Chess Patterns ❯ Body And Mind ❯ Pushing Hard for the Win

Pushing Hard for the Win

When your opponent is Pushing Hard for a Win, they may overextend their position, creating weaknesses and vulnerabilities as they take unnecessary risks. This aggressive approach can lead to mistakes or inaccuracies, allowing you to capitalize on their unbalanced play.

If your opponent is Pushing Too Hard for the Win, you should: (1) Stay calm and focused on the board, not your opponent's behavior, (2) Look for weaknesses or overextended pieces in their position, (3) Wait for the right moment to strike back decisively. When you realize that You are Pushing Too Hard for the Win, you should: (1) Take a step back and reassess the position objectively, (2) Be willing to accept a draw if you've overextended or weakened your position.

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Know What to Do When Pushing Hard for the Win

When we started adding a playful touch to chess learning, we looked through thousands of videos and hundreds of books to find the best resources out there. Here's our curated selection of the best content we encountered on situations in which players are Pushing Hard for the Win. We also included some smaller creators who are growing fast and we believe deserve your attention. Check out these resources if you want to master this type of situation.

Top 5 psychological mistakes in chess
In this really instructive video by Remote Chess Academy you’ll see how the excessive will to win by a young Anish Giri created big trouble for him. IM David Miedema presents 5 very useful take-aways.

WATCH ON YOUTUBE
Review of "Chess for Tigers" by Simon Webb (the best chess psychology primer)
Have a listen to this episode of the extremely good The Chess Angle Podcast. This time, the focus is on the famous book by Simon Webb, which contains a lot of actionable advice on how to improve your psychological edge. Highly recommended, both the podcast and the book.

WATCH ON YOUTUBE
A Must-Win Situation: Chess Psychology*
This is the last lesson of the chess.com series by IM Trent on Chess Psychology. Here, Trent gives his very interesting advice on how to handle must-win games. At the end, go for the interactive challenges.

WATCH ON CHESS.COM
The Seven Deadly Chess Sins*
This is a different type of chess book. Jonathan Rowson takes a unique approach and delves into the player's mind, teaching you to rethink your entire chess mindset. For the true lovers of the game.

GET IT ON AMAZON
How to Become a Candidate Master*
This book by Alex Dunne has a unique approach. It presents 50+ games putting you, the reader, in the seat of the Candidate Master who is playing the games. It's amazing how much you learn about chess patterns, techniques, and psychology using this approach.

GET IT ON AMAZON