Chess forum by Grandmasters

How to overcome fear/nervousness while playing?

Whenever I play over the board chess, I feel a bit tensed, ESPECIALLY if I am playing against a lower rated player or against a friend/someone I know. I consume a lot of time during the game because I am afraid to make a mistake (I do this part against everyone though, even higher rated players).

 However, I am very relaxed when playing online chess (except if I'm playing a friend. Although I am still relaxed, I still feel a bit tensed.).

Please guide me here. :D

Replies

Hi Adi. For me it helped to not worry about rating, I found it really helps me to be more relaxed and preform better. Also doing something to take your mind off chess during long tournaments. Doing prep before your games (if you're playing classical.) might make you feel more confident for your games. Other than that, just try to have fun, don't put pressure on yourself and just enjoy the game. 

Hope this helped. 

🙃

I imagine that, like everyone else, the fear is of losing one’s ‘ego’ rather than one’s ‘Elo’ rating, especially when playing against opponents with a lower rating or, worse still, against kids :-)

Once you realise that what’s at stake is your Elo rating and not your ego – at most just a few points, not who you really are – things should go more smoothly.

Hey — great question. What you're describing isn't a chess problem, it's a mental block problem.

Here's what's actually happening:

Your mind has recorded every past experience of playing someone you know, or a lower rated player, and attached emotional charges to those moments. The fear of embarrassment, the fear of losing to someone you "should" beat, the fear of what people will think. Those charges are stored in your mind and every time you sit down in a similar situation they fire automatically — before you've even touched a piece.

That's why you're relaxed online against strangers. No social charge attached. The moment there's someone you know on the other side of the board, the charges activate.

The tension you feel, the time you burn on moves, the second guessing — that's not you lacking chess knowledge. That's your mind running emotionally charged past experiences through your decision making in real time.

The "standard" advice is to breathe, stay present, tell yourself to relax. That doesn't work because it's managing the symptom without touching the root. The negative charge is still there underneath.

What actually works is clearing the specific charges attached to those situations. Fear of embarrassment in front of people you know. Fear of losing to a lower rated player. Fear of what it means about you if you mess up. When those charges are neutralized at the root, the tension stops showing up because there's nothing left to trigger it.

New course: In GM Bosiocic's Mind

GM Marin Bosiocic joined ChessMood! 🤩

- Two-time Croatian Champion
- Over a decade of coaching experience
- Peak Elo 2648

He walks you through his 10 best games and the real decisions behind every move.

Sharp positions, attacking chess, and lessons you can take to your games 👇
https://chessmood.com/course/marin-bosiocic-best-games

Replies

Finding a problem move in the forum

To GM Avetik.  The Forum runs to 269 pages each containing up to 20 seperate entries.  Even with the search facility it is nigh on impossible to narrow down any previous advice about a specific move not covered in the courses.Would it be possible to build a move tree linked in some way to relevant comments, and where new moves could be added as and when a query is made.  So for example I am looking for guidance on the French 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Bd3 de 4.Bc3 c5 5.Ne2 Nc6 6.Be3 and now Qb6. I have run the computer whereby the recomended line is 7.Nc3 but after the Black Queen takes the b2 pawn lines appear to come out favoring Black.  My point however is how can I find the move 6. …Qb6 amidst everything else even if it is covered?  Clicking through a move tree would quickly establish if it is in the forum notes.

My apologies if this makes no sense.

Regards

Derek

Replies

Dear Derek,

Your suggestion makes a lot of sense, and no need to apologize, dear friend, thanks for a great idea :-)
We are working on something very similar to your suggestion, can't mention when exactly that feature will be activated, but it's in progress. Thanks a lot for your desire to help>

Best wishes,
GM Gabuzyan :-)

Thanks for your reply Hovhannes mentioning that something akin to my suggestion might be in the future.  Meanwhile might I ask your advice about the moves arising from the French opening, in particular the …Qb6 listec above.

Universe of Chess Positions

**Hi ChessMood family,**

After 40 years at the board, the thing that finally clicked for me wasn't another opening — it was learning to ask one simple question before every move: *"What kind of position is this?"*

Inspired by Alexander Shashin's work, I ended up building a whole system around it. Every position leans toward one of three "worlds," each embodied by a champion:

- **PC — Calm (Capablanca):** stable structure, no contact → improve your worst piece, build patiently.
- **TC — Contact (Petrosian):** real tension, a break is brewing → prophylaxis, choose the critical moment.
- **AC — Chaos (Tal):** open lines, exposed king → initiative and sacrifice over material.

The real skill isn't naming the world — it's sensing the **transitions** between them, because that's usually where games are won or lost.

I wrote the whole framework up — 60 illustrated motifs and 20 annotated games — in a book, *The Universe of Chess Positions — PC-TC-AC*, now on Amazon in English and French. But honestly, even just asking *"which world am I in?"* before each move is a habit that pays off right away.

Curious how you all approach positional diagnosis here — pure intuition, or a conscious checklist?

*— François Chevalier, FIDE AIM*
 

Replies

Operation Colombia!

So I am going to go to Pan America in 2 months. I don't usually go out for tournaments, and should maximize the opportunity. So, now, in the last 2 months before the tournament, I have made a challenge. I want to wake up very early in the morning(around 2:00 am!) and do chess till around 6:00 am, and then pretend nothing happened. I decided to tell my dad about this. He is a bit concerned at getting up this early. Anyway, I decided to make the schedule: 2 hours training. ChessMood(my membership is going to expire soon😢), or Chess.com videos(I mainly watch their endgames). Then I want to play like around 7-9 rapid games(though I don't think it will be possible in 1 hour, even if it is 10 + 0) and maybe a couple of blitz games. Then with the remaining time, I am going to analyze. Could you help me maximize this time? Of course I have other times of the day when I practice, but I will be hyperfocused in this time. Also here are a couple of my games: https://www.chess.com/game/live                                                                                                                               https://www.chess.com/game/live/169145728158                                                                                                                                                                                            Based of these games, can you tell me what to focus on? Thanks in advance, Vedant                                                                 

Replies

Dear Vedant,

I like your commitment a lot, the idea of training hard, but I am not sure that waking up at 2:00 am is a great idea.
I think it's very important to maintain a good balance of sleep and working for our brain efficiency. 
Of course, the choice is yours :-)

Unfortunately, on this forum, we are not specifically analyzing our student games and providing feedback, as that is a purely individual coaching thing; if every player posts a game, it will be totally impossible. 

I would advise you to spend daily 10-15 minutes on solving simple puzzles, to maintain the sharp tactical vision :-)

Dear Vedant,

Agree with Gabu, reducing your sleep time to learn/play chess in the night will not help you to make progress. Oppositely it can badly affect you gameplay - you can become tired/exhausted, prone to blunders, have issues with concentration, your eyes may not be so sharp for tactics…
I checked this game  https://www.chess.com/game/live/169145728158 (I assume you are White). I am not on your level, but can see that its Hybrid version of anti-Sicilian (2.Nc3 e6…a6), so some tricky lines I have recently watched Avo videos. In this line we develop Fianchetto Bishop g3, Bg2 and then go with Knight to Nh3 (I had such a game on last tournament, but did not know about it).
https://chessmood.com/course/4-anti-sicilian-with-nc3-part-4/episode/3450 
Maybe you will find it useful, at least in the opening part.

Cheers,
Kamil
 

Silent Strategy - Test Your Knowledge

Thanks for the test! I really enjoyed it. Especially since I scored a 95!   :D

I was actually surprised that I was very confident on all of the puzzles (except for the one I missed). My confidence is growing, and that is a great feeling.

Thanks, GM Gabu!!

Replies

Dear Jeff,

Another time I am feeling proud and excited to see your out results!

Thanks for your kind words!

Keep crushing!

Beating 3000+ rated GM with Benko

Hey Champs, 

Just had a crazy game with a strong GM in Benko and managed to win, hope you enjoy it :-)

https://www.chess.com/game/169401977168

Replies

Strong GM 3000+ beats strong GM 3000+ 🙂
Quick exchange of Queens and brave King ⭐ stays in center and wins Knight 💪💪💪

PGN files problems

Hi!

I'd like to open the PGN withemood oppenings, but I can't.

Do I need to upload something to open them?
I am speacking about the first attachment. The second one I can open it.

Thanks

Replies

You need to either have a plan with chessmood or have bought the course to see the pgn files. Chessmood is worth the money :)

The file has been downloaded?

If so, can you right-click on: “WhiteMood Openings.pgn” and get an “open with” option in the drop down menu?

Then any software that will read text should do it.

A struggle in the Alapin

Today i played this opening variation in a classical tournament as Black:1. e4 c5 2. c3 Nf6 3. e5 Nd5 4. d4 cxd4 5. Nf3 Nc6 6. cxd4 d6 7. Bc4 Nb6 8. Bb5 dxe5 9. Nxe5 Bd7 10. Nc3 Nxe5 11. dxe5 Bxb5 12. Nxb5 Qxd1+ 13. Kxd1 O-O-O+ 14. Ke2 Rd5 15. a4 Rxe5+ 16. Be3 Nd5 17. Rac1+ Kb8 18. Rhd1 e6 19. Kf3 Be7 20. Bxa7+ Ka8 21. Bd4 Rf5+ 22. Ke2 Nf4+ 23. Kf1 Bf6 24. Bxf6 Rxf6 25. Rc7 Nd5 26. Rdc1 Nxc7 27. Rxc7 Rd8 28. Re7 Rf4 29. g3 Rxa4 30. Rxf7 Kb8 31. Ke2 Rb4 32. Nc7 Rxb2+ 33. Kf1 b5 34. Na6+ Ka8 35. Nc7+ Kb7 36. Nxe6+ Kc8 37. Nxd8 Kxd8 38. Rxg7 b4 39. Rxh7 b3 40. Rb7 Kc8 41. Rb4 Kd7 42. h4 Ke6 43. g4. Although it is clear that i made mistakes later in the game that caused this loss, i was quite perplexed as of what to play after 16 Be3. The 13…0-0-0 line was shown as drawn by the engine although i had to defend a rather unpleasant position with only moves.I have later found that 13…Nd5 is a move which generally lead to comfortable positions. But what would be your recommendation against 10 Nc3 move?

Replies

Dear Andrew,

I carefully checked your game, and it looks like the only mistake was Be7 - you had to play 19…Rf5 check with a draw.
Prior to that, you had played the best engine moves and had an equal position.
 

Cool,

I like a lot your desire to learn deeply and understand the positions, Andrew!
Keep going :-)

French and Dutch Advanced Courses

Hello,

When are the advanced French and Dutch courses previewed to be released? 

It's been quite a while. Thanks in advance for some feedback. 

Replies

Dear Edvinas, 

I appreciate your concern and the desire to learn more. Unfortunately, I can't provide any dates on this - advanced repertoire is something extremely tough to build, with our choice of making openings easy and practical to play for our students :-)

Question on Anti-sicilian

After 1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 d6 3.f4 Nc6 4.Nf3 Nf6 ,where to develop the light squared bishop of white, if white fianchettos on the kingside, black will play g6 instead of e6 and on c4 black plays e6 with the idea of d5 next

Replies

Dear Mashup,

In this case, you can play with 2 ideas.

1. Is Bb5 followed by Bxc6 and than with d3 - playing typical GP structures. Dark squares, the Bishop can go to b2 or e3.
2. g3-Bg2 is still possible, as with the Knight on f6, Black can't have the strong setup of e6-Nge7-Bg7.

Caro-Kann 6.Bg4 What to do?

Hello, very often in the Caro-Kann I am getting this line: e4 c6 d4 d5 exd5 cxd5 Bd3 Nf6 c3 Nc6 Bf4 Bg4 

I looked through the Simplified WhiteMood courses and the Caro-Kann course and could not find a place where this line is covered. Please help me understand how to play against this and where to locate the course which goes over this line. 

Thanks! 

Replies

I actually just found this move was covered in Section 2 of the main course 

12-year-old son is set to compete in a qualifying tournament next month

My 12-year-old son is set to compete in a qualifying tournament next month to represent our country in a major international event. I am looking for a structured daily training path to optimize his preparation over the next four weeks.

He is currently using ChessMood for his opening repertoire. For a typical training day, would you recommend a mix of 20 minutes of tactics, opening reviews, and practice games? Or should he focus on a specific intensive course instead?

I would appreciate any guidance or specific routines you could suggest to help him reach his peak performance. Thank you for your help!

Replies

Dear Kevin,

I would love to help, and I think the best I can do is to share this article with you about tournament preparation https://chessmood.com/blog/the-right-way-to-prepare-for-a-chess-tournament

My advice is, if the tournament closes, it's a bad idea to learn and apply a whole new opening, as there will not be enough time to practice and get experience.

I personally wish your son good luck, and will be waiting for your updates about his results :-)

plans against d3, e4 in the dutch

Hello

I have encountered white playing d3 with an idea of e4 already a few times, including 2 OTB losses. However I don't really know how to adapt our blackmood setups to this play. It can happen both in the Reti and in the English opening. Here is an example of a game I played recently:
https://lichess.org/E8w1OOkk/black

Focus mostly on the opening, since both I and my opponent played quite badly for the rest of the game.

As You can see I went for the stonewall setup as we usually do against Bg2, but instead of d4 white played d3 and e4 on the next move. After exchanges in the center I was left with a weak paw on e3 and less active pieces. I find this position very unpleasant for black, but I think it's impossible to stop e4 from happenning. Also after e4, alternatives to taking on e4 seem to be bad too. Going for the fianchetto setup, when white already played Bg2 also seems to be even worse, so maybe Black should play a completely different setup, not one explained in the course. I hope someone would be able to clarify, what is the best play for black in such positions. Thank You for all Your answers.

Replies

How do I find this move to maintain the draw?

There's plenty of room for improvement in this game, but I have a specific question after move 56.

https://lichess.org/study/Jv3c7UN3/Ltsxt75F#112

The engine tells me the only move that maintains the draw is 57.Bc2. What principle would help find that move? Sure, I was in time trouble, but I could have had ten minutes left and not realized that was the only move there.

Replies

Dear Andrew,

In chess, sometimes positions are just concrete, and there are no principles but concrete calculations.
Don't blame yourself because the Bc2 move isn't one I would claim to find easily, especially in time trouble.
The point is to be in the right place and prevent the opponent's knight maneuvers, but once again, it's very tough :-)

When theory becomes practice

I just studied today the Deflection module of the Tactic Ninja course. Later, I played a game in Lichess and my opponent got into a bad line of the Scotch gambit. I had advantage, but it's always difficult to deliver the finishing blow. But thanks to the course, I saw it instantly.

The black queen took my knight on e4. What move did I instantly play thanks to the course?

Replies

Kh1? 🤣😅🤣😅 🤣

 I will leave the answer to the others, but great job of implementing your knowledge. Ninja is GM Avo's course, but it's a pleasure to see our students doing well based on their acquired knowledge from the courses. Wish you good luck, keep going :-)

ah yes kh1 destroying the defender of the queen

Rxd7+

if Nxd7 then Qxe4

if Kc8 then Rxc7+ Bxc7 Be6+ Kd8 Re1+ Nd7 Qxd7# 

Please add this line in 2.Nc3 a6 line

1.e4 c5 2.Nc3 a6 3. g3 b5 4. Bg2 Bg7 5. d3 e6 6. Nh3 Nf6 ?

This line is missing, I drew the game in offline rapid tournament with higher rated. But no idea , can we analyse further?

Replies

Dear Don,

I would love to help. Can you please put the game link here?

NEW ARTICLE: How To Win Chess Tournaments: 7 Key Principles

Replies

Hello,

This is a really good article. Thanks GM Gabuzyan! This really applies to me currently since the National Online Scholastic Championships in the USA are in April and I want to win! The 7 key principles really help.

Also, will the interesting variation in the Nf6 Scotch that you played in Round 2 be added into the course?

Thank You.

Thank you for Nice article.

 I have a question . You said that one should be flexible about opening choice not playing the same opening over and over.

 I have  started to  learn chess mood opening should i change them frequently? learn other chess opening as well as? 

Wonderful Article !!

There's an error. In the game against Arman where your opponent had perpetual check, it's with 38...Ng4, not 38...Ng3

Thanks! The tips helped me win a tournament.

ChessMood Anti-Spam/Scam Watch: Keeping Our Board Clean

We’re all part of the ChessMood family, and just like in chess, one careless move can affect the entire board.

This thread is for reporting suspicious or spam accounts so we can keep our community focused, safe, and distraction-free.

If you come across:

• Irrelevant promotions
• Suspicious links
• Gambling or unrelated advertisements
• Repeated spam behavior

Drop the username and a short description here.

Let’s keep it respectful and responsible:

• No false accusations
• No personal attacks
• Only report clear spam/scam behavior

Think of this as our collective defense strategy — spotting threats early and protecting the game we all love.

Together, we keep the board clean. ♟️🔥

Replies

Hey ChessMood family 👋

Just wanted to say this thread is something we’re building together to keep our space clean and focused.

If you ever come across anything that feels like spam or suspicious, feel free to share it here with the username and a short note. No pressure, just helping each other out.

Let’s keep it respectful and supportive, just like our games and discussions here.

At the end of the day, we all love chess and this community — so let’s protect it together ♟️❤️

Dear friend,

Thanks for being concerned and trying to help.

Wanted to let you know we are mon and deleting spam posts and accounts several times during the day.

Lyvora Capsules 

Anti-sicilian part 2

Does anyone know where in the course (excluding the welcome section) Avetik discusses what to do after d6 before Nxd4?

Replies