The First Step

Whenever we start a new task or start walking towards a aim the goal and results does not matter most its the journey and company one remembers 

About this Blog- This blog will cover about how i started my chess journey and how did i cross my first milestone and how can you cross that first milestone of yours . few recommendations 

Suitable Audience- This Blog can be useful and readable for everyone but preferably fresh players should read this blog or the ones who are stuck on some early (400-500) rating and not able to improve .

It was my first milestone to cross 300-400 elo mark as i remember i was stuck on that rating for almost a year and then i changed my techniques and way of approach which lead me not just to cross 400 elo mark but reach 1200 and 1500(AICF rating)

How I started my Chess Journey

Exact at which age i started playing the game i don't remember , but yes during my childhood i have seen my dad playing chess with his friend on one fine sunday , that made me curious about the game and then i learnt about chess.

I have played with few of my friends earlier then registered at AICF and played few tournaments then back in 2022 i came across chess.com and i joined and started playing here .

Experience and Thoughts About the Game

Chess for me initially was just random pieces moving randomly making me sad as i dint knew how exactly to play . then after learning few openings and seeing my friends games started developing my own strategies and that improved my game. 

Chess for me is now my favorite Hobby , i also aim to play it professionally . Chess has not only made me learn patience but also helped me becoming strategical in life . I usually put on music and play chess to relax myself now a days .

How Do i cross my first milestone 

To cross your first Milestone (400 elo mark) you need to try following steps

• Play more frequently 
• Analyze your mistakes
• Try playing short time games such as Bullet and Blitz, as these types of games are very useful they help you to play more games in less amount of time and learning more + teaching you to learn how to control time .
• Learn time management - most of the players initially lose games on time , solution is given below
• learn basic opening (King pawn or Queen pawn)

Playing more frequently makes you more familiar with the board and the usual mistakes you do . Always not just playing is not important , there is a famous saying "learn from your mistakes" , thus analyzing your game is equally important to grow .

When one starts to learn how to walk he learns from his mistakes and tries again n again and finally starts to walk similarly you should analyze you game and look at the following things

• What mistakes i made in the game       
• What could be the situation if i would have made this move instead of that
• Which are the common mistakes i am making which are making me loose (for ex- leaving a piece uncovered or frequently getting trapped in a type)

Playing shorter time control games - These are one of the best things that help improve as in same time you play more games and gain experience more than rapid timing games . This also teaches how to manage your time in game . try watching on clock while playing , when your opponent is taking time to think you think which moves he can make and what could be your possible response to them . Such as Blitz and Bullet

Learning few openings will help you to be assure of your moves and consequences . you will make few initial moves such that you cannot be defeated in first few moves and if anyone tries to break your position by exchanging pieces you should not be in bad position . 

Few Basic Openings That i should know

 1. KING PAWN and variations 

2. Queen Pawn 

Resources i should use to learn-

• Youtube Gotham Chess
•  Youtube games between Titled players , all major games available at Chessbase India YT channel
• Chessable free lessons (you can try paid also if you see improvement)
• Chess.com lessons and openings tutorial available 
• Games of GM's at their profile and your higher rated friends games
• Books

Books -

• Dark Square by Daniel Rensch
• Under the Surface by Jan Makros
• Practical Chess Beauty by Yochanan Afek

Thanks for tuning in 

Cheers and Happy Chessing !!

You can comment down which topic i should cover my next blog on 

all suggestions and feedbacks are very much appreciated . Surely will work on feedbacks . Also if you want me to review any Chess Book and make a review and short summary blog do let me know the name and author in comments 

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