Simple, Simpler & Doable!

It is a common trap to try to be efficient doing something and to try form a new habit of doing the very same thing at the same time. Simplification is the order of that day and quite often things must be much simpler than expected.

One minor success story of mine was to choose “Playing 50 slow games” as a goal. This is a clear and well defined goal which just might be possible to reach for a proud father. Another goal was to “Read 3+ chess books”. This goal will have to be clarified and maybe simplified. I have tried to read three books at once and that clearly isn’t efficient. I do not have time to read decent “chunks” of any book in a single session and jumping back and forth between several books makes it all to “chopped up”. So, the first change will be to read the books one at the time.

A nice strategy for forming a habit: The 6 Changes Method I will try "The 6 Changes Method" and keep you posted on the minor steps and ground covered.

PS. Yeah, Silman's Endgame Course is great but which is your favourite portable endgame book? DS.

Play Chess on Twitter

ChessTweets is pretty cool if you want a game of chess against a "tweet pal" without signing up to yet another chess site. There are also ongoing "vote chess games".

Top marks but room for minor improvements! It would be even better if the pgn-file included your comments during the game.

I've decided to take online chess lessons with a chess tutor

I've decided to take online chess lessons with a chess tutor

My evolution as a chess player has been stuck in a rut

It's been a long time since my chess rating has basically stayed around the same level despite lots of practice and reading. I've been sitting around thinking about how I can finally manage to raise my chess rating up to 1700 and so far just studying endgames, reading a little about chess openings and (from time to time) massive doses of chess tactics just hasn't gotten me to where I'd like to be as a chess player.

I think working with a chess coach will help merging my (in lack of better words) “Chess knowledge” into Chess Skills which will make my results better.

Where I've decided to take online chess lessons

So I wanted to tell you guys today that I've decided to start taking online chess classes with a titled player, National Master William Stewart of OnlineChessLessons.NET has agreed to make my first free lesson a full hour long instead of the usual 30 minutes since he said he's seen the material on my blog before and would like to help me out.

Why I've decided to take online chess classes with Will

Most of the titled players here in Sweden charge between €50- €60 ($60-$70) per chess lesson. Will is charging less than half of that. I've checked out his videos on the site and I like them. His coverage of the Amber chess tournament is very interesting. I'll let you guys know how the free chess class goes and if it's going to be worth my time and money.

I have been working some with different trainers. All of them are excellent Chess Players but teaching is so much more than reciting knowledge. It has a lot to do with personal chemistry and how well your teacher/mentor/coach can handle the “Whip and Carrot” i.e. guide you to efficient use of your limited time for Chess Training.

I wanted to thank Will for the free chess lesson and the free content on the site. I hope we get a chance to continue working in the future. Although he can't promise a 60 minute class, he is still giving away 30 minute free chess classes to all his new students at the time of this writing.
I suggest you to check out the interesting content on his site which you can find here: Online Chess Lessons with Chess Master William Stewart

Public Goals -- Join the Movement!

A chess blogging friend, Chesstiger, has started a nice project collection Chess Goals for chess bloggers. As a firm believer in peer pressure, I have gladly joined the movement.

My long term goal is to reach 1700+ at ICC before turning half a century old or before trading my chess books for tic-tac-toe books (whichever comes first).

Join the Movement!

Vacation

The 6x6 is a slightly too large Markov Chain to be a true party but it will do. The girls will enjoy it a great deal more than watching daddy not understanding basic chess ideas.

I have played my quota of TL4545 games for this season and I will probably avoid playing the next season.

KID me not!?

So, after talking to an experienced and very skilled chess player I am back to square one in the tricky maze leading to the openings you like to play. My new source of inspiration suggested a flirt with KID. The first few moves looks reasonable and fairly easy to understand but then? I have been looking at a few astonishing wins for Black using KID and I am totally and absolutely sure that I will never be able to play a game like that. Not only is the tactics and plans way above my limited skills but also is the flow of the game something completely different than my Grinding Caveman Chess.

So, Dear Readers! What is your take on the KID?

Slippery Soap!

Here is a new game which almost slipped out of my hand again and again and again.

Seeing Ghosts!?

My dear opponent saw some ghosts late in the game when we both were close to time trouble. White resigned with nine minutes on the clock versus my four minutes.

Make sure to have something to hide behind, a shame pillow, when looking at the game. It is a blunderfest.

Nota Bene: If you cannot play decent chess you might still be able to generate a crowd good for some serious namedropping. Dan Heisman did watch some of my game for unknown reasons. THAT made my day. You can bet on that!