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Life Training is More Important than Chess Training
Written by Administrator
Wednesday, 28 November 2012
By candidate master Peter Zhdanov, editor of Pogonina.com
Over and over again Natalia Pogonina receives messages from people who want to become professional chess players and earn a title - IM or even GM. One of the most popular follow-up questions is about training. All sorts of chess-related details are of interest: how many hours per day to study; what openings are the best; is it better to learn by doing, or by studying; how much time to dedicate to tactics; what chess software to buy; to play blitz on the Internet or not to play... This is understandable, because there are very few good books on how to work on chess. This column will, however, be dedicated to more important matters, without knowing which it is impossible to become a strong chess player.
1)Financial security. Unless you are already a top grandmaster, you will hardly be able to make a living playing chess. Hence, if you are planning to dedicate a few years (yes, years) to improving from club level to master's level, you had better prepare a nice monetary cushion to fall back upon while studying chess. Keep in mind that one has to be able to travel to tournaments and pay for coaching, while you won't be earning any money. If you are heedlessly hoping to become an IM by playing 1-3 tournaments per year, then you are as naive as a person who wants to prepare for the Mister Olympia by going to the gym once a week. So, evaluate correctly the needs of your family and make a decision whether you can afford to study chess professionally or not.
2)Pay attention to psychology and self-discipline. Some of us are too lazy. Others don't like to admit their mistakes. Are you afraid of strong opponents? Do you get into time trouble? Lacking fighting spirit and agreeing to draws too often? And so on, and so forth. Usually there is a serious psychological problem behind each chess weakness. If you succeed in eliminating the hassles, you will become a chess player as well.
3)Health. Chess is quite demanding and energy-consuming. When you are feeling low, your performance suffers. Monitor your health and regularly practice active sports. This is beneficial both for your body and for your brain.
4)Set your priorities straight. The first three pieces of advice are applicable to any human, not necessarily chess players. Once you are done with them, you can take a moment to decide whether you really love chess so much that you have to spend the next few years working on increasing your rating. Maybe you will be satisfied with occasional blitz events or playing online? Also, while attaining financial security, you might become so obsessed with your activity that you will forget your intentions about becoming a chess pro.
Disclaimer: I am not trying to persuade anyone to quit chess or to let go of one's dreams. Quite the opposite. The point is that many loyal fans of Caissa overestimate their chances and ruin their own lives by adhering to instincts. Visit a local chess club, and you will notice numerous drunken fellows in stale outfits. They have no family, no money, and, on top of all that, a very modest FIDE rating. I doubt that it's the future they were anticipating when they had devoted all their efforts to chess.
Comments (2)
1. Written by Andrey on 12:52 28 2012 .
I like the disclaimer It reminds me the 'Club of Anonymous Chess players"
Going serious, there's a problem of age. It is well-known that should our civilization start interstellar flights, latter ships would arrive earlier.
This applies to chess, actually -- younger players become stronger at the given age than senior ones. So if you start at 10 you potentially have a chance for title shot, if you start at 20+ -- journeyman is the highest status you are going to reach.
And, most importantly, this brave young one needs a coach. Good one. Even if one has the top motivation and organization to get through it, absense of the trainer will cost great later. No book will tell you the 'pro' mindset, some tricks-of-the-trade. Imagine learning of the competetive alpine skiing by reading books. And it is not about reaction or joint flexibility -- it is about one's mind.
Else one would find yourself boasting in the local pub: "I was like X at 14. But he had coach and I hadn't".
Frankly speaking, pro chess players are ordinary people with all usual traits which everyone have, but they are very special at chess.
Natalia herself is the perfect example. Passing her by basically gives one two emotions: 'such a nice girl!' ), 'umm! she is married' . However, her play gives oneare much wider spectra of sympathy.
. However, her play gives oneare much wider spectra of sympathy.
