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How do you get good

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Matthewmb2002
Question above
TheNameofNames

You dont

hrarray
You do
TheNameofNames
hrarray wrote:
You do

That depends on the person

hrarray
The only reason you think that is you play way too much games, play less and study more and you will progress faster
TheNameofNames

Theres nothing to study lol what do i study, my endgames arent the problem Im skeptical above the nature of ratings thats why im apprehensive to increase it, I can play 1600s and 1500s without focusing on my rating, which is the realistic ceiling for a 30 year old lol who started playing at 27

RussBell

You won't get good by playing exclusively speed chess (bullet, blitz, rapid, etc.)...

Play Longer Time Controls...
For many at the beginner-novice level, speed chess tends to be primarily an exercise in moving pieces around faster than your opponent while avoiding checkmate, in hopes that his/her clock runs out sooner than yours.  And/or hoping to notice and exploit your opponent’s blunders while hoping they don't notice yours.  The reason for this is that there is little time to think about what you should be doing.

It makes sense that taking more time to think about what you should be doing would promote improvement in your chess skills and results.  An effective way to improve your chess is therefore to play mostly longer time controls, including "daily" chess, so you have time to think about what you should be doing.

This is not to suggest that you should necessarily play exclusively slow or daily time controls, but they should be a significant percentage of your games, at least as much, if not more so than speed games which, while they may be fun, do almost nothing to promote an understanding of how to play the game well.

Here's what IM Jeremy Silman, well-known chess book author, has to say on the topic...
https://www.chess.com/article/view/longer-time-controls-are-more-instructive

And Dan Heisman, well-known chess teacher and chess book author…
https://web.archive.org/web/20140627052239/http:/www.chesscafe.com/text/heisman16.pdf
https://www.chess.com/blog/RussBell/dan-heisman-resources

and the experience of a FIDE Master...
https://www.chess.com/forum/view/general/how-blitz-and-bullet-rotted-my-brain-don-t-let-it-rot-yours

Learn what you should be doing.....or.....How to get good....

Improving Your Chess - Resources for Beginners and Beyond

https://www.chess.com/blog/RussBell/improving-your-chess-resources-for-beginners-and-beyond

https://www.chess.com/blog/RussBell

hrarray
Thenameofnames there’s literally so many middlegame plans, eg. pawn breaks, rook lifts, etc… that you can study
TheNameofNames
hrarray wrote:
Thenameofnames there’s literally so many middlegame plans, eg. pawn breaks, rook lifts, etc… that you can study

Ive played almost 20 thousand games i dont see what there is to study, i just suck

hrarray
Then take a break for at least a day it worked for me when I was tilting.
maafernan

Hi! It is a very general question, so is my answwer : I would suggest you to establish and follow a training program -similar to what you would do at any sport if you want to practice it seriously, or at least to be better than most people are. Please check my profile and if you are interested I could help you with that.

Good luck!

zone_chess

You learn to play counterintuitive, bold, and daring moves that at the temporary loss of material open up lines for future positional or attacking advantage.

That's the long and short of it. Good chess is governed by an entirely different form of intelligence than humans are used to. It's intrinsically weird and takes those identifying as 'normal people' an extreme shift of mindset. You have to be willing to search for extremes.

dokerbohm

i like what russbell said -- he makes alot of sense many people here also tell the same thing play slower get better -- really the phrase should be -- play longer gain patience --  just for the hell of it i think i will skip my regular 3 min /5min/10 min games go for something longer -- just to see what develops--maybe 60 min. yes will try that --  

WiebesWorks

play slow games, do lots of puzzles, use opening principles, put pieces on their preferred squares ( knights towards centre & enemy king , bishops and rooks on open diagonals / files , queen active but safe ) . Learn basic checkmates ( King and queen, king and rook, ladder mate, backrank mate , hook mate etc. ) 

Also you can hire me as a coach wink.png good luck

neatgreatfire
TheNameofNames wrote:
hrarray wrote:
Thenameofnames there’s literally so many middlegame plans, eg. pawn breaks, rook lifts, etc… that you can study

Ive played almost 20 thousand games i dont see what there is to study, i just suck

Out of your last 10 losses, almost every game was lost due to tactics or blundering a piece. Move slower and do tactics. Also, there is no ceiling just because you joined as an adult, and if there is, it is certainly not 1500-1600.

neatgreatfire
Azurecloudhart wrote:

you either can get good or you can't Chess isn't for everyone.  Requires lots of memorization. I personally believe not everyone can understand chess like others.  I'm an example so i just play for fun not care if i never move past 200.

Chess does not require a lot of memorization. Also, why bother posting this if you clearly no nothing about the subject? You said yourself you have never tried to get better. Is it fun for you to discourage people?

neatgreatfire
Azurecloudhart wrote:
neatgreatfire wrote:
Azurecloudhart wrote:

you either can get good or you can't Chess isn't for everyone.  Requires lots of memorization. I personally believe not everyone can understand chess like others.  I'm an example so i just play for fun not care if i never move past 200.

Chess does not require a lot of memorization. Also, why bother posting this if you clearly no nothing about the subject? You said yourself you have never tried to get better. Is it fun for you to discourage people?

I've actually tried to get better lol. Grandmasters are proof it does.  I think even 1200 rating players prove that as well. Alternative theory. There is a chess learning disability that prevents all ppl from getting good at chess. If it were possible to get better 100 rating would not be the floor.

How have you tried to get better? And yes GMs certainly play a lot of theory. As to you saying there is a chess learning disability that prevents people from getting better, do you have any evidence?

neatgreatfire
Azurecloudhart wrote:
neatgreatfire wrote:
Azurecloudhart wrote:
neatgreatfire wrote:
Azurecloudhart wrote:

you either can get good or you can't Chess isn't for everyone.  Requires lots of memorization. I personally believe not everyone can understand chess like others.  I'm an example so i just play for fun not care if i never move past 200.

Chess does not require a lot of memorization. Also, why bother posting this if you clearly no nothing about the subject? You said yourself you have never tried to get better. Is it fun for you to discourage people?

I've actually tried to get better lol. Grandmasters are proof it does.  I think even 1200 rating players prove that as well. Alternative theory. There is a chess learning disability that prevents all ppl from getting good at chess. If it were possible to get better 100 rating would not be the floor.

How have you tried to get better? And yes GMs certainly play a lot of theory. As to you saying there is a chess learning disability that prevents people from getting better, do you have any evidence?

If one studies chess and played 200 games games and is still 100 rating. is that not evidence?

What do you mean by "studies chess" What studying have you done? 

And also, you cannot expect improvement over the course of 2 days. That is absurd.

neatgreatfire
Azurecloudhart wrote:

Studying openings for begginers, watching end game strategy vids, did a couple of puzzles. been playing chess on and off for 20 years.  I didn't sit down and play consistently until recently.  Been playing on this site for week. My last account was closed due resigning too often out of frustration so it was seen as sandbagging.  If i was able to get better it would of shown already lol.

Studying openings is useless when you are rated 100. Watching endgame strategy vids is useless when you are rated 100. Puzzles are helpful, but you have to do a lot of them. Playing chess on and off for 20 years just for fun won't get you anywhere. You are not doing the right things to improve. Take this game:

You spent a little over 2 minutes on this game. You had 30 on your clock. You are just not checking to make sure your move is not giving up a free piece. Just take 10-20 seconds to confirm that your move is not losing a piece before you play it. Also, do you know the value of the pieces? A pawn is 1, knights and bishops are 3, a rook is 5, and a queen is 9. So do you see why it would be bad to give a knight for a pawn? You are getting a piece worth 1 point and giving your opponent a piece worth 3. This is not a matter of chess talent or not being able to improve, it is a matter of carelessness. 

neatgreatfire
Azurecloudhart wrote:

Looking at that diagram looks like i actually got worse continuously playing which is pretty funny watching me play as I can't get better at this game.  I've played games where I didn't take one piece at all. I've played defensively.  Still lost. I've encountered a ton of different scenarios.  My brain just doesn't work that way unfortunaltey.

Did you even bother to read my post? You are losing because you are playing too fast and not checking to make sure your move isn't a blunder before playing it.