Patience is a virtue. This concept is critical when playing chess, even when playing blitz or timed games. It is very easy for the inexperienced player to jump the gun and make the first good move that he or she sees on the board and this is often a mistake. Taking the time to determine what the next best move is takes a great deal of patience on your part. Mastering the virtue of patience will definitely help you to win chess games. Taking the time to truly analyze what to do on your next move is a skill that experienced players have mastered.

If you are playing a tough game of chess and you see that your opponent’s queen is open for the taking, it is very tempting to jump at the chance to take that queen. However, this may be exactly what your opponent was counting on. Your opponent may be setting a trap for you. Now suppose that instead of automatically taking that queen, you spend a minute surveying the board and realize that you can mate your opponent in two moves if you do not take the queen. Is this not a better move? Many times players will use these obviously unguarded major pieces as a ploy or bait to get you off of the offensive attack that you have started. They will also hang bait out for you to help degenerate the well thought out defense that you have established.

It is important to keep track of your overall strategy for the game and to not make the easiest moves when there are better ones available. This means again that you must exercise patience and that you must survey the entire board. You will win more games and battles if you are able to make the “best” next move instead of the easiest next move.