Written by Barry Hymer and Peter Wells, Chess Improvement: It's all in
the mindset is an engaging and instructive guide that sets out how the
application of growth mindset principles can accelerate chess
improvement.
With Tim Kett and insights from Michael Adams, David Howell, Harriet
Hunt, Gawain Jones, Luke McShane, Matthew Sadler and Nigel Short.
Foreword by Henrik Carlsen, father of world champion Magnus Carlsen.
Twenty-first-century knowledge about skills development and expertise
requires us to keep such mystical notions as fixed 'talent' in
perspective, and to emphasise instead the dynamic and malleable nature
of these concepts.
Nowhere is this more apparent than in chess, where many gifted players
fall prey to plausible but self-defeating beliefs and practices - and
thereby fail to achieve the levels their 'natural' abilities predicted.
Happily, however, the reverse can be true too; through learned
dispositions such as grit, risk-taking, strategic thinking and a
capacity for sheer hard work, players of apparently modest abilities can
achieve impressive results.
Blending theory, practice and the distinct but complementary skills of
two authors - one an academic (and amateur chess player) and the other a
highly regarded England Chess Olympiad coach (and grandmaster) -Chess
Improvement is an invaluable resource for any aspirational chess player
or coach/parent of a chess player.
Barry and Peter draw on interviews conducted with members of England's
medal-winning elite squad of players and provide a template for chess
improvement rooted in the practical wisdom of experienced chess players
and coaches.
They also include practical illustrative descriptions from the games and
chess careers of both developing and leading players, and pull together
themes and suggestions in a way which encourages readers to create their
own trajectories for chess improvement.
