May Challenge

Yes, this is way overdue and I apologize! But, even though May already started a few days ago, there is still time to start this months' challenge!

This months' challenge will focus on something that I have been systematically forgetting and avoiding.
Reviewing my own games:

Learn from your mistakes

Game count: 10+5 

 For some, this will be no challenge at all, as reviewing their games is second nature. After you played it, you go over it to see what could have gone better, where you went wrong/where your opponent went wrong, what went well, etc.
For me though, well, I just don't do it. There is always this idea in my head that I can't find my own mistakes anyway. So, it's time for change!

For this month, I will go over all of the games I play (at least 10, but more is always better) and find at least one 'learning point' that I should work on. This doesn't have to take very long, just a quick look is enough. But, I have to review at least 5 more games in depth, and find 3 'learning points' per game.

Of course, if you don't already do it, I challenge you to do the same!

Do you accept the challenge?

You can change the game count to fit your playing schedule, so let me know if you join me!

April Challenge

I know I said that a small challenge for March would still happen, but uni got in the way of that, so my apologies. Moving on...

It's time for the first monthly challenge!

The challenge will be:

Get out of your comfort zone!

Game count: 5 

This was one of the first things I came up with (and so did Eyecatcher). It is actually pretty simple. Think about your style of play. Is it aggressive? Passive? Influential? Territorial? Anything else?

For this month, it's time to change things up. Come up with an idea that is out of your comfort zone, or the opposite of what your normally play. Think about it before you start the game. What style will you play (if the situation allows it)? Which opening will you use if you're black? Of course, you'll have to try and stick to this for the rest of the game.

The goal is not to win more games, but to find new things. Maybe you will enjoy playing in a different way than normally. Maybe you won't, but you might find ways to counter it when others play that style against you. Heck, maybe you won't get anything out of it. But does it hurt to try it out?

Of course, I will participate as well!
As some of you might know, my style is generally (too) passive. I've been trying to work on it, but it hasn't gone very well for me so far.
So it's probably no surprise that I will try to play more aggressive. Before I play a move, I should remind myself of this. Is this move passive? Am I avoiding a fight here? If the answer yes, I will change my move, even if I am not entirely comfortable with it. If I lose, I'll have something to review. If I win, I'll also have something to review.
I will try to do this for at least 5 games in the month of April, and I challenge you to do the same! Of course, you should find your own comfort zone, and what is outside of that.

Do you accept this challenge?

If you do, leave a comment with your area of comfort, and how you will get out of it!

My plan is to give weekly updates on my own progress, and of course, you can let me (and everybody else) know your progress too. If you complete the challenge you will get an honorable mention on the future wall of fame! (Which is worth absolutely nothing, but it's the idea that counts.) Of course, you can make this more challenging by adding more games, or the other way around!

One thing though, this month my uni has a 2-week teaching break, in which I will be travelling, so those weeks have no weekly updates. Which defies the point of weekly updates. Next month will be better. I promise.


In unrelated news: 9x9 go has been solved!!

Quote Mania 4

Welcome to 'Quote Mania', the series where I take a random quote completely out of context and forcefully relate it to go!
The 4th quote to be discussed is:

'If you keep running away, it will become a habit.'

Taken from the k-drama Monstar. (Ok, how did this end up in my list? I've never watched Monstar..) 

Although this might not be as relevant for players with different styles, for me this is actually a big problem.
I have been told a few times that my style of play is 'too gentle' and 'not threatening'. Which is true, because I am not a big fan of fighting.
Up until a while ago, I would even actively avoid fights because I didn't feel confident and had no idea on how gain profit from fights. Needless to say, I lost a lot of games because of this.
So, I needed to change that. I have been watching some lectures on attacking, and doing some problems everyday to improve my reading. Most of all, I try to force myself to play more aggressively during games. I made a rule for myself that I have to attack something (unless my opponent is very aggressive) and get into a fight. This might lose me some games I would have otherwise won, but I'm never going to improve if I don't practice. 

But, and this is where today's quote comes into play, it is hard. It happens to me quite often that by the end of the game I realize that I didn't actively attack anything, or that when I got attacked I just ran away, instead facing it head on. I keep running away from a direct confrontation, even when I should be able to get a decent result out of fighting. 
This habit was so 'natural' for me, that I didn't even want to get rid of it, before I realized that it was completely hindering my progress.

Of course, this doesn't only apply to fighting or the lack thereof, but also to other things. (Bad) habits are formed easily, but hard to get rid of. But even then, it is not impossible, and I believe it is important to at least try to get rid of them.

So for now, I will just keep trying to become a more aggressive player and to stop running away. 'Attack and Defense', here I come!