Silman’s Suggestion for Making a Plan

1. Figure out positive and negative imbalances of both sides, i.e., (Material, Pawn Structure, Superior Minor Pieces, Space, Control of a Key File or Square, Lead in Development and Initiative).
2. Figure out the side of the board you wish to play on.
3. Dream up your fantasy position.
4. Figure out if you can reach your dream position? If you can't then dream up another dream position.
5. Now calculate different candidate moves and select one for execution.

What are Different Pawn Structures?

We can divide Pawn Structures into following 5 types to facilitate our discussion:

1. Closed Centre: White’s and Black’s pawns from an interlocked chain in the centre. With pawns in the centre wedged against each other, it is on the flanks that breakthroughs are usually made. Often the players take one flank each and then try to be first to break through. However, the rule “An attack on the flank is best answered by a counterattack in the centre” can be relevant even with a closed centre, as it may be possible to disintegrate the centre by sacrificing a piece.
2. Open Centre: There are no pawns in the centre. When the centre lacks pawns the position of the pieces grow in importance. Active piece play is the key to success. A common plan is to coordinate your troops to create weaknesses in the pawn structure on either flank. The rooks usually play an important role as they have good prospects on the open files, striving towards the seventh rank.
3. Fixed Centre: Two opposing pawns are nailed to each other. When a fixed structure in the centre there are various types of plans, but often it is important to get a grip on the centre and to reinforce it with pieces. After that, the attacker tries to create weaknesses in his opponent’s position, infiltrating with his pieces or starting an attack on the flank.
4. Mobile Centre: One of the players has two or more pawns that are capable of advancing in the centre. The side that has a mobile centre often wants to advance the pawns to create a passed pawn. However, if the opponent prevents this, an attack on the king might become possible, as the opponent’s troops are focused on controlling the centre. The side that plays against a mobile centre wants to control and blockade the pawns, and later to undermine them and destroy the centre.
5. Fluid Centre: The structure of the centre is not yet decided. Both players must strive for the centre.

Chess Strategy by Edward Lasker

 

No one can deny the fact that any player of chess who have read “Chess Strategy” found it helpful and pleasurable experience. Chess novice who can’t afford a chess instructor, can greatly benefit from this book.

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Chess Fundamentals By Jose Capablanca

 

Jose Capablanca in his classic instruction manual “Chess Fundamentals” gave timeless advices on various facets of practical play. He utilized his own games to give practical tips.
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8 Tips for Analyzing your Chess Games

 

One of the best habit a beginner needs to develop in order to improve his game of chess is analysis of one’s own game. Here are few tips for chess novice on how to analyze his game:

1. It is highly recommended that you must maintain a database of all your games.
2. Analyze your game as soon as possible, preferably, immediately after the game has finished. It will help you in putting your thoughts which you had during the game easy. This practice help in remembering and understanding the reasons why you made the mistakes.
3. Run your chess software to run through your game in blunder check mode, to know major blunders you and your opponent made during the game.
4. Try to identify the critical moments of the game. Critical moments are times when evaluation of position significantly changes and advantage shifts from one side to the other?
5. Don’t forget to analyze the opening used in the game. Update your opening repertoire, if necessary.
6. Don’t just analyze the game in terms of variations, instead give verbal comments on critical positions. If in your opinion white is better explain why.
7. After you have completed analysis, give a short summary of the game. Where was the game decided – opening, middle game, endgame or tactical blunder?
8. Periodically, look at the trends in your games. Is your opening play weak or you play bad in the endgames? Can you fill the gap in your chess knowledge by study?

How Not to Play Chess by Eugene Znosko-Borovsky

 

“How Not to Play Chess” remained a chess classic in literature. It trains you to understand a difficult position easily. This book is aimed at beginners and average chess players.

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3 Commonly Used Excuses for Not Playing Chess

I wonder why people stop playing chess after they have learned the game and enjoyed it for quite some time. Excuses which they commonly use are following:

• "I don't like losing." The truth is no one like to loose in chess. It busts your ego. But we can turn that bad experience in an opportunity for improvement by analyzing the game, identifying our mistakes and making a positive correction for the future.
• "I don't know the chess openings well enough (or the middle game, or the endgame, etc.)". So What? The real enjoyment in chess lies in discovering something you don’t know.
• "My rating might go down." No one likes to see his/her rating go down. Chess is supposed to be an enjoyable recreation? If it is not for you then there is no need to play it in the first place. Actually, rating is a tool to measure your chess progress only.

So, hey folks, get out of your hibernation period and make no further excuses. Enjoy the game of Kings!

How to Improve Your Chess Instantly Within a Day

Chess novice can improve his/her game instantly, if following four point thinking process is followed in every chess move he/she plays:

1) Avoid en prise blunders
Right after opponent's move, think which of your pieces are under direct attack and your opponent can capture them in one move.

2) Find en prise blunders
Look at the board, after opponent’s move, and note which of your opponent’s pieces, you can capture.

3) Chess vision defense
Right after opponent's move, look at the board and think which of your pieces can be forked, skewered, or pinned on his following move.

4) Chess vision offense
Before you move, note which of your opponent's pieces can be forked, skewered, or pinned.