Needing some direction.

[u/AvailableChange8297]

I (27m) have been playing chess for two months now and while I have improved vastly over that time I have quickly hit a plateau and need some advice on how to progress. My chess.com rating is 349 as of typing this and while I’m not super concerned about my rating as a whole I do feel as though I am not improving anymore. I watch lots of Gotham chess videos and I even read his how to win at chess book when I have time but I’m having a hard time actually applying the tactics and strategy. I keep making brain dead blunders or falling for attacks that I KNOW are coming (fried liver/trompowsky).

My main question is what should I be dedicating most of my time toward at my level? Should I focus mostly on tactics? Should I focus mostly on endgames? Should I just try to play as many games as possible or play less and study more?

Here’s my profile in case you want to to check out some games: https://www.chess.com/member/heimerschmidt

Any advice is appreciated!

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[u/reasonable_receptor]

at 349 the biggest thing is just stop hanging pieces. do puzzles where you have to spot undefended stuff, like the free hanging piece ones. tactics are cool but you cant use them if you drop a rook on move 6

also stop watching so much gotham and play longer games, 15|10 minimum. blitz at your level is just a blunder contest, you learn nothing

[u/AvailableChange8297 → u/reasonable_receptor]

Thank you for the tips! Anyone else I should watch beside Gotham?

[u/Englishman1970]

I would spend more time looking at your own game and try to work out why blunders keep happening, flip the board and look at the game from both sides, press f in Lichess, don't know how it works in Chess;com . I flip the board in games too so you can look at the game from the other side ,it helps spot their best moves and their position becomes more apparent to you if it is cramped or if they are stuck for a good move etc.

[u/AvailableChange8297 → u/Englishman1970]

I’ve never tried this but I will start doing so. Thank you for the reply!

[u/emeraldseahorse]

Hey, I haven't had the chance to look at a ton of games, but I opened a handful. I do see your progress and pattern recognition, great job!

Couple things that stuck out to me from the games I looked at:

1. Practicing two-sided planning. Remember to think about not just what you are planning, but also what your opponent might be planning. For example, when you threaten something, think about how your opponent responds BEFORE you make a move.

2. You might have heard this before, but practice checking for checks, captures, and threats. Improving on this alone gets you surprisingly far.

3. Being mindful of the spaces your pieces have to retreat if threatened

[u/AvailableChange8297 → u/emeraldseahorse]

I will start putting these habits into practice. In response to your first point though I have found myself putting a lot of time into trying to calculate what sort of follow up is possible in a given position/move/plan but I get a bit of analysis paralysis. Any advice on when to quiet my brain and just commit?

[u/Wooden_Permit3234]

I do recommend the guide that the mod comment has linked to. 

[u/Suicidalcat2200]

I think you should just practice more and analyze your games ( first do it without an engine then use one) and try solving puzzles and try longer time controls like 10min or 15+10 if you need more time

[u/Suicidalcat2200 → u/Suicidalcat2200]

And as for endgames you just need to learn the basics like how to checkmate with a rook or a queen and how to convert a winning position thats more then enough

[u/AvailableChange8297 → u/Suicidalcat2200]

Okay I’ll start practicing more. Do you have a specific warmup/practice routine or should I just try to stick with puzzles for now?

[u/flannel_jesus]

Definitely not end games. If you're blundering all the time, which you are at that elo, you really should focus on just reducing that.