I've been playing chess on and off for most of my life and in that time I've seen a lot of advice on how to improve from other players, books and YouTube. These have all been great resources without which I would be a much weaker player now, but 99% of the time they focus on the theoretical and tactical aspects of chess without going into the psychology. Don't get me wrong, the study of chess is vital for becoming a better player, but the biggest jumps in rating that I've experienced have almost always come from changes in mindset and perspectives on how to play practically. I thought that I would pen down some of my thoughts in the hopes that some of you guys might find them useful in your own chess journeys.
I'll get it out of the way first that I'm a lazy player. I love everything about chess but something about sitting down and doing countless tactics or studying opening theory just doesn't appeal to me. As a beginner you definitely should be putting in the hours to help your game, but every player that I know has at one point or another hit a plateau in their improvement. At a certain point, grinding tactics or doing endgame studies has diminished returns and starts to feel more like work than fun. I'd be interested to know what your guys' experiences have been like, but for me my rating progression tends to look something like this: I see slow and moderate improvement for a while before plateauing and then something just 'clicks' inside my head and my rating shoots up a hundred points. This got me wondering exactly caused these huge improvements, and my conclusion is that it all comes down to mindset. Let me explain.
When I was a weaker player, I would often go into complications without fully calculating the necessary lines. I would spend so much time trying to calculate a certain move until I finally gave up and played it anyway either because I'd spent so much time considering it or because it just looked cool. Playing against weaker players this often worked, but stronger players would often call my bluff and I'd end up in a losing position just a couple of moves later. This is where mindset comes in. I thought that stronger players were strong because they were able to calculate deep variations in every position. In going for complications without fully understanding them, I was trying to emulate this style of play. However, the epiphany that helped me improve the most was that chess can be a lot less complicated than people think it is.
What I mean by this is that the thought processes of strong players can be incredibly simple and easy to follow. The best move in a position does not always need to be fancy or brilliant. Sometimes the position calls for a simple solid move. The way to improve the most in chess is not to be able to calculate 20 lines deep but to know when the position calls for calculation and when it does not. When I play against weaker players I often see them calculating in 'only move' positions, where there is only one obvious move. From my own experience as well as talking to these players, I've concluded that the reason people do this is because they see 'phantoms'. They think the position is beyond their understanding and compensate by spending more time trying to calculate.
My advice to solve this problem is twofold. First, you have to look at a position and judge its characteristics based on your best understanding of chess (doubled pawns for him are good for me, my rook is aimed at his king so I might have attacking chances, his pawns are on the colour of his only bishop, etc.). Second, you have to assume that the characteristics you identified are the only ones that exist in the position. What you'll find by thinking and playing in this way is that you'll play a lot more confidently and be less likely to get intimidated or psyched out by your opponent. The second thing that you'll find is that if you lose, you'll be better able to identify exactly why you lost. This is because the only way you could lose by thinking this way is if you either failed to identify a key characteristic of the position, or you misjudged the importance of these characteristics. In the end, it's really a case of either winning or learning.
I have a lot more thoughts regarding mindset in chess and the decision making process but this post is long enough as it is. I enjoy reading and giving qualitative advice about chess so if anyone's interested I'd be happy to share more of my thoughts in a future post. I'm really interested in hearing what you guys think about my assessment and advice.
Stay happy, stay safe and stay healthy!
I'll get it out of the way first that I'm a lazy player. I love everything about chess but something about sitting down and doing countless tactics or studying opening theory just doesn't appeal to me. As a beginner you definitely should be putting in the hours to help your game, but every player that I know has at one point or another hit a plateau in their improvement. At a certain point, grinding tactics or doing endgame studies has diminished returns and starts to feel more like work than fun. I'd be interested to know what your guys' experiences have been like, but for me my rating progression tends to look something like this: I see slow and moderate improvement for a while before plateauing and then something just 'clicks' inside my head and my rating shoots up a hundred points. This got me wondering exactly caused these huge improvements, and my conclusion is that it all comes down to mindset. Let me explain.
When I was a weaker player, I would often go into complications without fully calculating the necessary lines. I would spend so much time trying to calculate a certain move until I finally gave up and played it anyway either because I'd spent so much time considering it or because it just looked cool. Playing against weaker players this often worked, but stronger players would often call my bluff and I'd end up in a losing position just a couple of moves later. This is where mindset comes in. I thought that stronger players were strong because they were able to calculate deep variations in every position. In going for complications without fully understanding them, I was trying to emulate this style of play. However, the epiphany that helped me improve the most was that chess can be a lot less complicated than people think it is.
What I mean by this is that the thought processes of strong players can be incredibly simple and easy to follow. The best move in a position does not always need to be fancy or brilliant. Sometimes the position calls for a simple solid move. The way to improve the most in chess is not to be able to calculate 20 lines deep but to know when the position calls for calculation and when it does not. When I play against weaker players I often see them calculating in 'only move' positions, where there is only one obvious move. From my own experience as well as talking to these players, I've concluded that the reason people do this is because they see 'phantoms'. They think the position is beyond their understanding and compensate by spending more time trying to calculate.
My advice to solve this problem is twofold. First, you have to look at a position and judge its characteristics based on your best understanding of chess (doubled pawns for him are good for me, my rook is aimed at his king so I might have attacking chances, his pawns are on the colour of his only bishop, etc.). Second, you have to assume that the characteristics you identified are the only ones that exist in the position. What you'll find by thinking and playing in this way is that you'll play a lot more confidently and be less likely to get intimidated or psyched out by your opponent. The second thing that you'll find is that if you lose, you'll be better able to identify exactly why you lost. This is because the only way you could lose by thinking this way is if you either failed to identify a key characteristic of the position, or you misjudged the importance of these characteristics. In the end, it's really a case of either winning or learning.
I have a lot more thoughts regarding mindset in chess and the decision making process but this post is long enough as it is. I enjoy reading and giving qualitative advice about chess so if anyone's interested I'd be happy to share more of my thoughts in a future post. I'm really interested in hearing what you guys think about my assessment and advice.
Stay happy, stay safe and stay healthy!
