This week’s guest on Perpetual Chess is author, psychology professor and avid chess player, Dr. Joel Sneed. In the professional realm, Joel is a practicing clinical psychologist, and his research focuses on the topics of late life depression and cognitive impairment. A casual chess game with a patient led to Joel's discovery of competitive chess, and since then he has always found time for the game. In addition to co-authoring some excellent chess books, Joel has achieved very unusual gains for an adult learner.
Joel began tournament chess at age 33 with a 1200 rating, and at age 48 is rated over 2000! Joel thinks that part of the reason for his success has been his emphasis on the psychological side of chess, as discussed in his latest collaboration with GM Boris Gulko, Analyzing the Chess Mind. The book provides both traditional game analysis from GM Gulko, as well as more general advice about chess psychology from both the GM and the Professor. It was fascinating to hear Joel’s story, and there is much to learn from his book and from our conversation! Please read on for timestamps and topics discussed.
01:00- Joel tells the story of his starting to discover tournament chess through working with a patient at a psychiatric hospital.
07:00- What has chess taught Joel about himself? Why was he initially attracted to the game?
Mentioned: Episode 300 with GM Ulf Andersson
13:00- Joel hasn’t played a tournament since May, why not?
17:00- Joel discusses how he began to collaborate with his co-author, legendary GM Boris Gulko.
19:00- What advice would Joel give to a friend who is having trouble finding the motivation to return to tournament chess?
Mentioned: IM John Watson
25:00- Patreon mailbag question: What advice does Joel give to someone who wants to get into a beneficial mindset before a tournament?
35:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Aimchess.com. Aimchess’ algorithm reviews your games and gives you actionable advice on how to improve your game. Check it out for free, and if you choose to subscribe you can use the code Perpetual30 to save 30%.
Or use this link for the same discount:
https://aimchess.com/try?ref=benjohnson12
37:00 Patreon mailbag question: What is Joel’s advice for someone who is prone to bullet chess addiction and tilt?
Mentioned: Episode 216 with Dr. Jana Krivec
50:00- How has studying his own chess tendencies helped Joel in his activities that take place away from the chess board?
57:00- Perpetual Chess is brought to you in part by Chessable.com. Check out their latest courses here: https://www.chessable.com/courses/all/new/
58:00- What chess lessons did Joel learn from the golf book, Golf is not a Game of Perfect?
1:07:00- What were the biggest contributors to Joel’s slow and steady rise from 1200 to 2000 USCF?
1:11:00- What are Joel’s favorite chess books, besides his own Lessons with a Grandmaster collaboration with GM Boris Gulko?
Mentioned: The Giants of Strategy by GM Neil McDonald, How to Reassess Your Chess by IM Jeremy Silman
1:17:00- What is meant by “Ego is a limited resource?”
1:22:00- Thanks so much to Joel for joining me. You can email him at prof.sneed at gmail dot com
Be sure to check out his books with GM Boris Gulko as well:
Analyzing the Chess Mind:
Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Analyzing-Chess-Sneed-Boris-Gulko/dp/1784831123/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1YLXPM3IWVAKS&keywords=Analyzing+the+Chess+Mind&qid=1671420382&s=books&sprefix=analyzing+the+chess+mind%2Cstripbooks%2C109&sr=1-1
Forward Chess: https://forwardchess.com/sample/analyzing-the-chess-mind
Lessons with a Grandmaster
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Perpetual Chess Podcast