Do you study openings and read chess books? Perhaps you are doing too much to increase your chess knowledge when you should be concentrating on improving chess performance. Chessbuzz over at the Begin Chess blog laments the decline of his rating:
I selected several of my latest games and anlayzed them looking for the reason I lost the game, and guess what I found:
Over 80% of the games I lose were because I blundered and not due to knowledge gaps.
Keeping your pieces safe is of primary importance in chess. It is all to easy to get wrapped up in your own plans for domination of the board and forget about the plans of your opponent. Always remember that they are trying to win too, and their latest move is just some small part of their strategy. If you blindly march forward with your own plan, you may quickly be surprised when your opponents strategy is realized.
Here are some quick tips to help you improve, which are applicable everywhere, not just at Chesspark.
- Play some slow games. If you normally play a lot of blitz and bullet, slow it down so you have time to think. Play a 30 minute game, and take your time. Sure it takes longer, but exercising your brain for more time on the same positions will lead to positive results. Try one a day, and after you are done, ask for help in the Game Analysis Forum.
- Enter a tournament. Tournaments are great because you are not allowed to pick your opponents, removing selection bias. This practically guarantees that you’ll get some diversity in the openings used and skill levels of your opponents. Also, the swiss pairing system means that if you win, you get a bigger challenge, and if you lose, you get something a little easier.
- Work on your tactics. Even working on simple mate-in-one puzzles can help. Try completing 10 puzzles against Chesspark’s Trainer robot. Once you’ve mastered mate-in-one, try some mate-in-twos, and then even harder tactical puzzles.
I hope this helps you earn some new rating points. If you have a plan that is working to imrove your chess skills, please share it in the comments or in the forum.
