Another great article Doc. As an older adult improver I can not tell you the number of times I have blundered in the latter part of the middle or end game because my focus wondered to a specific area of the board. The tip on Mindfulness Practice by Dr Kabat-Zinn is something I am going to look into. Thanks again for taking the time and energy to share your thoughts and ideas, they are always helpful.
I really like the executive functioning frame you pointed out - chess is really just one decision after another, and it's hard to find the right balance between speed and caution, aggression and, well, caution. When I'm moving too fast I generally find that I can slow myself down by trying to find something interesting about the position that engages my attention, a puzzle or problem to solve because chess is never simple or obvious. When I'm moving too slow I generally have to ask myself "Do I really want to keep messing around and lose on time to this person?" and since the answer is always no I then set a strict goal for how much time I'll have 10 to 15 moves down the line. It seems to work decently without adding too much cognitive load.
Great article. I’m always suffering brain fatigue during my games, and as the article said, I blunder because I focus on only one part of the board in order to save brain energy. It’s a great reminder to look at the whole board and take your time during critical moments.
Good article. I don’t actually take my ADHD meds during a tournament. I find that the hyper focus of a classical game is what I need to “lock in”. But I wonder how it influences my thought process and how much time I may waste on a move because I’ve “thought about the wrong things.”
I think the ADHD “super power” is what makes chess so absorbing and immersive. Not sure what meds would do but it’s worth a try. I’m trying the cue-habit loop
Another great article Doc. As an older adult improver I can not tell you the number of times I have blundered in the latter part of the middle or end game because my focus wondered to a specific area of the board. The tip on Mindfulness Practice by Dr Kabat-Zinn is something I am going to look into. Thanks again for taking the time and energy to share your thoughts and ideas, they are always helpful.
Thanks for reading! Awareness and acceptance are hard, but worth it. Good luck!
I really like the executive functioning frame you pointed out - chess is really just one decision after another, and it's hard to find the right balance between speed and caution, aggression and, well, caution. When I'm moving too fast I generally find that I can slow myself down by trying to find something interesting about the position that engages my attention, a puzzle or problem to solve because chess is never simple or obvious. When I'm moving too slow I generally have to ask myself "Do I really want to keep messing around and lose on time to this person?" and since the answer is always no I then set a strict goal for how much time I'll have 10 to 15 moves down the line. It seems to work decently without adding too much cognitive load.
Love that… “do I really want to lose on time??” Thanks for reading. The balance is hard to find for me
Great article. I’m always suffering brain fatigue during my games, and as the article said, I blunder because I focus on only one part of the board in order to save brain energy. It’s a great reminder to look at the whole board and take your time during critical moments.
We’ll see how I do this weekend at the tournament. Appreciate the comment and best of luck to you!
Enjoyed the read. I was drafting up a similar article just a few hours ago. Too slow! :/
Good article. I don’t actually take my ADHD meds during a tournament. I find that the hyper focus of a classical game is what I need to “lock in”. But I wonder how it influences my thought process and how much time I may waste on a move because I’ve “thought about the wrong things.”
I think the ADHD “super power” is what makes chess so absorbing and immersive. Not sure what meds would do but it’s worth a try. I’m trying the cue-habit loop
I’ve taken the meds on tournament days and didn’t notice a significant impact on my chess. Just had to deal with the side effects instead.
Thanks for the shout Nick, much appreciated 🫶
I apologize for implying that thou art old, but yea, verily hath thee quoted a ChessCafe article!
I used to do book reviews for them back in the day.
;)