It makes sense that Volume 13 of OMC Weekend Review would take on a somewhat somber tone. I recently wrote a post about reaching 950 ELO in blitz, but today I watched in agony as my ELO dropped to 806 before rebounding to 816. Suffice to say that things are extremely frustrating around here right now and I would be lying if I said that there were not times this week that I did not seriously consider quitting chess altogether.

However, I do realize that players of all levels suffer setbacks and must make corrections to their games to improve. In my case, it seems that the methods I have adopted are simply not working, so something else must be done. To that effect, I have adopted a new series of rules for my chess playing that I hope will improve my game:

  • No more blitz games. Speed chess is fun, but it does not seem to be helping me improve my game in any significant way. Therefore, it is no more.
  • One correspondence game at a time. This may sound silly, but I need to begin working on increasing my focus level before playing more than one game at a time. When the Chess.com U1200 tournament is over, that will be my last multi-game session for a while.
  • Reset my chess reading list. Pandolfini’s Ultimate Guide to Chess and Silman’s How to Reassess Your Chess are now #1 and #2 respectively on my reading list.
  • Watch more chess. The World Championship is being played in Sochi, Russia right now, so it is a perfect time to take a step back from the board and watch how the masters do it.

To those people that may be reading this blog for the first time, this post should also serve as a reminder that this site’s primary purpose is to serve as a conduit for me to share my journey as I work to get better at chess. The news, reviews, and reflection articles are nice, but they are not the core of this site. As always, I appreciate everyone’s willingness to read this blog and the support that I get from friends and family toward my obsession.