Read Books About The Different Areas In Chess (Opening,Middle Game, Endgame,Etc) Study Them Thoroughly And Review GM Games. Play Blindfold Chess Or Even Just in Your Head And Replay The Game From Memory OTB. Tactics On Chess Tempo help With Calculation do 100 a day correctly and You Should Start Improving.
Books I Recommend:
1.60 Most Memorable Games By Bobby Fischer
2.Think Like A Grand Master By Alexander Kotov
Read (moderately) some chess books. Play much, and when you play, think about concepts you read. It's very good to learn first BASIC concepts (at the beginnign, many books are too much difficult and scarsely you understand them) . the best book: CHESS FUNDAMENTALS of CAPABLANCA . he begins from essential simply position ...
"The Inner Game of Chess" by Andrew Soltis is a excellent guide on how to calculate. This book adds to and refines the calculation methods in "Think Like a Grandmaster". Soltis's books can be very good or very mediocre; this is one of the very good ones.
Another book that just came out yesterday is "Better Thinking, Better Chess" by Joel Benjamin. I haven't seen the book yet, but from the preview available on Amazon it appears to have a heavy emphasis on calculation. It might be worth checking out.
Calculate mate in 2 puzzles. If it's no longer challenging, mate in 3 then mate in 4. Good luck.
"The Inner Game of Chess" by Andrew Soltis is a excellent guide on how to calculate. This book adds to and refines the calculation methods in "Think Like a Grandmaster". Soltis's books can be very good or very mediocre; this is one of the very good ones.
Did that book help Mike? I'm thinking about buying it. I read the Kotov book when I was a teenager and thought it was just a mish-mash of things that were obvious - like deriving a "tree of variations" - and things that I thought were impractical, like never double checking a variation. I came to the conclusion that the ability to calculate is somehow buried deep within my brain, and not something I can consciously address. Maybe it can be improved by practicing though.
What is the book's take on this? Does it help with the way you calculate, or is it practical suggestions on how to practice in order to calculate better?
"The Inner Game of Chess" by Andrew Soltis is a excellent guide on how to calculate. This book adds to and refines the calculation methods in "Think Like a Grandmaster". Soltis's books can be very good or very mediocre; this is one of the very good ones.
Did that book help Mike? I'm thinking about buying it. I read the Kotov book when I was a teenager and thought it was just a mish-mash of things that were obvious - like deriving a "tree of variations" - and things that I thought were impractical, like never double checking a variation. I came to the conclusion that the ability to calculate is somehow buried deep within my brain, and not something I can consciously address. Maybe it can be improved by practicing though.
What is the book's take on this? Does it help with the way you calculate, or is it practical suggestions on how to practice in order to calculate better?
Matt, the book addresses how to calculate. Kotov (which I too studied many years ago) has about 80 pages in the section on calculation, while Soltis spends the entire 345 pages of his book on the subject. Soltis does adopt the concept of a tree of analysis, but departs from Kotov in many respects.
I've finished about 2/3 of the book and have learned a great deal from it. Perhaps the most striking insight is the importance of evaluating a position in the process of calculation. Before starting to calculate, an accurate evaluation gives you ideas about what to actually calculate, i.e., candidate moves. Kotov pretty much restricts his discussion of the concept of candidate moves to highly tactical situations, while Soltis shows how to apply it to any type of position. He also demonstrates the importance of accurately evaluating the position at the end of the analytical line for each candidate move.
This just hits a couple of high points from the book. There is much practical advice on various aspects of calculation (i.e., the importance of forcing moves, when to stop calculating, choosing between two favorable lines, the danger of assuming your opponent's responses are forced, etc.). I am convinced that one's ability to calculate can be improved, and this book is very helpful in that endeavor.
Hi OPMike, et al,
Do you know any 2200 strength players who are "slow calculators" Could you respond in this thread:
https://www.chess.com/forum/view/chess-players/who-is-the-slowest-calculator-that-you-know-who-is-also-currently-2200-strength-any-im
Maybe they're slow because they are trying to calculate farther.
Matt, the book addresses how to calculate. Kotov (which I too studied many years ago) has about 80 pages in the section on calculation, while Soltis spends the entire 345 pages of his book on the subject. Soltis does adopt the concept of a tree of analysis, but departs from Kotov in many respects.
I've finished about 2/3 of the book and have learned a great deal from it. Perhaps the most striking insight is the importance of evaluating a position in the process of calculation. Before starting to calculate, an accurate evaluation gives you ideas about what to actually calculate, i.e., candidate moves. Kotov pretty much restricts his discussion of the concept of candidate moves to highly tactical situations, while Soltis shows how to apply it to any type of position. He also demonstrates the importance of accurately evaluating the position at the end of the analytical line for each candidate move.
I've known that this is important for some time, but find it seriously difficult. I have enough trouble seeing the position a few moves ahead, let alone making an evaluation. Does Soltis provide any helpful advise on how to do this? Any advice on how to train yourself in this skill? For example, you can train your visualisation skill without training calculation - but I don't know how useful this is
This just hits a couple of high points from the book. There is much practical advice on various aspects of calculation (i.e., the importance of forcing moves, when to stop calculating, choosing between two favorable lines, the danger of assuming your opponent's responses are forced, etc.). I am convinced that one's ability to calculate can be improved, and this book is very helpful in that endeavor.
Well if this ability can be improved then we can get better at chess, since calculation is the most important thing
There are so many ways, but I would really recommend studying online with some interactive options, like you can get here or through books on Chessable, I can recommend https://www.chessable.com/improve-your-chess-tactics-700-practical-lessons-exercises/course/8527/ in this particular case 
Well if this ability can be improved then we can get better at chess, since calculation is the most important thing
Calculation is indeed the most important thing. We've all heard the saying that chess is 99% tactics, but that isn't true. Chess is 99% calculation. I think the confusion in the famous saying results from the fact that some writers conflate tactics and calculation, and that's what the author of that saying did.
Does he seperate position evaluation from calculation as processes or combine them as one?
Also, I have Soltis' Pawn Structure Chess, but it's in the old notation format (P-QB4 instead of c5 for black) and very hard to comprehend for me. Which is used in this one?
Soltis doesn't separate them. Evaluation of the position, including both positional factors and tactical themes, is the starting point for figuring out what to calculate, i.e., what moves you should consider. Then, at the end of each "tree branch", you evaluate the final position to assess whether to enter into that sequence. So calculation and evaluation are closely intertwined.
This book is in algebraic notation.
The key to solving exercises at home is to do them right. This means that it requires some self-honesty; you can’t be soft on yourself because your opponent won’t be! So if you’re missing moves in your calculation don’t think that “I would have seen it” or “I saw this move but missed his answer” etc. Try to do the next one right. You should also annotate your answers on a piece of paper in order to confront your own mistakes. Writing down the moves somehow feels like playing the move in a real game; there are no take-backs.
This practice has always been there but it seems it doesn’t quite catch among chess players. Most of them find them too hard and since it’s a composed position it may look rather unlikely to happen at the board. However, this is irrelevant; try to solve it anyway! The studies will expand your imagination to another dimension which can be applied in your games. Highly recommended practice.
One big part of the calculation is knowing “what to calculate” in a position. You need to become familiar with the candidate moves, therefore it is useful to find and solve exercises where the goal is not to win by some direct combination but to make practical decisions.
The benefits of this practice are obvious. If you can play a full game without seeing the board and without making fatal mistakes, it is great news. The visualization of positions and potential positions that are not on the board is important. Many mistakes occur because we forget where a piece was after we calculate 3-4 moves ahead.
Make sure you set a time limit to solve your puzzles. Start with 15-20 min and continue by using less and less time on the next ones. Nowadays it is not only important to play well but also to play fast. Precise calculation under time pressure is a huge plus at tournaments.
We are not big fans of a blitz games overdose. However, a small number of blitz games can be a quick way to improve your play. You still need to try your best; instead of playing for flag you should be trying to outplay your opponent by making good moves.
There are several techniques when it comes to starting calculating your chosen candidate moves. We have the preference for two, as they work very well in practice:
Instead of looking for the virtues of a move try to work out the flaws it has. If from 4 candidate moves you have refuted three, then your choice is clear. You don’t know the consequences of the 4th candidate move, but you know the other 3 lead to defeat!
The most difficult positions to calculate are those in which everything looks like a good move, as this is very often an illusion. Pick similar moves and compare the differences between them.
Read a book or magazine with games without the board and see how far you can go without losing the image of the position in your mind. This can be done anytime and anywhere but it is easier said than done. It requires deep concentration and yes, it does work!
Nowadays it’s quite common that we follow chess games from tournaments all around the world. Most broadcasting platforms have the possibility of turning on an engine to tell us in one second what is happening. Do not do it; get used to think for yourself and find the moves while you’re following. Sometimes your thoughts will match high level players.
@OldPatzerMike, thanks for your replies
No problem, Matt. I'm convinced that improving one's thought process, including how to calculate efficiently and accurately, is a major key to chess improvement. Still trying to figure it all out, but I'm quite certain that Soltis is helping me a lot.
For what it is worth, the Kindle version of the Soltis book does have a free sample you can look at to decide if it is your cup of tea or not.
There are so many ways, but I would really recommend studying online with some interactive options, like you can get here or through books on Chessable, I can recommend https://www.chessable.com/improve-your-chess-tactics-700-practical-lessons-exercises/course/8527/ in this particular case
I do enjoy Chesable as well, for the early birds like myself I really like https://www.chessable.com/essential-rp-vs-r-endings/course/90/
Has anyone read both The Inner game of Chess and How to choose a Chess move?
They are both by Andrew Soltis and I already have the latter. I'm going to get this one too hoping they are different enough to learn something more. I really like the subject of the book and I have always thought that visualization was extremely important.
I have just joined this website for nearly a month but i want to improve more on my calculation n chess games.Just want to ask for opinion on how can i improve on my calculation on strategy,tactics ,endgame or opening?