7 Super Tips – How to prepare for chess tournaments successfully

7 Tips – How to prepare for chess tournaments successfully

I would like to share some thoughts on this aspect of Chess. How to prepare for chess tournaments. I am sharing these techniques as I have seen the impact of these points personally.

The players I am directing today’s blog post are in the Beginner to intermediate strength and for higher rated players the mileage may vary depending on a myriad of other factors in play (mainly based on age).

Success does not come randomly in a day. It is merely a by-product of doing things correctly consistently.

Before going any further I would suggest reading my previous articles on The esoteric art of learning chess to help you open your eyes to innovative techniques. and How to increase positional chess knowledge. These articles explain something that is out of the box, and that worked for me.

Let us get on with the points in contention – how to prepare for chess tournaments:

1. Eating Right, Sleeping right, and Living Right: I would say in general keep a positive state of mind and nurture emotions and feelings of hopefulness, joy, and plenty of laughter (I recall watching loads of comedy films). This will ease the pressure that builds up for some players.
2. Creative Problem Solving: I would encourage you to keep your mind sharp and flexible by learning other games and puzzles outside of chess such as GO, Scrabble, Sudoku, Shogi, etc. Learning new skills and thinking about the connections to chess, is a creative way to give your mind a break from chess while still staying, “in the zone”.
3. The Power of Visualization and Positive Thinking: Let us face it. We all have hopes and fears of the upcoming event; why not build yourself up to being a confident player, who believes he is going to be fighting for the first prize in the final round and coming out on top. Try it while you are in the act of studying chess or playing casual games or training games; see yourself playing these same winning moves at the tournament. Try to imagine yourself putting all that work into action; playing strong chess and avoiding bad habits (playing too fast, getting up from the board, not getting tired, blunders). Confidence and “game” are huge parts of the chess battle. In many games, I have observed it comes down to who has more confidence, will, and energy than anything else.
4. Sharpening Up: Calculation (and evaluation) and Tactical Strength are the base level ingredients of being on form and achieving desired results. We all know what happens if we are not able to spot double attacks, combinations, or simply dropping pawns and pieces. The study of King and Pawn endgames along with solving tactical studies works wonders. The trick here is to choose a book (or software) that has just the right mix of problems that you can feel challenged yet still be able to solve many positions in a sitting.  As a Chess Coach, I like to give tactical positions that are challenging, but not so hard to give my students a headache.
5. Going All Out: This idea ties into my thoughts on creative visualization, but I want to stress the importance of being psyched up to play great, uncompromising chess during the event. Be creative and cultivate your inner fire; become inspired at the actual tournament and believe that you have what it takes to take it all.
6. Relaxation with Family and Friends: Do not forget about making the most of the time you spend with your family, friends, and loved ones. This is your support team and you need to feel emotionally strong and loved in order to achieve maximal results.
7. Regular Exercise: Benefits of Exercise are well known and documented. However, from a chess point of view, I would suggest it primarily for one reason – the oxygen intake helps de-clutter your mind. If you would like more info I suggest this book as a must-read: Exercise Every Day: 32 Tactics for Building the Exercise Habit by S.J Scott. It contains some of the best tips.

I do hope to see you playing the best chess of your life and more importantly – enjoy the process!

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Kish

Kish is an editor and chief coach with a passion to teach. He works in the Golden Chess Centre, as a coach assisting the Chess kids with everything from the basics of Chess to teaching students how to use thinking tools. A lifelong learner himself, he has always been fascinated by the use of thinking techniques in chess and education. He creates chess resources based on his two decades of experience in the chess Teaching arena (and always wants to learn from others).
His Chess workshops and online chess classes can be booked in advance based on appointment.

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