Chess improvement as an adult is harder than it should be. Plus, the journey can sometimes feel too stressful and serious. This show aims to fix that by 1) interviewing experts who can offer clarity on the best ways to improve; and 2) giving you a heap of fun with “chess entertainment” shows that discuss chess culture, events, movies, etc. Most episodes feature a guest, but sometimes I'll do a solo show on a topic. This is all brought to you by me, Daniel Lona. I’m a dedicated chess amateur and the owner of Adult Chess Academy. After listening to this podcast, I want you to have a clearer idea of how to improve, and have a more fun, dynamic chess experience. Please follow the show so you don’t miss an episode!
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This is a podcast focused on connecting user space with the community. We invite you to join us as we explore the many things that impact you, the user. We’ll experiment with the Distros and Desktop Environments that we all love, we’ll discuss the current hardware and technology impacting our lives and we’ll also talk about the different topics affecting the community. All along the way we’ll share stories and anecdotes about our journey through the Linux User Space.
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This monthly podcast, hosted by Chess Life and Chess Life Online Editor John Hartmann, goes in depth and behind the scenes of each month’s Chess Life cover story.
Podcast Crossover: NM Ben Johnson on His New Book: Perpetual Chess Improvement
Not many chess resources are aimed directly at helping the adult improver. But the superb new book by well-known chess podcast host, Ben Johnson, does exactly that. Released this fall, it’s called Perpetual Chess Improvement.The book covers a broad range of topics for not only boosting your chess abilities but also answering difficult questions like: “Do you need to study endgames?” “How should you approach rating plateaus?”Ben’s book is pure gold for us adult improvers. Each page is chock full of helpful guidance, and it’s as easy to read as a page-turning novel.In this interview, we discuss:Why engaging with the chess community is just as vital as improvement for our chess experience.Is consistent study & play an overemphasized trait for our chess journey?Ben’s dream guests who have yet to appear on his show (other than Magnus!)More From Ben:Ben’s Book: Perpetual Chess ImprovementBen’s Podcast: The Perpetual Chess PodcastBen’s Twitter>>Join my official FREE Club for The Chess Experience on Chess.com<< (PROMOTION)
Update on Podcast - We'll Be Back!
This is a brief 1-minute update on the state of the podcast. Don't worry - we'll return soon!
A Rapid Rise to 2000 with Adult Improver Kamryn Hellman
070 A small number of chess players make remarkably quick progress. Perhaps even fewer of those are adults. Which is why the achievements of this week’s guest, Kamryn Hellman, are so remarkable.She started playing chess for the first time as an adult. And, in just a little over a year, Kamryn rose to a 2000 Rapid rating on Chess.com. Because progress this fast is rarely seen by adults, we explore her journey and how she achieved it.We discuss:Her top three “difference makers” for reaching a 2000 Chess.com rating in fifteen monthsWhy competing in OTB classical tournaments was such a powerful factor in her improvementWas her approach to be a tactics machine or was there room for studying strategy and positional chess? More from Kamryn: YouTube TwitchTwitter
IM Dean Ippolito - Tales of a Premier Chess Coach & How To Manage Rating Deflation
For two decades, IM Dean Ippolito has been one of America’s top coaches. Throughout his career, he’s coached several scholastic talents to national titles. Plus, he’s authored six chess books. Dean’s own chess journey is just as impressive. He was a rising child star and competed professionally for a few years after high school.Today, he runs a successful coaching business called Dean of Chess Academy, which offers online classes and camps.In this episode, we also discuss the scourge of adult improvers who compete at OTB tournaments: rating deflation.We discuss what it is, how it affects adult club players like yourself, and some advice that Dean offers on how to deal with it.Finally, we talk about Dean’s new book, Tricks, Traps, and Tips in the Chess Opening. The book offers a unique (and much more fun!) approach to learning opening ideas and principles.More From Dean: Dean’s websiteDean’s TwitterDean’s new book, Tricks, Traps & Tips in the Chess Opening>>Join my official FREE Club for The Chess Experience on Chess.com<< (PROMOTION)
FM Mike Klein: Building the Next Generation of Chess Players
068 You may know him as best as “Fun Master” Mike, the face of ChessKid. For the past decade, Mike has been the Chief Chess Officer of ChessKid, the scholastic version of Chess.com. His mission has been to make the game fun and accessible for an ever-growing audience of young chess players.While my show primarily focuses on adult improvers, I’m always interested in how we grow this great game of ours, and reaching kids is a big part of that.And who better to discuss this subject than with Mike Klein!?Plus, if you’re a parent, Mike offers some great advice on how you can your kids’ school involved in teaching chess.We also discuss: Which top youth player he thinks has the best chance to stay in the game and make an impact for many years to come.The highlights of Mike’s journalism career, including which former world champ he would’ve loved to interview.His game and experiences with Josh Waitzkin, of Searching For Bobby Fischer fame.More From Mike:TwitterChessKid.comChess Grant for Schools Through ChessKid>>Join my official FREE Club for The Chess Experience on Chess.com<< (PROMOTION)
How To Maximize Your Time For Chess Improvement w/ GM Noël Studer
067 How should you spend your chess time if you want to improve? The problem for adult improvers isn’t always about having too little time or energy to get better. Often, the challenge is knowing how to use that time effectively. That’s where GM Noël Studer comes in to help us. A former Swiss chess champion, and the youngest GM ever from Switzlerland, Noël is now helping chess improvers fine-tune their study programs.The result?Better progress without having to spend countless hours each day studying or playing.In this interview, Noël discusses: How the One-Third Rule can simplify your study process and give you greater progress without any additional demands on your time.The surprising reason you can improve at openings with less study time instead of more.How to keep your energy high before going into an OTB tournament with a simple training strategy used by professional athletes.More From Noël:E-Book: The Art of Chess TrainingCourse: Next Level TrainingWebsiteBlogTwitter>>Join my official FREE Club for The Chess Experience on Chess.com<< (PROMOTION)
South Africa's Chess Star: WIM Jesse February
This week features South Africa’s most charismatic chess streamer and commentator: WIM Jesse February. Jesse has had an impressive tournament career that’s still going strong as she works toward the WGM title. Some of her accomplishments include representing the South African Women’s Team in three Chess Olympiads. Plus, she's a two-time winner of the South African Women’s Chess Championship.We chat about Jesse’s incredible and recent experience doing commentary for the inaugural Global Chess League tournament - a unique mixed-team event that featured some of the world’s best men and women players.And we talk about what Jesse feels she needs to work on to get the WGM title, her best advice from years of coaching, and whether she can give up bullet at 3am.More From Jesse: Twitch channelYouTube channelTwitterInstagramTikTok>>Join my official FREE Club for The Chess Experience on Chess.com<< (PROMOTION)
On the Rise: Streamer & Adult Improver, WCM Alexandra Prado
065 WCM Alexandra Prado is a strong amateur player with a fast-rising chess Twitch channel. Rated 1859 FIDE, she has a renewed interest in competing in OTB classical. Plus, she’s aiming for the Woman FIDE Master (WFM) title. On that goal, she’s getting coaching help from Chess Dojo’s IM Kostya Kavutskiy, which we discuss in this episode.We also chat about her chess life in Bolivia, what has helped her improve the most as a player, and her unexpected opportunity to play in-person blitz against Andrea Botez.----I NEED YOUR HELP: Want to have a say in my upcoming chess membership? Please fill out this super-short survey about what features you want most.----More From Alexandra:Twitch ChannelInstagramTwitterYouTubeWebsiteGames against Andrea BotezLesson with IM Kostya Kavutskiy>>Join my official FREE Club for The Chess Experience on Chess.com<< (PROMOTION)
A Reenergized Tournament Career with WGM Anna Zatonskih
064 For the past two decades, WGM Anna Zatonskih has been a powerhouse among women chess players in America. She is a 4-time US Women’s champion (06’, 08’, 09’, and 11’.) Plus, she’s been a member of every US Women’s team for the Chess Olympiad since 2004.And while she has struggled a bit competitively in recent years, Anna just achieved an incredible first-place victory at the prestigious Cairn’s Cup in St. Louis in June of 2023.This event gathered some of the world’s best female chess players, including former World Champion GM Alexandra Kosteniuk.Not only did Anna win the event - she did so with no losses.This has renewed the fire for Anna’s competitive careerIn this interview, we discuss highlights from the tournament, what she learned from the event, and her goal of proving that “age is just a number.” >>Join my official FREE Club for The Chess Experience on Chess.com<< (PROMOTION)
A Trio of Talents: Grandmaster, Educator, & Commentator w/ GM Daniel King
In the best possible way, Daniel King is a “triple threat” of chess: A GM professional competitor who’s played against some of the world’s best…A commentator who delivers GM-level analysis that’s easily accessible for us club players… And an educator who’s served up a library of phenomenal books, courses, and videos that’ll sharpen our chess skills.Not enough?He’s also a skilled and passionate musician who regularly plays in bands.Daniel launched his chess life with an exciting competitive career. He earned his IM title in ‘82, his GM title in ‘89, and scored some notable achievements like placing 4th in the British Championship in ‘87.In the early 90s, he launched a career as a chess commentator. Later, he published countless books, DVDs, and online courses.These days, Daniel runs his popular YouTube channel, Power Play Chess. There you can find top-notch, insightful commentary on the biggest chess events.In this interview, we discuss:A few thrilling stories of Daniel defeating some of the world’s best as a professional player.Daniel’s favorite moments as a commentator covering World Champion Garry Kasparov. Why you shouldn’t be afraid to play the Open Sicilian as White (and how to get excited if your opponent plays an anti-Sicilian.)More From Daniel King:Daniel’s YouTube ChannelDaniel’s Chessable CoursesDaniel’s BooksDaniel’s WebsiteDaniel’s TwitterBook: How To Win At Chess
Update: New Episodes & Upcoming Membership for The Chess Experience
After a brief break, the latest on the next episode's release. Plus, a little info on the upcoming membership for this podcast, The Chess Experience. If you don't want to miss its announcement, sign up here: Get the info here when The Chess Experience Membership releases.
Two Decades of First-Rate Chess Journalism with Peter Doggers
062 Few people have attended the world’s top chess tournaments. Or interviewed the most talented chess players on the planet, including legends like Garry Kasparov. But Peter Doggers has lived this life for nearly the past twenty years.In 2007, he launched the company Chess Vibes. At its peak, it was one of the world’s biggest online news sites for chess. It covered top events and offered in-depth journalism.Six years later, Peter sold Chess Vibes to Chess.com and became their Director of Content. Currently, he is Chess.com's Director of News and Events.In this interview, we discuss:What top chess player before his time Peter would have loved to interview.His favorite books for improvement that helped him rise to the level of 2292 FIDE and earn two IM norms.The strengths and weaknesses of modern chess journalism.More From Peter:The game that earned Peter an IM normPeter’s Interview with Kasparov at Fischer’s GravePeter’s Reporting on Whether FIDE Was Going BankruptKasparov Playing the King’s Gambit>>Join my official FREE Club for The Chess Experience on Chess.com<< (PROMOTION)
Adventures in Course Creating with NM Laura Smith
061 It’s not often a chess content creator is an everyday superhero who’s also a school teacher and mother of three. But that’s what makes NM Laura Smith so special. She gives much of her free time to helping others in chess, both as a coach, a Twitch streamer, and now…a brand-spankin’ new Chessable author!Laura was one of my first guests to appear on the show, and the first interview I ever recorded.So, I’m thrilled to have her back on the podcast to update the latest in her chess life.Her new course, Forcing Moves for Beginners, is now available and was a labor of love. (Link to the course is below.)In this episode, we discuss: Why solving “easy” tactics very fast is critical for club players.Laura’s new & deeper connection with the online chess community in the past year.An exciting forthcoming course collaboration between Laura and an esteemed, well-known chess coach.More From Laura:Laura’s new course, Forcing Captures for Beginners, on ChessableLaura’s Twitch channelLaura’s Twitter>>Join my official FREE Club for The Chess Experience on Chess.com<< (PROMOTION)
Building a Dynamic Chess Life with Solveig, aka Rookie Redhead
Diving head-first into chess as an adult beginner ain’t easy. Yet some folks do it incredibly well. And with inspiring dedication. That’s the adult improver story of Norway’s Solveig. After watching the Magnus-Nepo World Championship match, she committed to the game in January ‘22. At the time, she was rated well below 1000.Since then, she’s worked with two coaches, attended over half a dozen OTB classical tournaments, and follows weekly study plans.Now, her FIDE rating is already over 1200 and on the rise.Topping it off, Solveig launched a YouTube channel, Rookie Redhead, detailing some of her chess journey and lessons learned. (Link below.)In this interview, we discuss:Whether you can ever really feel like you’re good at chessThe value of breaking some “rules” of chess improvementThe struggle of feeling confident in your chess abilitiesMore From Solveig:Solveig’s TwitterSolveig's YouTube channelSolveig’s video with IM Andras Toth on confidenceSolveig’s coaches: WIM Sheila Barth Stanford and IM Petter Haugli>> Join my official FREE club for The Chess Experience on Chess.com<< (PROMOTION)
Top 8 Chess Lessons From A Successful Adult Improver w/ Stacia Pugh
059 Need some inspiration on your chess journey from a fellow adult improver? This week’s guest is a powerhouse. Even though she didn’t begin chess until adulthood, Stacia Pugh has soared to 1800 USCF - and still rising!Plus, she’s attending OTB classical tournaments nearly every month and has a chess coaching business called, Chess Is Best.In this episode, we discuss: Stacia’s Top 8 Chess Improvement LessonsHow switching from d4 to e4 dramatically improved her chess - and why other club players should also play 1.e4Why tactics are by FAR the most important area of chess for improvement More From Stacia:Stacia’s Website (link forthcoming)Stacia’s YouTube channelStacia’s Twitter>> Join my official FREE club for The Chess Experience on Chess.com<< (PROMOTION)