[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":121},["ShallowReactive",2],{"post-\u002Fblog\u002F5-habits-of-fast-improving-chess-players":3},{"_path":4,"_dir":5,"_draft":6,"_partial":6,"_locale":7,"title":8,"description":9,"date":10,"category":11,"body":12,"_type":115,"_id":116,"_source":117,"_file":118,"_stem":119,"_extension":120},"\u002Fblog\u002F5-habits-of-fast-improving-chess-players","blog",false,"","5 Habits of Fast-Improving Chess Players","The simple, repeatable habits that separate players who plateau from those who keep climbing — straight from 35 years of coaching.","2026-05-12","Improvement",{"type":13,"children":14,"toc":107},"root",[15,23,30,35,41,46,52,65,71,76,82,87],{"type":16,"tag":17,"props":18,"children":19},"element","p",{},[20],{"type":21,"value":22},"text","Most players don't get stuck because they lack talent. They get stuck because of habits. After 35 years of coaching, here are the five that consistently move players forward.",{"type":16,"tag":24,"props":25,"children":27},"h2",{"id":26},"_1-analyse-your-own-games",[28],{"type":21,"value":29},"1. Analyse your own games",{"type":16,"tag":17,"props":31,"children":32},{},[33],{"type":21,"value":34},"The single most valuable thing you can do is look back at your games — especially the losses. Where did the position turn? What were you actually thinking? You learn far more from one honest review than from ten games played on autopilot.",{"type":16,"tag":24,"props":36,"children":38},{"id":37},"_2-solve-tactics-every-day",[39],{"type":21,"value":40},"2. Solve tactics every day",{"type":16,"tag":17,"props":42,"children":43},{},[44],{"type":21,"value":45},"Just 10–15 minutes of puzzles a day sharpens your pattern recognition. Chess is roughly 99% tactics for improving players — train them like a musician trains scales.",{"type":16,"tag":24,"props":47,"children":49},{"id":48},"_3-have-a-small-solid-opening-repertoire",[50],{"type":21,"value":51},"3. Have a small, solid opening repertoire",{"type":16,"tag":17,"props":53,"children":54},{},[55,57,63],{"type":21,"value":56},"You don't need 20 openings. You need a handful you understand. Depth beats breadth: know ",{"type":16,"tag":58,"props":59,"children":60},"em",{},[61],{"type":21,"value":62},"why",{"type":21,"value":64}," the moves are played, not just the order.",{"type":16,"tag":24,"props":66,"children":68},{"id":67},"_4-play-longer-games",[69],{"type":21,"value":70},"4. Play longer games",{"type":16,"tag":17,"props":72,"children":73},{},[74],{"type":21,"value":75},"Blitz is fun, but real improvement comes from games where you have time to think, calculate and make a plan. Slow down to speed up.",{"type":16,"tag":24,"props":77,"children":79},{"id":78},"_5-get-feedback-from-a-coach",[80],{"type":21,"value":81},"5. Get feedback from a coach",{"type":16,"tag":17,"props":83,"children":84},{},[85],{"type":21,"value":86},"A coach sees the blind spots you can't. The right nudge at the right moment can save you months of frustration.",{"type":16,"tag":88,"props":89,"children":90},"blockquote",{},[91],{"type":16,"tag":17,"props":92,"children":93},{},[94,96,105],{"type":21,"value":95},"Want help building these habits? ",{"type":16,"tag":97,"props":98,"children":102},"a",{"href":99,"rel":100},"https:\u002F\u002Fwa.me\u002F27714485992",[101],"nofollow",[103],{"type":21,"value":104},"Message me on WhatsApp",{"type":21,"value":106}," — I coach online and in person.",{"title":7,"searchDepth":108,"depth":108,"links":109},2,[110,111,112,113,114],{"id":26,"depth":108,"text":29},{"id":37,"depth":108,"text":40},{"id":48,"depth":108,"text":51},{"id":67,"depth":108,"text":70},{"id":78,"depth":108,"text":81},"markdown","content:blog:5-habits-of-fast-improving-chess-players.md","content","blog\u002F5-habits-of-fast-improving-chess-players.md","blog\u002F5-habits-of-fast-improving-chess-players","md",1789803685609]