Difficulties to overcome in chess training

I have often thought that, both in life and in chess, progress always comes from confronting difficulties, and that it depends on each one whether to consider those difficulties as truly insurmountable paradigms, or as opportunities for self-knowledge and establishing which direction to take or not, in view of the uncertainties that may arise regarding the safe realization of any useful initiative. This attitude often implies contemplating and accepting the subjective reality, nurturing it without seeking vain, selfish, and nontranscendental gratifications that do not align with any expectation or ideal of improving and perfecting objectively a productive skill. Not an insignificant labor, in my opinion, if one considers that much of what a human being with genuine faith in the value of integral ideals may be capable of achieving depends on it. 

After all, collective advances are based on individual efforts, but these individual efforts can never be considered transcendent if they stray from the common good. As the limits of art are never reached, it is convenient to distinguish what is art from what is not, and appreciate the essential meaning that art communicates by virtue rather than mere rationalization.

In chess terms, this would mean that if certain results suggest that one is in a situation where clear ideas to attack, defend, or evaluate some kinds of position are lacking, it is imperative to recognize such reality, and desist from the blind obstinacy to look for attacks, combinations, defenses or evaluations devoid of objective positional basis. And, consequently, one should become interested in understanding which difficulties skew those evaluations and impede us from seeing things as they really are, rather than how we think they are or want them to be. In this case, objectivity of judgment takes precedence as a parameter and purpose to develop in light of the difficulties that may arise in the effective training of the game.

 

“Change is inevitable, but personal growth is a choice”.

– Robert Proctor

But if something should be taken very seriously when considering improving and exercising the skill at chess, it is that, like in any other field of knowledge, the ocean of theory is unfathomable... There are thousands upon thousands of books and courses, and it is impossible to try to cover all the available content of the game, because one also needs to discern which information can truly contribute to the independent development of practical criteria, discarding all redundancy that does not aid such progress. And all of this tied to the schedule at disposition to implement such an approach, in affinity with a reliable methodology and learning style that may suit only one's study demands.

That is why it is also not feasible to claim that 'this' or 'that' is the only correct way to learn chess or train it. As training should always be thematic, based on each person's own weaknesses and strengths, both technical and conceptual.

Of course, everything that begins must conclude at some point, and it is only through disciplined practice, healthy self-criticism, and instructive feedback that it becomes possible to detect what works correctly for each person, in order to bring to conclusive fruition the ideas cultivated in training sessions and to achieve results that can be considered better based on personal experiences or the opinions that others might offer. Many of the difficulties stemming from its study lie in this process, but also many of the virtues that can be assimilated from it, as the abilities of every player vary according to the bibliographical or digital resources they have studied and the consistency they have dedicated to practicing their natural aptitudes aligned with its key rational concepts.

 

 

 

In any case, it is vital to reason from the logic and common sense of things, in order to overcome many of those individual difficulties through the fundamental mastery of the most basic of the basics in one’s own development.

Due to which, beyond encompassing the abundance of theoretical content, it is important that as a responsible player, one knows how to organize oneself and set objectives consistent with his most recent competitive results. That is, to learn from weaknesses and strengths in individual technique, minimizing the former and maximizing the latter – as chess training is nothing other than a continuous sensitization and learning of the spontaneous rationality of the game, as well as of the hindrances that must be transcended to prevent such learning from stagnating on obsession or monotony: which generate stress and obstacles to authentic progress.

For instance, a typical obsession that can arise from chess, and generally from any game, is the frivolous desire to "win just for the sake of winning". And this, I emphasize, is something that should be overcome completely by knowing oneself as a practical/versatile/functional player and understanding that often the lessons of the game transcend the illusions of ephemeral egotistical satisfaction. As, if an opponent has not played worse than oneself, it is important to learn that only from the own mistakes can awareness be obtained about what needs improvement on individual focus. While one should always aspire to victory, and it is true that competitive chess is about achieving victory in tournament games, that outcome naturally arises from the application of methodical/pragmatic thinking and the opponent's inaccuracies that one strives to refute with rational precision. Therefore, thinking about playing correctly is in any case much more productive than obsessively thinking only about winning. The inherent outcome of logically and objectively executed chess is a draw, and that result is not at all negligible, as there are always new opportunities to achieve victory without getting distracted by unjustified idealisms. Additionally, one must always remember that someone might boast about his victories, but that is generally a sign of stagnation in learning, and something that every player representative of the logical nobility of chess must avoid, and never forget the affable and friendly character that chess, as a game, naturally has.

That, however, is more of a psychological obstacle, and only each person can know through self-reflection what other useless psychological limitations need to be removed from their life experience, be it laziness, inconstancy, narcissism, etc. So that any other kind of obsession outside of the training work does not influence negatively their own performance.

 

“It is not enough to say the truth only, but it is convenient to show the cause of falsehood”.

– Aristotle

 

However, focusing on what we are really trying to develop here regarding pure efficient playing aptitude and getting rid of the didactic stagnation that impedes the independent progress of the chess player, it is necessary to recognize what other subjective learning obstacles can arise during the didactic orientation processes, in favor of promoting the assimilation of ideas that really work and saving months or even years of futile efforts in meaningless "training", since, even as a simple enthusiast who is interested in improving his/her ability, it is reasonable that one should also be interested in developing a minimally competent skill, as the more experienced players can apply consistently in their results.

In regard to chess training, it is advisable to reflect on which of those inhibiting obstacles to conscious progress must be eradicated from the discipline that one intends to establish as the basis of the pragmatic approach applied to efficient functional performance.

 

 

1.       The lack of basic knowledge.

Just as in order to calculate in mathematics, one must first learn the numbers, the same applies to chess, as the fundamental cornerstone of its technique lies in mastering its elementary principles and objectively contemplating their logical applications, moment to moment, during the game.

In the course of the chess battle, one needs to break down simple tactical ideas from subtler strategic complexities, through an examination of the positional activity at play, qualifying and prioritizing themes inherent to the achievement of precise attack and defense objectives: pawn structures, piece combinations, rules and/or rational principles, among others, that aid us in interpreting these matters.

Thus, the comprehension of these basic elements becomes an essential medium to cultivate a natural rhythm of training and consistent performance. It is vital not to randomly cover concepts that can be considered (because one perceives and accepts that they are) redundant or advanced, if one does not previously have a basic command of the fundamental theory.

Masterclass.com (2019), Garry Kasparov Teaches Chess:

“There is no strict rule that you have to stop accumulating positional advantages and to move on with tactics. This is something you have to feel. Never stop searching for an opportunity to create threats, to win material. There are always chances, especially if your pieces are well positioned, they control the center, or they are massing up against the opponent's king.

That is what makes the difference between good players, the very good players and the top players, because you know ‘this’ is the right moment. It is hard to explain, but you know ‘this’ is the moment where you have to use your positional advantages, your dominant pieces to convert it to a decisive material advantage.

But there is one recommendation, or I would call warning, while we look for certain positions and tactical elements it is highly unlikely that there will be one theme, because a good tactical combination includes a few components. That is why is important to know as many patterns as you can learn, because you never know which one could be more useful in certain situations.

Also do not try to be too dogmatic. It is not just about one move for another, it is not about one pattern or another. There are always variations and that is why being comfortable with different patterns always helps. The multiple patterns create very different configurations.

Learning chess is an ongoing process, and even a player of the highest caliber should not stop learning because it is always possible to find so many new themes.”

In order to solve the lack of basic knowledge, for those who can still be considered novices, and even for chess players with a certain level of experience, it is recommendable both as an initiation point and as a reference for the perfection of their skill, to cover activities involving this kind of methodical and analytical notions on independent preparation. Because it is through the methodical exercise of analytical dexterity that one may optimize the nuances that also influence the processes of intuitive positional assessment and the calculation of variations, as interdependent structures of the coherent appreciation of the strengths and weaknesses, both in the positional nuances that spontaneously arise in the game as in the personal approach to practical play.

 

 

2.       The inert accumulation of information.

It is also necessary to recognize that learning is not about storing non-functional theoretical information; but to manage, process and codify information productively, since the knowledge stored is useless if it is not invested in a consistent purpose. Also, knowledge is not the only requirement to be a decent player. It is just one factor of several in the development of an integral preparation in chess.

Another even more important factor is having a structured, versatile system of thought applicable to the objective interpretation of the game and its subjective particularities, as all acquired knowledge needs to be a complement to the rational cognitive parameters that contribute to the prioritization, planning and organization of the concepts inherent to the applied strategic criteria. In other words, the quality of the information being studied should be emphasized over its quantity.

Emanuel Lasker (1926), Manual of Chess:

“Education in Chess has to be an education in independent thinking and judging. Chess must not be memorized, simply because it is not important enough. If you load your memory, you should know why. Memory is too valuable to be stocked with trifles.

Of my fifty-seven years I have applied at least thirty to forgetting most of what I had learned or read, and since I succeeded in this I have acquired a certain ease and cheer which I should never again like to be without. If need be, I can increase my skill in Chess, if need be I can do that of which I have no idea at present. I have stored little in my memory, but I can apply that little, and it is of good use in many and varied emergencies. I keep it in order, but resist every attempt to increase its dead weight.”

Therefore, it is crucial to cultivate principles and conceptual structures that align with this objective efficiency of thinking, with the purpose of refining a practical approach to cognition in parallel to each nuance that provides a realistic assessment of the usefulness or lack thereof of the studied information. Which is why it is advisable not to blindly adopt the studied concepts but to question them based on the independent critical spirit of the chess player, formulating rules or ideological processes for one’s own supplementary use, alongside the essential basic theory. This involves engaging deliberately in exercises that illustrate the technique for selecting and making decisions, using examples from one's own games as well as from the study of games played by top-level players in highly competitive tournaments; evaluating these decisions to contrast them with the causes of the errors frequently observed in one's technique; and lastly, sublimating creatively the imperfections discovered, after correcting one's own inaccuracies and mistakes, by integrating the principles, methods and/or nuances that truly work in the individual system of thought, while dismissing any pretension to hold hypothetical assumptions or doctrines that do not align with the fundamental rationality in this science of logical thought.

 

3.       The expectations of immediate results.

Due to the strong motivation and the latent desire to win in the spirit of every player who is passionate about improving and contemplating results as soon as possible, the expectations of improving quickly can also be the cause of obstacles such as those aforementioned, because the self-imposed psychological pressure, or imposed in certain cases by a tutor or parent towards their pupils, inhibits the ability to concentrate and even their own interest in the game. In any case, it is always important that one enjoys the training process. Since, of course, nothing can be called a game if it is not objectively fun.

The reality is that technical progress, in an activity that requires concentration, perseverance and resilience, takes a certain duration to be appreciable. So instead of obsessing over getting immediate results, it is always better to focus on optimizing the quality of one's own technique and independent judgment. And if productive results are to be contemplated, they are to be estimated as proportional to the devotion with which one applies himself to the perfection of his strengths and the destruction of his weaknesses.

When can one recognize that expectations for immediate results are being an obstacle to improvement?

 

When a certain activity is showing to be difficult to master it after only a few attempts to get it right without a perceptibly favorable outcome, and it does not provide healthy and entertaining contentment but rather a stressful feeling.

It may be recognizable in these cases, that it is necessary to reformulate one's thinking processes, and through a moderate rest from the activity, resume it with a refreshed focus so that there can be optimal possibilities for developing better results until the concept or technique may feel instinctively assimilated in one's own thought system. It should not feel difficult to explain in simple words a certain principle, tactic or strategy at play. Knowing that the work applied in order to reach such understanding is intended to make the experience of implementing them in the game not feel laborious but natural instead.

Seeksafely.org (2022), Understanding Vulnerabilities: The Expectation of Quick Results:

“With our society and way of interacting with the world training us to expect things immediately, and all of these teachers telling us they can give us what we want immediately, the concern is that it has become much easier for people to get sucked into a potentially problematic teacher’s world, or even that it’s just really easy to waste our money.

How do we work against this vulnerability? A few suggestions:

·         Limit time online, particularly with guru-types. (And if they’re telling you you HAVE to be following their program every single day or it won’t work… honestly? Red flag.)

·         Take a beat before committing to something. Avoid getting sucked in by scarcity sales tactics or infomercial-type save-big-if-you-buy-now “sales.” Before spending money or time on a resource, give yourself a cooling off period to evaluate more deeply.

·         Place a higher value on yourself and your effort. When we work on ourselves, we deserve time. Think of anything promising you instantaneous results as actually undervaluing you as a complex and beautiful human.” 

 

One must never expect less from an opponent than to be equally or more prepared than oneself, because regardless of our level of experience, the challenges of the game are always new, and even players with a high level of competitiveness face the constant responsibility of not getting bogged down in cognitive biases that the lack or excess of confidence can generate in each one. Temperance, prudence and a sense of alertness will always be needed at every moment of the game to discern the theoretical from the practical, and to know how to conduct oneself with the impartiality that its logic reflects as a player's strength or weakness.

Because any underestimation or overestimation of oneself or one's opponent strips the game of chess of its fairness as art, sport and science, it is important to learn to dismiss the prejudices that lead to thinking in any anxious and irrational way, be it from the emotional or the intellectual perspective, in topics whose rules most of the times have exceptions. And in this, the pragmatism cultivated in training manifests itself as a coherent approach to recognize the obstacles that each one must overcome in their own experience, so that it can be understood why certain rules work or not in their various degrees of practical relevance, and how the various positional nuances of the game may be adapted to the realization of logical strategies inherent to its core principles.

As it has been pondered, the strategy in chess and the inherent work to develop its integral comprehension are rooted in the subtlety of organizing practical ideas in alignment with its impartial nature, and absolutely discarding any traces of hypothetical assumptions not supported by its innate logic. And even though imagination is an essential ingredient of the chess art, not only the intellect, this faculty must also be disciplined through relevant methodical education, in complement with each theoretical and practical element that truly influences the spontaneous ability of every player.

Considering that resolving problems related to individual difficulties in the training endeavor is unquestionably one of the highest-priority factors in developing the receptivity to embrace the game as a healthy mean of cognitive recreation and exercise, it is necessary to assess from an individual perspective which nuances of these didactic learning matters can be of fruitful utility, not only in chess but also in any field of knowledge or profession, and life itself.

 

"Chess teaches us, first of all, to be objective."

- Aleksandr Alekhin