Hello Gordy,
I have just finished with our first session in chess.com classroom, and I was very impressed with it. The way that you layed and looked at the "weaker" areas of my game was very helppful. The way in which you pointed out my weaker areas was done in a way that I didn't feel dumb or embarassed. The systematic approach to laying the lesson for the session was also very nice.
Once we got in to the session itself, the examples that you used from my games helped me see things that I was overlooking. Having another person see some of the same shortcomings that I saw myself also was a great relief that I wasn't losing my mind. LOL It was also a plus on a selfish level that you are a Pirc and Scotch guy like myself. You seem from our first session to be a naturally gifted teacher. You pass on your knowledge and playing experience in a very friendly non "arrogant" way.
You also layed out a very compact concise lesson plan until our next session that I didn't feel overwhelmed with. And also some very helpful nuggets of wisdom "no less than 3min. left". In closing I thought my time with you was well spent, and I'm glad we were able to connect. Until next time!!!
Hello, welcome to my chess coaching thread. I am RetroGordy also known as RetroShumway on Twitch.TV!
I'm a Gen-X guy, longtime gamer and semi-professional MTG player of which I competed competitively in Pro Tour Qualifying events from 1994-2005. At the age of 9 I learned chess from my grandfather, playing regularly until my teenage years. I stepped away from the game picking up alternate hobbies as mentioned above.
I have many more years of knowledge of the game than my playing may show. In just 90 days I've played nearly 750 games online, and have climbed at an astounding rate of over 600 points. It's like they say, some of the best trainers and coaches in the world were some of the worst players. I have over 20-years of educational and training experience. I poses a unique way of educating people, a brisk but enthusiastic direct one-on-one technical approach to help you learn the absolute most you can in a short period of time. Besides what do you have to lose, right?
What do I ask of you? All I ask is that;
Who are these lesson(s) for?
I've set an appropriate targeted audience for myself in the ranges from 0-1600 ELO Rating. For now I feel anyone above the 1600 rating would likely benefit greater from a more experienced player.
What kind of coaching do I offer?
What do I get out of all this?
My hope is to make this a long-term, successful encounter with a large enough student base that maybe something more will grow from it. That's it! There's no small print, gimmick or catch to this offer. Respect me and my time, and I'll equally respect yours.
How do we proceed?
Post your account name, followed by your current rating. Send me a brief private message of what you're most concerned with or looking to improve. Please also include any day(s)/time with time-zone that you're available to spend roughly an hour of time with me. Allow me a bit of preparation prior to our meet and we'll begin!
Keep in mind, I'm only one person. So there will only be so many spots available at a time. I will however reply to all messages and inform you if there may be a small wait. My recommendation is to continue playing in the meantime and I'll follow-up as soon as possible. This is a first come first serve basis.
Thank you for all who has inquired. I hope you enjoy your day!