Ask Me Anything (AMA) session with Grandmaster Axel Smith

Hey there! We have thrilling news! Join us for an Ask Me Anything (AMA) session with Grandmaster Axel Smith, a renowned Chessable author and expert in chess improvement.  

Axel, from Sweden, has authored highly influential books, including Pump Up Your Rating and The Woodpecker Method (watch the method explained here). His powerful training techniques consistently enable players at all levels to sharpen their study habits and improve their game, so this is an excellent opportunity for you to send all your chess questions! 

Axel will be here in this forum thread answering all questions on Friday, February 7, but you can already submit them in advance from now! 

Also, we’ll give two lucky participants a one-month Diamond Membership. Don’t miss out on this opportunity!

Enjoy!

Hi, Could you tell how should we improve with the woodpecker method, the psychology and the pros and cons behind it?

Hi GM, how can i improve my chess vision?

What do you recommend for a player stuck at the same elo (me and multiple of my friends are stuck) like 1000, 1200, etc. and not able to break that barrier?

How to know that a particular openning if fit to your style or not ?

How to see chess tactics better?

What are the best(safest) opening options for playing a much higher rated player for white and black? What are the most aggressive openings?

What should i do to improve to be even better? Im a 2000 currently.

Can you tell me if books with chess puzzles on a particular topic are useful?? Also, how much time and puzzles does it generally take??

and me, stuck at 950

Best methods for calculating , analyzing and evaluating.

Sir my chess.com blitz rating right now is around 2200, how important is endgames at this level

how to use your time in classical chess because im playing my moves instantly and im not using my time for example i played a 30+10 game and end it with 32m

Hi Axel, hope you're doing well. My question is what games from Tata Steel 2025 are the best games to learn from for intermediate - Expert players, which yield the most important information for these players.

Keep up the great work Axel!

My question: Are openings that important? I mean if I analyse each of my opponent's possible reply for 1-2 moves deep during the openings phase, I won't lose material to tactics. I suppose that any opening that doesn't allow the opponent to checkmate my king or win material in the short term is usable? (I'm 559 blitz, 1243 rapid, 1132 daily, 2024 puzzles)

How can I become the best chess player in the history of chess?

How can I spot checkmate from 5 moves and above even when it's not obvious?

Some say the right move full of analysis is the key to winning in a chess match some say understanding the chess opening is the most important, but I'm confused which one is the most important. So what does GM Axel Smith think is the most important thing for a chess player?. Thank you sir for your attention

Will “Woodpecker Method 3: Endgames” ever come out?

Is chess a particular talent that you have naturally, or can anyone with a high IQ get really good at it?