I wouldn't say has helped me as much as John Bartholomew's chess series, it has made me realize how many blunders I make and how I can prevent them from happening next time. You can also watch ChessNetwork's fundamentals series, and it will help. 3. I recommend watching chess games in your free time. My favorite channel is Chess With Suren. Watching these games has taught me a lot about openings, and I didn't have to read any boring books to learn many openings and their variations. Understanding the games of masters will help you improve as well, but if you have a low rating, then understanding these games won't help you as much. Also, you don't have to just watch FIDE masters' games. In fact, I found that watching games of people who were a couple hundred rating points higher than me helped me much more than watching FIDE master games. My recommendation is Chess With Suren's Lichess games on his channel to start. 4. Make sure to finish the "chess basics" section in Lichess. It will teach you many fundamentals. 5. Play LOTS of chess games. When I was in the 1400 rating level, I could not improve my rating for some reason. However, because of how enjoyable I found chess, I continued to play at least one game every other day. Note: I'm not saying that you should play chess everyday: in fact, if you are experiencing a losing streak over many days, it may be due to playing too often. Anyway, my point is that play quality games, and at least once every other day, if you can. Analyze these games afterward, looking at different variations of the game with the engine (what would happen if you played a different move on move 15?, seeing where you made mistakes, and understanding what you could have done in place of those moves. Because of playing quality games, and often, I realized how many blunders I made, which allowed me to improve by 100+ points. 6. After playing a bit and getting to a certain rating (at least 1400), I recommend playing in the Lichess tournaments as well. I, personally, find them very enjoyable, and I am a competitive person, so you know.. Anyway, I know many of you may be thinking: why would I participate in these tournaments if I'll never win? The answer to this is you will get to play higher-rated players, and even if they crush you, your mistakes will be made clear, which will allow you to improve. However, make sure to play the tournaments that are in your rating range because if you play in tournaments with too highly rated players, it may demotivate you after constant losses. For example, if you are 1600, then play in the <1700 tournaments. One more thing about tournaments: chances are, your tournament games will be of low quality, so don't rely on tournaments for regular chess games. They are just fun in my opinion, which is mainly why I recommend them. 7. Another important thing: as a beginner, make sure to play classical or rapid (WITH an increment) because you don't want to be playing badly simply because you're low on time. When I was around 900-1000 all the way to 1400, I used to play classical 15+15. Now, I play rapid 15+10, and I recommend for you to do so as well. You can see my ratings are very low in bullet (around 900), and that's because I, as well as the majority of us, don't do well under time pressure. Only play bullet and blitz once you've gotten comfortable in rapid and classical chess. Anyway, I hope I've helped some of you in your chess journey. Feel free to message me if you want any more advice! :)