So, I'm not sure how many other members feel this, but I had a massive aversion to playing live. A complete irrational fear. It was a mixture of:
- not wanting to lose
- looking like a fool for blundering in front of my opponent
- losing points on my ranking
But today I just thought "F**k it. Let's play some blitz."
Yes, I lost 4 of my 5 games and the only game I won was because my partner disconnected, but, all said and done, I enjoyed it. The challenge, the speed, the plan-making... even getting completely smashed by my opponent was enjoyable (for now at least).
My day job is teaching English at a Japanese university. This week we've been talking about fear of speaking English in class. I asked them, "What's the worse that could happen?" which has clearly had a knock-on effect on my own mentality.
We learn to speak by speaking, we learn to play basketball by playing basketball, we learn chess by playing chess (and watching YouTube chess "celebs").
Future steps:
- get used to playing short time controls
- get an opening repertoire sorted (I really want to join #teamscandi for black!)
- just enjoy playing.
I've no ranking score in mind for the time being, as I think setting a score will demotivate me when I don't hit it.
-- ??? (Cheap)
TL;DR
If you are scared of playing live chess like me, JUST DO IT! What's the worst that can happen?
