10 Truths from a Chess Coach

What Every Chess Parent Must Understand – 10 Truths from a Coach’s Perspective

1. Talent Is Nothing Without Effort
   Every child has potential. Only disciplined work turns it into strength. Laziness disguised as “playful nature” destroys more talent than lack of ability ever did.

2. Consistency Beats Intensity
   Two to four hours of focused training daily is better than endless scattered effort. Long classes can’t stay intense. Short, sharp, and regular always wins.

3. Analyse Every Game
   A game not analysed is a lesson wasted. Each game must be written fully, reviewed the same day, and understood—without using engines. Real growth comes from self-correction.

4. Think, Don’t React
   Fast play and excitement show emotional instability, not genius. A good move played slowly is better than ten blunders made quickly. Thinking must become habit.

5. Solve Daily
   Tactics are the gym for the brain. A player who skips tactical training will freeze under pressure. Solve positions daily. Build calculation muscle.

6. Respect the Body
   Chess is mental war. Nutrition, sleep, and energy management matter. A tired or hungry brain can’t calculate. Nap 20–30 minutes, not more. Eat clean, rest right.

7. Detach from Results
   Trophies come and go. Progress stays. Play each move with care, analyse after, forget the outcome. Mastery begins when the child stops chasing medals.

8. Let Consequences Teach
   Shielding a child from failure weakens them. Pressure and responsibility forge champions. Fear isn’t an enemy—it’s energy to be channelled.

9. School and Chess Must Coexist
   If there’s no obsession with immediate results, let school continue. Chess complements education—it should not replace learning discipline in life.

10. Love or Fear Doesn’t Matter—Work Does
    Whether the child works out of love for the game or fear of missing out is irrelevant. Improvement has one condition: do the work, every day, without excuse.

Closing Note:
Parents, your role is to support process, not to soften the path. A child who learns to think, work, and face consequence will win—on and off the board.

Crafted by Sa Kannan, the Immortal Coach!