After about 3 months of being intimidated every time I play a game, I am now more relaxed. I think I have finally reached the point that I truly enjoy playing even if I lose. Your advice is GOLDEN.
Hey Alan, a year late to the party, but it's great to hear that! Since I'm struggling a fair bit with playing people online due to anxiety, may I ask: was there anything in particular that helped for you? I enjoy daily games, but even thinking about seeding a rapid game gets my pulse racing. I'd love to be able to "just" play, but at the moment it's hard for me to imagine ever being able to actually play a truly "casual" game without my hands shaking. In any case, it's very uplifting to hear your story and that it seems to have worked for you! Cheers, Bruno
I don't comment on videos often, but I wanted to say that I appreciate the material on this channel that you guys are aiming at novices like myself. Much of the content on TH-cam aimed at beginners is real click-baity, over-simplified to a fault, and generally not long-form enough to really give good guidance. Because no one wants to watch a 30 min video right? Thanks for doing it.
This video belongs at the top of a short list of the best beginner chess videos. I've been realizing independently every one of the "Things you shouldn't do" after 3 years of struggling to improve. Buying countless books and videos. Turns out books don't say much if you don't read them. If you need me I'll be undoing 3 years of chess learning mistakes. Half a century on this planet has taught me to own my mistakes, take my medicine, and correct the problem. Thank you, sir, for the best beginner chess video EVER!
Thank you for the insights ! Very useful, and I can relate with experience (specially the don't and the "prepare")😅 great help for reflective learning😊
I've started to get back into chess after 25+ years, and like many I've bought books and some opening courses, but at times it's felt more like a chore rather than enjoyment. You are one of the first people online to say have fun, enjoy yourself and make mistakes. You have given me a fresh mindset, thank you.
This was all great advice, but I think the end was great-- "Get over it, and get over yourself." I'm one of those people that found myself studying more and more and doing puzzles but barely playing any games because I would get so stressed, which mentally I know is silly but I have anxiety so it can be difficult. Anyway, thanks for the new mantra.
That bit about overpreparation, was absolutely advice I needed to hear two years ago. I was playing solely against Chess Bots for almost a year before a bunch of people on a Chess discord I was using found out and basically laughed at me. Really glad they did because it got me out of that rut and now it's like I can't even imagine what was going through my head, why was I so nervous to play people??? IDK. If you're like I was, just play people! Playing a low-rated person is completely and fundamentally different to playing a bot. People might make more mistakes, but we also create plans of attack that low-rated chess bots don't seem to be able to do.
I am a 1800+ player I was curious how this vid would be and even I learned a few things ☺ thanks david I had a habit of prepare and prepare for a tournament which I know is bad but u know really feels safe when I feel like I am prepared for it However if u play more in tournament then you'll improve faster
Hey, sorry for the long delay; I don't get notifs on these videos. Please don't apologize for rookie questions on stream-- one of the main reasons we are on stream is to answer them :)
I'm not a noob, but I have a lot of fun playing on a site where you play games in "postal" fashion, one move every 3 days max. You play several games at a time. This gives you time to analyze positions in depth. I know Paul Keres started out that way.
Hey, that was very insightful, i don’t agree on one point which is courses are bad and the people are making it just to make a living…example i bought Kostya’s forcing moves and it really helped me a lot and i don’t consider it a “course “ but more like a private lesson with an amazing teacher who helps me with calculations… the bit about tilting and understanding that it’s ok to loose to a person too is amazing i can’t thank you enough i really needed to hear that..thank you so much for this video and looking forward to watching your videos here and on your channel too :)
I'm technically not a beginner (my Mum taught me when I was seven, so I'm an anti prodigy, been playing badly for forty-five years!) But this is great advice. Also, I love the Sherlock Holmes puzzles! Nice to hear them recommended. Adding some of these habits, and getting sorted for my first tournament!
18:34 I've made several "chess friends," online by adding them after the game and messaging GG you really got me with the early queen or dang that opening really made me feel suffocated around turn 8. Most people don't reply, but the ones that do almost always start with "oh wow, thanks!" Implying everyone who does typically message is salty lol
I did not realize this when I was young, only gradually realized it; and I've explained it a couple times to people who had tilt or other ego problems and they found it really helpful, so I put it in here.
I’m very interested in what you had said about following the history of opening popularity while building your own opening repertoire. (As well as learning many openings instead of one!!). Curious if you have more advice on the subject. I really think it’s important beginners start with madlad aggressive openings, learn to appreciate slower positional openings, then move on to a garden of all kinds of things
Thank you for this video. I have been playing chess for a long time on and off, but I have been around 1100 - 1300 for decades. I have never really made a serious attempt to train, but now that I am nearing the end of my work career, I am going to do so. So.....do you have a video on your advice for those who have reached the 1200 level (and please let us know what range this advice for the next step would cover (like 1200 - 1500 or 1200 to 1800, or something else)?
Sorry, I don't yet have a 1200-1400 video, despite having put in a bunch of work on it last year. We are working together now on some training programs, so please stay tuned.
Thank you for the video! Do you think you'll ever do a video more in depth on that idea that opening study / opening books are futile? It seems like a common trap we patzers fall into. I have a few opening books (including a few on chessable) and I have found them very useful. But mostly for the annotated games inside of them. Niltris' e5 and d5 books especially have a lot of games inside of them. I guess chessable falls into the point you made about 'not making moves that you don't understand'. I think for me opening theory is one of those things like you said at the end, the stuff that is bad for you but it makes you more interested in chess.
Sure, I could do a video just focused on that topic. Some good annotated games can be useful; even well-explained opening analysis you could learn something from. But for an under 1200 player, it's a waste of time, unless, as you say, it inspires them.
@@chesscomdpruess I am like a 1900 chess.com blitz player, but when I was starting out my interest in chess definitely came from watching chess opening videos. It was counterproductive as at that that level it is all about tactics and basic endgames, but I enjoyed it. I do really believe in the annotated games thing, I feel like my biggest gains in chess development have come from going over games. Agadmator and commonplace stuff really isn’t good for ‘annotated games’ either, there are no deeper concepts being explained, it is mostly just moves. I am not sure where you’d find annotated games except in a book. Anyways, thanks for the reply and I am a huge fan of the channel! Also your chess raps are surprisingly good and I’ve shared them with even my non chess friends. The best chess related music on the internet!
@@andrewbernal9700 Yeah, I don't think the sort of "same day clickbait title play-through of a famous game" is really of much use, unless, again, it inspires someone. People used to labor for days and days on the annotations to a single game, and the fruit of that work is worthwhile. I am sure there are great examples of that online as well, but off-the-top of my head, I don't know any digital work that would compare with books by Polugaevsky, Kasparov, Tal, Alekhine, Botvinnik, Bronstein, etc... Thanks for the compliment to my extremely amateur bur surprisingly not terrible raps. I have several more, but I don't have beats for them so haven't recorded. However, if you are looking for smth good, I think this is the best chess-related music on the internet: th-cam.com/video/Gnejsdojw7w/w-d-xo.html Cheers! :)
Actually, I would say that 2700s nowadays are so good, so cultured, so deeply knowledgeable, that pretty much anything they say could be of interest to a player at your level. All you have to do is search youtube for radjabov or svidler and I'm sure you'll find something incredible.
@@chesscomdpruess Thank you for the suggestion! I have heard some strong player commentary in the past and enjoyed it, but never really looked into it. That sounds like a great ides!
You should do this by level. I kinda feel like some of these rules would be slightly different for me (1450). Nevertheless, one of the best videos on the topic.
Indeed, the reason the advice is explicitly labeled as being for under1200 is that things do change by level. I have been thinking about a 1200-1400 video for a while now, but as you know, it gets increasingly complex at each new level! - David
Do you really think opening courses like the Lifetime Repertoires are 'terrible'? I get they aren't made for beginners but I don't get why they would be 'terrible'.
I have never seen an opening book or opening course that I would not actively discourage anyone under 1200 from reading. That said, due to forming a negative opinion on opening books long ago, I have never looked at a Lifetime Repertoire, so I don't really know much about them. I would guess that some of them are terrific for higher-rated club players-- but that's just a guess! - David
@@ChessDojo Thanks for the answer. I think there's a difference between memorizing an opening book vs using it as a reference. Let's say you are 1500- 1800 and decided to play the Semi-Slav. You learn some basic ideas and just play it in your games. In my view, it makes sense to have some kind of resource to look up after your games, see what the theory/course says and learn something. This way you slowly but steadily build your repertoire but are not completely in the dark on what lines to choose. At some point, it is nice to have some kind of repertoire.
After about 3 months of being intimidated every time I play a game, I am now more relaxed. I think I have finally reached the point that I truly enjoy playing even if I lose. Your advice is GOLDEN.
So glad to hear that. Enjoy!!
Hey Alan, a year late to the party, but it's great to hear that! Since I'm struggling a fair bit with playing people online due to anxiety, may I ask: was there anything in particular that helped for you? I enjoy daily games, but even thinking about seeding a rapid game gets my pulse racing. I'd love to be able to "just" play, but at the moment it's hard for me to imagine ever being able to actually play a truly "casual" game without my hands shaking. In any case, it's very uplifting to hear your story and that it seems to have worked for you! Cheers, Bruno
I don't comment on videos often, but I wanted to say that I appreciate the material on this channel that you guys are aiming at novices like myself. Much of the content on TH-cam aimed at beginners is real click-baity, over-simplified to a fault, and generally not long-form enough to really give good guidance. Because no one wants to watch a 30 min video right? Thanks for doing it.
you're welcome, and thanks for the comment :) I will continue to produce non-optimized non-clickbait that few people have the time/patience for.
This video belongs at the top of a short list of the best beginner chess videos. I've been realizing independently every one of the "Things you shouldn't do" after 3 years of struggling to improve. Buying countless books and videos. Turns out books don't say much if you don't read them. If you need me I'll be undoing 3 years of chess learning mistakes. Half a century on this planet has taught me to own my mistakes, take my medicine, and correct the problem.
Thank you, sir, for the best beginner chess video EVER!
Thanks, Terry! I wish you improvement as well as joy in your chess :)
Thank you for the insights ! Very useful, and I can relate with experience (specially the don't and the "prepare")😅 great help for reflective learning😊
I've started to get back into chess after 25+ years, and like many I've bought books and some opening courses, but at times it's felt more like a chore rather than enjoyment. You are one of the first people online to say have fun, enjoy yourself and make mistakes. You have given me a fresh mindset, thank you.
This was all great advice, but I think the end was great-- "Get over it, and get over yourself." I'm one of those people that found myself studying more and more and doing puzzles but barely playing any games because I would get so stressed, which mentally I know is silly but I have anxiety so it can be difficult. Anyway, thanks for the new mantra.
That bit about overpreparation, was absolutely advice I needed to hear two years ago.
I was playing solely against Chess Bots for almost a year before a bunch of people on a Chess discord I was using found out and basically laughed at me. Really glad they did because it got me out of that rut and now it's like I can't even imagine what was going through my head, why was I so nervous to play people??? IDK. If you're like I was, just play people!
Playing a low-rated person is completely and fundamentally different to playing a bot. People might make more mistakes, but we also create plans of attack that low-rated chess bots don't seem to be able to do.
I am a 1800+ player I was curious how this vid would be and even I learned a few things ☺ thanks david
I had a habit of prepare and prepare for a tournament which I know is bad but u know really feels safe when I feel like I am prepared for it
However if u play more in tournament then you'll improve faster
This was a great video, thanks for chatting on twitch about it. Sorry I asked such a rookie question but I wouldn’t have seen this video if I hadn’t!
Hey, sorry for the long delay; I don't get notifs on these videos. Please don't apologize for rookie questions on stream-- one of the main reasons we are on stream is to answer them :)
Think by yourself ! David is the Ultimate Sensei !
What an amazing video. Thanks, David.
You're welcome. Hope it will be of great use to you!
I'm not a noob, but I have a lot of fun playing on a site where you play games in "postal" fashion, one move every 3 days max. You play several games at a time. This gives you time to analyze positions in depth. I know Paul Keres started out that way.
Hey, that was very insightful, i don’t agree on one point which is courses are bad and the people are making it just to make a living…example i bought Kostya’s forcing moves and it really helped me a lot and i don’t consider it a “course “ but more like a private lesson with an amazing teacher who helps me with calculations… the bit about tilting and understanding that it’s ok to loose to a person too is amazing i can’t thank you enough i really needed to hear that..thank you so much for this video and looking forward to watching your videos here and on your channel too :)
you're welcome, glad this could help you :)
I wish I watched this video when I first started playing chess ❤❤❤. Great video with great advice!!
Great advice, I haven't thought about some of these things before, thank you!
Terrific input contained in your video. Thanks
I'm technically not a beginner (my Mum taught me when I was seven, so I'm an anti prodigy, been playing badly for forty-five years!) But this is great advice. Also, I love the Sherlock Holmes puzzles! Nice to hear them recommended. Adding some of these habits, and getting sorted for my first tournament!
Great advice! "...hearing Jesse Kraai sigh...from stress..." made me laugh
Really helpful content
Thanks 🙏
18:34 I've made several "chess friends," online by adding them after the game and messaging GG you really got me with the early queen or dang that opening really made me feel suffocated around turn 8.
Most people don't reply, but the ones that do almost always start with "oh wow, thanks!" Implying everyone who does typically message is salty lol
Great Video! thanks David!
Great advice for a new player!
34:50 got too real but it's a real eye opener haha
I did not realize this when I was young, only gradually realized it; and I've explained it a couple times to people who had tilt or other ego problems and they found it really helpful, so I put it in here.
Hit the nail on the head
20:12 ... materialism is weighing us all down man...too real.
I’m very interested in what you had said about following the history of opening popularity while building your own opening repertoire. (As well as learning many openings instead of one!!). Curious if you have more advice on the subject. I really think it’s important beginners start with madlad aggressive openings, learn to appreciate slower positional openings, then move on to a garden of all kinds of things
Good, solid, novice advice. 😎🙏👍
I am glad you weren’t dogmatic about time controls
Thank you for this video. I have been playing chess for a long time on and off, but I have been around 1100 - 1300 for decades. I have never really made a serious attempt to train, but now that I am nearing the end of my work career, I am going to do so. So.....do you have a video on your advice for those who have reached the 1200 level (and please let us know what range this advice for the next step would cover (like 1200 - 1500 or 1200 to 1800, or something else)?
Sorry, I don't yet have a 1200-1400 video, despite having put in a bunch of work on it last year. We are working together now on some training programs, so please stay tuned.
After a trash tournament, I figured I should watch this. I don't play consistent enough to say I am not a noob.
0:54 -- at almost 1800, I still do feel like a noob -_-
I've seen your games-- you are not!
Thank you for the video! Do you think you'll ever do a video more in depth on that idea that opening study / opening books are futile? It seems like a common trap we patzers fall into.
I have a few opening books (including a few on chessable) and I have found them very useful. But mostly for the annotated games inside of them. Niltris' e5 and d5 books especially have a lot of games inside of them.
I guess chessable falls into the point you made about 'not making moves that you don't understand'.
I think for me opening theory is one of those things like you said at the end, the stuff that is bad for you but it makes you more interested in chess.
Sure, I could do a video just focused on that topic. Some good annotated games can be useful; even well-explained opening analysis you could learn something from. But for an under 1200 player, it's a waste of time, unless, as you say, it inspires them.
@@chesscomdpruess I am like a 1900 chess.com blitz player, but when I was starting out my interest in chess definitely came from watching chess opening videos. It was counterproductive as at that that level it is all about tactics and basic endgames, but I enjoyed it.
I do really believe in the annotated games thing, I feel like my biggest gains in chess development have come from going over games. Agadmator and commonplace stuff really isn’t good for ‘annotated games’ either, there are no deeper concepts being explained, it is mostly just moves. I am not sure where you’d find annotated games except in a book.
Anyways, thanks for the reply and I am a huge fan of the channel! Also your chess raps are surprisingly good and I’ve shared them with even my non chess friends. The best chess related music on the internet!
@@andrewbernal9700 Yeah, I don't think the sort of "same day clickbait title play-through of a famous game" is really of much use, unless, again, it inspires someone. People used to labor for days and days on the annotations to a single game, and the fruit of that work is worthwhile. I am sure there are great examples of that online as well, but off-the-top of my head, I don't know any digital work that would compare with books by Polugaevsky, Kasparov, Tal, Alekhine, Botvinnik, Bronstein, etc...
Thanks for the compliment to my extremely amateur bur surprisingly not terrible raps. I have several more, but I don't have beats for them so haven't recorded. However, if you are looking for smth good, I think this is the best chess-related music on the internet: th-cam.com/video/Gnejsdojw7w/w-d-xo.html Cheers! :)
Actually, I would say that 2700s nowadays are so good, so cultured, so deeply knowledgeable, that pretty much anything they say could be of interest to a player at your level. All you have to do is search youtube for radjabov or svidler and I'm sure you'll find something incredible.
@@chesscomdpruess Thank you for the suggestion! I have heard some strong player commentary in the past and enjoyed it, but never really looked into it. That sounds like a great ides!
Thanks, great advice!
Great vid. -LL
Is it okay to use computer analysis now that they have feedback and show lines
No. Don't do it. The feedback and lines shown are of no use to an under1200 player.
Tabula Rasa - love it!!!
6:53 Or indeed the London system.
Bad advice
You should do this by level. I kinda feel like some of these rules would be slightly different for me (1450). Nevertheless, one of the best videos on the topic.
Indeed, the reason the advice is explicitly labeled as being for under1200 is that things do change by level. I have been thinking about a 1200-1400 video for a while now, but as you know, it gets increasingly complex at each new level! - David
im looking for a training partner im 1550 on chess.com rapid if anyone wnats to train together and talk about the games
Do you really think opening courses like the Lifetime Repertoires are 'terrible'? I get they aren't made for beginners but I don't get why they would be 'terrible'.
I have never seen an opening book or opening course that I would not actively discourage anyone under 1200 from reading. That said, due to forming a negative opinion on opening books long ago, I have never looked at a Lifetime Repertoire, so I don't really know much about them. I would guess that some of them are terrific for higher-rated club players-- but that's just a guess! - David
@@ChessDojo Thanks for the answer. I think there's a difference between memorizing an opening book vs using it as a reference. Let's say you are 1500- 1800 and decided to play the Semi-Slav. You learn some basic ideas and just play it in your games. In my view, it makes sense to have some kind of resource to look up after your games, see what the theory/course says and learn something. This way you slowly but steadily build your repertoire but are not completely in the dark on what lines to choose. At some point, it is nice to have some kind of repertoire.
"for noobs" lmao. Also yes, David, I'm a noob and you know that 😂
dont need to pay anyone zilch. there's enough tons of free information and steps. today were not in 1965 anymore
Just move the cursor away from the screen, we like chess, don't you know we are all psychos?
guys don’t take advice from David. He is not even a GM.
don't take advice from Obama-- he's a war criminal, which is worse than an IM.
You do realize, he has three Grandmaster Norms...?!
@@janwurm9212 yes I was actually joking, cuz David’s actually a really good player and the dojo likes to joke about that as well
@Siddhant Satao yeah. we've never had a nice guy as president in the US, but tons of war criminals.
Hi, David! My name Jose Afonso from Brazil. Would like to talk with you about private lesson. Best Regards!