060 Diving head-first into chess as an adult beginner ain’t easy. Yet some folks do it incredibly well. And with inspiring dedication. That’s the adult improver story of Norway’s Solveig. 

After watching the Magnus-Nepo World Championship match, she committed to the game in January ‘22. 

At the time, she was rated well below 1000.

Since then, she’s worked with two coaches, attended over half a dozen OTB classical tournaments, and follows weekly study plans.

Now, her FIDE rating is already over 1200 and on the rise.

Topping it off, Solveig launched a YouTube channel, Rookie Redhead, detailing some of her chess journey and lessons learned. (Link below.)

In this interview, we discuss:

• Whether you can ever really feel like you’re good at chess
• The value of breaking some “rules” of chess improvement
• The struggle of feeling confident in your chess abilities

More From Solveig:

• Solveig’s Twitter
• Solveig's YouTube channel
• Solveig’s video with IM Andras Toth on confidence
• Solveig’s coaches: WIM Sheila Barth Stanford and IM Petter Haugli

How You Can Support the Pod:

Join this show’s Patreon called “Podcast Perks” and get benefits like: 

• Submitting questions to guests
• A shout-out of your name on the pod
• Vote on future topics/guests 
• Exclusive behind-the-scenes updates about the show
• DM me any month for a brief chat on chess or episodes

Click here to join the Patreon for The Chess Experience.

Or you can…

>>Support this pod by grabbing a chess.com membership which will help you improve your chess & defeat your enemies. A small portion will fund this pod - and every bit helps! Just click this link.

>> Neither? How about checking out Daniel's chess.com profile? Witness his countless, embarrassing blitz losses. He even accepts some friend requests. (Ad)