2) Educate yourself
"Despite my many years of martial arts study, I recognize how little I really knowcompared with true masters of the arts. Only by constantly exposing myself to someone
better than I have I been able to improve. It is inspiring to know that even the masters have
masters and that we are all learners. "
Joe Hyams (Zen in the Martial Arts)
"It is not how much you have learned, but how much you have absorbed in what you
have learned - the best techniques are the simple ones executed right. "
Bruce Lee
"The boy doesn 't have a clue about chess, and there's no future at all for him in this
profession. "
Mikhail Botvinnik on Anatoly Karpov
It's important to note that a good chess education is mainly about educating
oneself. In the heat of battle it is simply not enough to rely on second hand ideas
about what you think you are supposed to do. Your thoughts must be your own
thoughts, which means thoroughly internalizing any ideas you come across even
if the original spark came from a coach or mentor. A chess player must be self
educated to have any hope of long-term success.
For this reason the best teachers inspire rather than drill. A player's job is to
seek out such sources of insight, whether they be mentors, good books or even
just hanging out with good players. Any insights gained should then be followed
up diligently until they become part of the player's being.
Like with many players, my own chess education might appear somewhat
haphazard. Although I have never had a formal one-to-one chess lesson I've
found sources of inspiration everywhere. In my early teens a local strong player
who once won the British Veterans Championship, Sam Roberts, used to invite me
to his home just about every Sunday and we played game after game. I was also
inspired by the strongest local player, John Littlewood; every game I got to play
against him was like attending a master class.
Many players complain about lacking a good teacher yet most of the great
players from history have written books. I read both Lasker's Manual of Chess and
Capablanca's Chess Fundamentals several times and then worked my way through
the game collections of every World Champion plus those of great players who
did not quite make it. Unlike many subjects, you can learn a lot about chess by
reading the right books.
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