John Bartholomew

Today, I'm thrilled to announce that my personal website is LIVE! I'd be honored if you spent a few minutes checking it out: johnbartholomewchess.com

For chess improvers, I've created a page detailing my best recommendations for players from beginner-1400, 1400-2000, and 2000+. There is a treasure trove of actionable advice here based on my 25+ years as a chess player and teacher. My hope is that any aspiring or improving player can use this page as a roadmap on their chess journey.

For chess organizations as well as non-chess businesses/groups, I've created a couple pages detailing my professional experience and how I may be able to assist you. Don't hesitate to reach out!

There's an extensive biographical page. If you're curious about my background - from picking up the game from a friend at school, to battling a 72-level tabletop chess computer, to learning from legendary coach FM Eduard Zelkind, to success on the state and national level, to becoming an IM, to dropping out of law school and pursuing chess full-time, to co-founding Chessable - it's all there!

I'm also starting the Chess Mindset newsletter. I am SUPER excited about this, and I'd love if you signed up (it's completely free!): johnbartholomewchess.com/the-chess-mindset-newslet… I truly enjoy reading and writing, and after journaling extensively for the past year, I've decided I want to become more serious in putting my thoughts out there. I plan to cover a good mix of practical and "meta" chess topics - such as time management and dealing with triumphs/setbacks - as well as chess history and current events. Much of what I discuss ought to be useful in your life and career, too. Once again, this newsletter is 100% free, and it will come directly to your inbox.

By the way, you can even get on the waitlist for my upcoming 3...Qa5 Scandinavian course: johnbartholomewchess.com/master-the-qa5-scandinavi… The people on this list will be the very first to know when this course drops!

Finally, in creating this site, I thought extensively about my philosophy of continual improvement in chess and life. Distilled, it is:

"Only through our inevitable blunders shall we pave the road to mastery."

It's a certainty that we will make mistakes in chess and life. We shouldn't try to run from such blunders - in fact, we should WELCOME them! These are the moments that provide us with the best personalized feedback for growth on our path to excellence. Check out my "open letter" under the Brand Statement page for further exposition on this concept, as well as the other core values I seek to foster in the chess world.

Special thanks to my friend and chess student, Steve Fies, for helping make this website a reality. I appreciate you reading, and please drop me a line if you have any questions or feedback (or even just to say hello)!

1 year ago | [YT] | 782