Arcticon_Tiger

Hi! I’m Alisdair. I have been a mind sports enthusiast for most of my life, which has given me over 20 years’ worth of experience both playing and coaching chess and bridge. I have taught all age groups, in both one-to-one and larger class settings, and when I’ve sought feedback on why my classes are so popular, these are the things that I keep hearing:

Approachable – It’s important that my students are at ease, and that the learning environment is enjoyable. While I do expect my students to work hard, we need to get the balance right so the process remains fun. “Don’t forget to enjoy yourselves” is something I often say to my Junior charges, before they head into an International match. My students are never afraid to ask a question, because complete understanding is a key priority. A possible challenge to positive outcomes is a student not speaking up because they don’t want to admit they’re not following. “There are no stupid questions; only stupid answers!” is my mantra, so relax, and ask about what you don’t know!

Understandable – One of my main coaching skills is taking would-be complex subjects, and breaking them down to make them easy to follow. As one student put it: I never thought I’d be able to do that, but you made it seem easy! (That’s a paraphrase; I can’t remember her exact words).

Enlightening – I want to give you the keys to unlock your potential. There is no one-size-fits-all script; I get right to the heart of what you need to know. One of my favourite teaching moments was blowing the minds of everyone in the class when I got them to realise that there was not one answer that was objectively correct – although most chess positions are definitive, there are still situations where the “right” move might be different depending on who is playing it. They’d assumed there were hard-and-fast rules, and that every position had a clear answer.

Here are some direct-quote reviews from some of my students (verified by an independent third party):

Alisdair reviewed one of my recent games with me, identifying mistakes and helping me understand their consequences. He not only showed me better alternative moves but also helped me understand them. He finished off by teaching me some endgame techniques and practicing them with me. He also matched me up with a player of similar level, who he also teaches, to play with. Alisdair is patient, easy to understand and has an empowering balance between explaining and guiding you to figure out things for yourself, and a great sense of humour to boot. I'll be sure to be back for more. - Christoph, London

Alisdair has been a great encouragement for me as I recovered my teenage enthusiasm for chess many years on! He is very adaptable and can reorient his lessons depending on a student's interests and aptitude. He does his homework on each student to address weaknesses and build on strengths, and I was lucky to benefit from his skills through a personal connection. He was kind enough to take me through unfamiliar approaches and teach different lines of attack and defence in a way that I could take in, adapting to my speed and helping with appropriate techniques where I struggled to remember things at first. He made complicated things easy to take in and understand! When it comes to going above-and-beyond, you can't ask for more than his willingness to analyse my games with me and sending emails with a detailed breakdown of games from other chess players to help illustrate concepts I was struggling with.

Alisdair helped me by identifying my personality as a chess player, recognising things that were preferences of mine and pinpointing problems (e.g. I'm happier being strategic than aggressive, but am overly risk-averse). I also have a much better understanding of general principles that have improved my game and my confidence. - Kathleen, Dundee

Currently accepting new students? Yes

Here are some of my specialties:

Personalised Plan – Nobody is the same as anyone else, so the only way to improve ALL of my students is get to know them individually, and assess what is going to work for them. While it is necessary for a coach to have a “stock” of lessons (and also what I call the “box-ticking exercises” – the things I make sure all my students know), each lesson will be tailored to your needs. I look deep into the aspects of your game, determining what is going well and what isn’t, identifying what needs to be worked on and how you can improve. I am available to my students outside of lessons, of course – you may receive an email or video that is bonus material, or a follow-up to the topics we covered in a lesson. I have recently started a YouTube channel where all the content is exclusively available to my students.

Opening theory – The vast majority of my own wins can be attributed (in whole or in part) to opening preparation. I often out-book opponents even in their opening of choice, and many of my clubmates prefer to play an opening they don’t know when playing against me, just to circumvent my preparation (it doesn't work). While most of our lessons are unlikely to focus specifically on openings (unless that’s what you’re coming to me for), I will be keen to ensure that you aren’t getting out-prepared. For the less experienced players, we’ll develop principles more than openings.

In case you’re wondering how deep my preparation goes, here’s a Mate in 17 position that comes from my opening repertoire! (White to move)