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How to Gain 200 Points: Advice from Adult Improvers

We asked the ChessGoals community: What single tip, resource, or habit helped you gain your last 200 rating points? 66 adult improvers gave us their ratings, preferred servers, time control format, and their best tips. The first thing we did was convert every rating to a Chess.com Blitz equivalent using the ChessGoals rating comparison tables. As expected, improvement is not one-size-fits-all. What works for an 800-rated player is not the same as what helps an 1800 break a plateau. Here's what worked for our students at each rating range. <800:…

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October 11, 2026

General

How to Stop Blundering: Available Squares

In continuation of our How To Stop Blundering series, let's take a look at another position. Black just played the move Qf5. Black is looking to potentially clear the d-file, and to get queen closer to the action for an attack.. However, this gives our bishop no squares, and it can be trapped by the simple move: f3. Let’s follow our framework to improve and avoid this blunder in the future. And if you're interested in mastering the art of not blundering, check out our course: How to Stop Blundering.…

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November 26, 2025

General

How To Stop Blundering: Forbidden Pawn Captures

The easiest way to get better at chess is to stop being bad. We lose most of our games due to blunders. If we stop making blunders our rating will go up. But it isn’t so simple. It’s expected that our minds make the same mistakes over and over again. We can be aware of the mistakes and still see little or no improvement. What we need is deliberate training. Let's take a look at an example blunder and how to train our brains to not make the same blunder…

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November 19, 2025

General

Fix Your Planning Problems

Chess isn't just calculation, it's decision-making. A plan in chess is looking ahead multiple moves. Create a fantasy position in your head to aim for, even if you don't know how the game is going to get there. Most games are won by the player with the more clear plan. Free Calculation Course Defining a Plan A plan is a long-term idea based on the current position. It involves making goals, such as Control the open file Improve a piece Open the position Grab the bishop pair Target a weakness…

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November 13, 2025

Analysis

How to Kill Your Time Trouble

We have thousands of students at ChessGoals. One of the most common questions we get is how to avoid time trouble. Let's start by working backwards. What causes us to get low on the clock? No clear plan for time usage Overthinking "easy" positions Panic and rushing in critical moments Underestimating our opponent's time usage. With just a few adjustments, we can turn the clock into an asset instead of a liability. Get the cheat sheet Tip #1: Time Budget Think of your time as a budget. Don't spend it…

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November 12, 2025

General

London System: Slav, Bf5 & Bxb1!?

(guest post by James) Hi Goalies! Like me, I’m sure you have been enjoying the recent London System course prepared by Matt and Jesse. While I have been playing the London System for a few years already, it was great to see the fresh ideas they brought to the opening, and to see them give my pet set-up versus the Queen’s Indian the mark of approval (thanks guys!). In the spirit of contributing to the great Chess Goals community, I’d like to share with you some more home preparation to…

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June 13, 2023

General

Beating Caro-Kann Sidelines

This is a guest post from James Fazzolari. Thank you, James! Short & Sweet Guide to 5 Caro-Kann Minor Sidelines I recently spent time preparing for a five-day, nine-round Classical tournament. I normally feel comfortable with my mainlines for such an event since they come up all the time, and I am very familiar with the ideas, so I like to do some revision for minor sidelines which rarely come up since many of them have quite some bite if you are not well prepared. After speaking with Matt, we…

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May 7, 2023

General / Learner Series

Learner Series #9

I met Madhur in June of 2019 at the Rochester Open. He entered the event with an established USCF rating of 1034, scored 3/5 in the Under 1600 section, and increased his rating to 1200! Madhur has a passion for chess that's very obvious when you talk to him and I was very impressed by his play. Fast-forward less than 12 months and Madhur has increased his rating to 1601! This is definitely an interview to take some notes on! GENERAL OVERVIEW How old are you and how long have…

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June 7, 2020

Read more about the article Learner Series #8

Photo by Carlos Esteves on Unsplash

General / Learner Series

Learner Series #8

GENERAL OVERVIEW How old are you and how long have you been playing chess?I am 24, and I have been playing chess in my town club since September 2008 (so nearly 12 years).How many hours per week do you spend on chess?It depends on the period of the year but I would say a minimum of 5 hours and a max of 15 hours per week.Chess website usernames?_42_ (chess.com) and Harne (lichess.org)What's your current skill level or rating?I am around 1850 (FSE), 1950 (chess.com) and lichess PLAYING OVERVIEWOTBI play the two national…

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May 17, 2020

General / Learner Series

Learner Series #7

SmithyQ is an adult who improved from 1899 to 2054 in a one year period. He also has a chess improvement blog over at http://smithyq.com/. GENERAL OVERVIEWHow old are you and how long have you been playing chess?I learned chess at 6, got serious when I was a teenager but then quit for a decade when I couldn't seem to improve. Got back into it in my late 20s.How many hours per week do you spend on chess?When I was training more seriously: Anywhere from 30min to 2hrs a day,…

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May 13, 2020