Your System for rapidly improving

I was stuck at 1100 for about a year until a few months ago, where I started a system for rapidly improving. Since then, I've gained 100 points, but since I've only been to 4 tournaments since starting (First one up 30 points, second one down 25, 3rd one up 130, 4th one down 34) so it could be just because of 1 good tournament performance. Incase my plan doesn't work, could anyone please recommend a system they used to get from 1100-1300 ish to 1500-1600ish? Please include what website you went to, what books you studied, and how much time you spent on each.

Every time I made a blunder, I took a baseball bat to the junk.

tactics, tactics, daily tactics: http://chess.emrald.net/

Kidnap Kramnik's mother and force him to play all your moves for you.

Originally posted by chesskid001
I was stuck at 1100 for about a year until a few months ago, where I started a system for rapidly improving. Since then, I've gained 100 points, but since I've only been to 4 tournaments since starting (First one up 30 points, second one down 25, 3rd one up 130, 4th one down 34) so it could be just because of 1 good tournament performance. Incase my plan ...[text shortened]... nclude what website you went to, what books you studied, and how much time you spent on each.

No such thing as rapid development unless you are nine years old and you play night and day. Play on the net or in person, understand your mistakes, study the classics and tactics and end game and openings ( a little) and your ability will improve gradually. I say your ability, because your rating depends on many factors outside your ability and will bob up and down. Do not believe if your rating goes down you are getting worse at chess. Or, conversely, if your rating goes up you are getting better. There's no easy way. It's work, but if you like the game, it's not like digging ditches work. If you have any books that are entitled the easy way to improve your chess throw them away. Hope this helps.

I have quite a few chess books. Some are beyond me at the moment. Some of them used to be beyond me but I can understand them now. I recommend Yasser Seirawan's books but more important than that (I now realise) is to work through them slowly and carefully - do have a quick look through them first if you wish but then go back over them again. I appreciate the saying "It's not how many chess books you have but how many you read"

Having said that in favour of books, I had a really good learning experience going through a couple of my games over the board with a highly rated player. Very instructive. But like many desirable things in life; learning a language, keeping fit, playing a musical instument, you will be rewarded over time.

I wouldn't chuck all the books with over promising titles as I suspect the authors may be pushed into the "catchy" titles by the publishers - Spend Ages Working through This Book and Your Chess Will Get A Little Bit Better" probably wouln't sell too well. So, just as your unlikely to "get a six pack in two weeks" as some fitness magazines promise chess improvement takes time too.

BTW I had a quick look at your games and you've lost a few on move timeouts and just played 15 up to now so you're bound to move up as you play more.

Originally posted by buddy2
If you have any books that are entitled the easy way to improve your chess throw them away.

Originally posted by chesskid001
I was stuck at 1100 for about a year until a few months ago, where I started a system for rapidly improving. Since then, I've gained 100 points, but since I've only been to 4 tournaments since starting (First one up 30 points, second one down 25, 3rd one up 130, 4th one down 34) so it could be just because of 1 good tournament performance. Incase my plan ...[text shortened]... nclude what website you went to, what books you studied, and how much time you spent on each.

Originally posted by RahimK
Take chess seriously and play properly. If you look at my Rhp graph before was me messing around playing hope chess not really caring. I got fed up and started playing properly on here like I would during OTB and I saw results.

Check out my Need help getting to 1400 thread. Page 2 half way down. Follow that and then page 12 is on planning. That should get you on your way to 1600.

Rahim K

my system was, become relatively decent with tactics, learn how to plan and play in the middle game. my story of improvement: i got ok at tactics early on, what kept me from improving was my lack of understanding in figuring what to do in positions. i always placed my bishops on the same squares, put my rooks on center or open and half open files. traded off bad minor pieces for good ones. knights at f3 and c3(basicly my play was simply a collection of principles), even as black i tryed really hard to allow mysel to play d5 and e5 and not just e5 and d6 or something(had to advance both 2 squares, a human foible like the bishop thing.) i got on ok, but knew what was holding me back was this enigmatic phrase: you need to have a plan. i would play move to move and win only based on inferior moves by my opponent, i always tryed to contemplate the thought proccesses in planning and how to apply them. i got a middle game strategy book and silmans book but both seemed over my head, i thought i understood planning but for some undiscernible reason i was stuck in my style, unable to apply what i read., took a 6 month break from chess in frustration, though i still tryd to understand what was written on planning and strategy and how i needed to think in chess, but only in the back of my mind, sometimes picking up silmans book and glancing through it hoping something would click. i finnally thought i had it and got back into the game an found in my break i had improved! i no longer felt the need to place my bishops at c4 and f4 among other things, i thought i could plan but i still played move to move, but i understood more about the usefullness of moves like Bd3 in such things as attacks on the king and was able to ignore previous foibles. but i still didnt seem to be able to plan. took another long break from chess, i think when i read something in silmans book at the begginning or near the end of the book about the opening being about creating an imbalance and developing your forces around it, the thought proccess involved in planning(and also of how the opening and middle game were so closely connected.) began to make sence to me, and i understood it was just noticing the strengths and weaknesses (or just diferences, which you can try and make a strength.) of both sides, and developing your forces around an idea that uses those imbalances(like having a queen side pawn majority, deciding to gain space with a pawn storm with the goal of forcing a passed pawn using your pawn majority, and queening it). and now i can plan, and im still improving and learning more about how to use certain imbalances, but no longer feel like i have a glass ceiling on my chess understanding. wierd 2 long posts in 1 day after a bout of relative silence on the forums. also was wondering what others thought of my idea that using your imagination and learning how to look beyond rules of thumb and see when theres an exception(like kramniks mention of using his king in a brilliant 2 move yet unstoppable attack i think in the middlegame. mentioned in an article on kramnik.com) is something that separates masters and ims or gms.(besides calculating and practical, learnable knowledge.). if so that may eventually be my next glass ceiling.

Choose a few openings you like, buy a few good books on them and then play as many quality games as possible working through the book (following your preferred line) making sure you understand why the moves are being made.

Once you get out of the book make sure you understand what the weaknesses are (weak pawns, open files / diagonals) then play accordingly.

As you improve you will refer to the book less and less until one day you don't need it at all. Then move on to the next opening until you have built up a repetoire that suits your style and covers most common openings. I like Gambits so I play the Kings Gambit and Morra Gambit which vovers the c5 and e5 responses to my e4. I am now working on the Ruy Lopez Open as a serious response as black to this opening.

Of course if you don't know how to mate its all pointless so ensure you can mate force mates with R, B&B, B&N and understand opposition so you can Q that P advantage then work on more complex endings.

I don't like computers for this and databases don't tend to tell you why! Similarly you can put a position into a computer and it will come up with a best move but unless you know why you won't be able to capitalise on it and will learn nothing. So resist the temptation - stay away from computers (except to play on RHP of course)

Why don't you tell us a bit of what you have done already. What books have you read?

last summer i was 1150. the way i improved was got an openings book from the library picked a few i liked for black and a few i liked for white then wrote them down so i could memorize them. then i read some books, strategy by yasser sierwan and his openings book, pawn structure ( i'm still not done reading it) weapons of chess by Bruce pandolfini ( you dont need a board or ne thing but this book has so many things that helped my game skyrocket) and im reading bruce pandolfini's end game course also very helpful. on top of that this year i've probably playd around 3000 games

oops i am aslo reading josh watzkin's attacking chess which is basically all tactics and i read tactics for the tournament player that gave me some insiights.