stuck in 550-600

Quit playing speed chess.

Here's some basic steps that are commonly given as advice:

1) Learn the opening principles (and challenge yourself to follow them during a game)
https://www.chess.com/article/view/the-principles-of-the-opening

2) Learn basic tactics. If you can't set up a basic example position for each of the following terms, then be sure to google them and learn them. These are basic patterns that appear over and over in games. (I purposefully grouped them in pairs, for example a fork and double attack are similar).

Fork, double attack, pin, skewer, removing the defender, overworked piece, discovered attack, discovered check.

3. Be greedy! Do your best to not lose anything for free, not even a single pawn. Do your best to check whether your opponent's last move lets you win something of theirs for free. Be sure to look at all your moves that are a check, capture, or threat. If one sequence of captures or checks doesn't win material, then check a different move order.

4. Play long time controls. This will give you the chance to use the opening principles, tactics, and thinking techniques explained above to the best of your abilities... and when you do this then you'll be forming good habits.

5. Review your games, and choose 1 or 2 big mistakes to focus on. Recall what you were thinking of during the game when the mistake was played. Think to yourself what you'll try to do differently next time so you can avoid this mistake in the future.

The best thing you can do at that rating is to avoid one move blunders i.e. don't give your opponent free pieces. This is such a big thing, and eliminating these will almost certainly improve your rating to a point where tactics etc. will benefit your game.

You should also do the reverse, and be on the lookout for material that your opponent gives away for free.

Finally, you should learn to checkmate with king and queen vs king if you don't know already.

I'd say that is all you really need to get to around 800-900. Past that, some basic tactics would be good.

A rating of 550 - 600 indicates frequent blundering. Always check your intended move is no blunder before you play it. That alone will get you to 1500.

Dear CIKvagabond,

I am a certified, full-time chess coach and International Master, so I have seen it and tried it all.
There are so many ways to get better and I know it can be overwhelming.
You can learn from free videos on youtube, there are books at your disposal that can all help, but they are not tailored to your needs.

One of the most important things you can do is to analyze your games! You must learn from your mistakes! That is a priority. You can't really move on to a new, different topic and learn new ideas if you still make the same mistakes over and over again!

This is where a chess coach comes into the picture. A good coach can show you how to study,  what to study, and give you the material YOU need. Naturally, it takes time to use everything in practice, but you will succeed if you are relentless and persistent!
You should learn the main principles in every area of the game (opening, middlegame, endgame).  Don't focus on only one part! You should improve your tactical vision as well as it is part of all areas!  
This how I built my training program for my students. We discuss more than one topic during a lesson so it's always interesting and they can improve constantly. I give homework too and the right tools to make practicing enjoyable and effective!
Don't worry about your rating and the ups and downs! Just keep on playing and practicing!

I hope this helps.  I wish you good games and 100+ extra ratings

Improving Your Chess - Resources for Beginners and Beyond...

https://www.chess.com/blog/RussBell/improving-your-chess-resources-for-beginners-and-beyond

I just looked at your most recent game--a 10 minute game. Yet you played it as if it were a 3 minute blitz. At the end you still had 8:19 left. True, you won when he moved Kd1, but what if he had taken Qxf2, Nxf2, Kxf2? You would have been substantially behind in material because you didn't take the time to consider the opponent's reply. 

Also, in the same game, you started 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Bd6. No one defends the e pawn with that move because it blocks the d7 pawn and therefore locks in the c8 bishop. So learn a few basic openings, try to anticipate your opponent's BEST replies, make sure all your pieces are defended, and SLOW THE HECK DOWN!

Do tons of puzzles. Also, don’t rush through your games. 

More bad advice.  Doing a "ton" of puzzles wont make you a better player.  Chess study is quality over quantity.  It wont make a bit of difference if youre doing 300 puzzles a day and dont remember the theme, what caused the tactic, and how the position arrived at the tactic. 

Tactics should be done slowly.  Look for forcing moves.  Compare space, material, piece activity, weakness(es) in the opponents position.  What caused the tactic?  Play through the game so you gain some understanding of how the position arrived at the tactic.  What is the theme?  What caused the weakness?

Doing 3 tactics a day and understanding how the tactics developed will do more to grow your game than doing 100 tactics and remembering nothing.

Ah, I see. My bad. Just listen to @IMBacon.

Oh No...dont listen to me.  Take what i posted as advice.  Pick and choose what works best for you.

Been there myself. If you find yourself stuck at a rating, you should analyze your games and moves. Even 1 analyzed game a day for non-members is enough to get important info of how you play and how you could play better. The most important thing you should analyze in my opinion is ironically, your blunders or big mistakes and realizing the reason behind making such mistakes. Let's say your blunder is hanging a piece (giving away anything that isn't a pawn for free). Ask yourself, why did you hang said piece? Did you simply not notice that it was in danger? Were you under time trouble or immense pressure from the opponent's attack? Or did you miss a tactic from your opponent that could've been stopped? Finding the main reasons why you make your blunders and finding solutions to prevent them from happening is a key step to becoming a better chess player. A general rule of thumb is to play longer time controls (15-30 minutes recommended). That way you have more than enough time to think and make better moves and prevent cases of time trouble from happening.

Bro I cannot express how much this helped me thank you so much!

Hi! My name is Lauren Goodkind and I’m a chess coach and chess YouTuber based in California: 

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCP5SPSG_sWSYPjqJYMNwL_Q

I'm glad you want to get better at chess.  

I have tips to help you improve your chess skills so you can win more games.  

-I  offer a  free beginner’s free eBook on my website, www.ChessByLauren.com in case you are interested. The book is about asking questions before each move.  

-Learn basic tactics such as the fork, discovered attack, pin, and more.  I offer interactive puzzles on my website: https://www.chessbylauren.com/two-choice-puzzles.php  

-I recommend two books for you: “50 Poison Pieces”   and “Queen For A Day: The Girl’s Guide To Chess Mastery.”  Both books are available on Amazon.com.  Both books are endorsed by chess masters!  

-If you are serious about chess, I highly recommend you hiring a chess coach to help you.  

-Also consider all checks and captures on your side and also your opponent’s side. Always as, “If I move here, where is my opponent going to move?”

I hope that this helps.  

I am 600 my opponents do 0 blunders, and usually 2 or 3 great moves. There is something wrong here....

Improving at chess is usually not easy. If you can afford few lessons, I would advise getting a coach. I can teach you how to think during the chess game. After that, your progress is inevitable.

If you can't afford any lessons, here is the excerpt from very good article on how to improve:

Play a lot, analyze your games, and primarily study tactics. Your knowledge of openings, endgame, middlegame, etc. will come from analyzing your games and going over grandmaster games. Only study one of those specific topics if it is clear you are specifically losing because of that topic.

Source: https://www.gautamnarula.com/how-to-get-good-at-chess-fast/

Good luck either way!

please check my youtube it will help you improve

Hi guys

I opened a new youtube channel, my elo is 1800.

my videos can help you big time improving your chess skill and tactics

please check them out, and i will be happy for any of your support  

part 1 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JrBgFQ_NY-A

part 2 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zprO3JNc4kY

I will upload more and more videos in the future

good luck