Last week, I shared why 2024 was my best year yet. This week, I’m laying out my plan to help you crush your chess goals in 2025—and grow my business by doing it.
Goals
My main goal of the year is to 3x my business while working 6 hours a day, 5 days a week, 40 weeks a year. I chose this goal because it forces me to focus on the right actions to reach it. Here’s what I believe I need to do to make it happen:
- Provide high-quality content people love and share
- Continue to work smarter, not harder
- Focus on ideal customers and stop worrying about the 1-5% who cause unnecessary stress
- Take regular breaks and avoid working weekends
- Enjoy 12 weeks of refueling holidays
As I’ve said before, a goal isn’t just about achieving it. What truly matters is the process it inspires. If this goal helps me build better habits and achieve even a 1.5x increase, I’ll consider it a success. On the other hand, if I 2x my business but feel stressed, unhealthy, or close to burnout, it won’t feel like a win.
Next Level Chess in 2025 and Beyond
Chess improvement boils down to three simple factors:
- What you do
- How you do it
- How much time you spend doing it
In late 2024, I shared the Chess Improvement Equation, which encapsulates these three points:
What (0-1) × How (0-1) × Time/Week = Chess Improvement Score
My long-term vision is to help 1 million chess players double their Chess Improvement Score with a holistic approach. Will this happen in 2025? Likely not. That’s the point of a vision—it’s a North Star, not a one-year plan.
Through chess improvement, I want to promote a positive mindset, inspire smart (but not hard) work, and help others reach their full potential.
Here’s how I plan to do it.
Help You Improve Your What
What refers to the areas you work on and the resources you use.
What Areas
If you’re following my 1/3 rule, you’re already doing well in how you split your time. While this rule isn’t perfect for everyone, it’s a solid starting point.
For my course students and 1:1 coaching students, I’ll continue experimenting with training regimens to find better ways to balance enjoyment and improvement.
What Resources
I’ll keep testing resources and recommending those that genuinely work for me, my students, and my readers. Only when no great resource exists will I create one myself—like I did with Beginner Chess Mastery.
That said, simplicity remains key. My training plans consistently use the following:
- Lichess for studies, lessons, playing, analyzing, and tactics
- Step Method Books for puzzle-solving, especially for OTB players
- ChessMood for high-quality courses that expand my students’ knowledge
These are the fundamentals I use nearly all the time. Then, depending on the student’s rating, preferences, and goals, I will add specific books or courses to further enhance the plan.
With 1:1 students, I tackle more personal things like thought processes, time trouble, and mindset issues in the lessons.
That’s it. Simple and effective.
Help You Improve Your How
This is my bread and butter. My ambition is that when someone asks, “How should I train chess the right way?” my name comes up.
How breaks down into two parts:
- How well you focus
- How you train specific areas of chess
Right now, I don’t have all the answers to either of these questions. My goal for 2025 is to continue learning and testing ways to improve focus and refine training methods, especially for adult improvers. As I learn and test, I’ll share those insights with you.
One area I’ll pay special attention to is execution. Most of you know you should:
- Analyze your games
- Write down solutions when solving tactics
- Avoid lengthy opening courses
But many struggle to actually follow through. That’s why my main change to Next Level Training this year will focus on making it more interactive and easier to execute. Knowing how to study well is great, but it only helps if you can consistently apply it.
Still, doing things right will always be harder than doing things wrong. No matter how actionable good advice is, execution will remain the challenge.
Help You Spend More Time Doing the Right Things
Once you’ve improved the quality of your training—the what and how—you can focus on the quantity.
I’m in the same boat as many of you when it comes to building habits. Despite my best intentions, I often struggle to regularly:
- Meditate
- Read
- Walk 10,000 steps a day
- Stretch
- Go to the gym 1-2x per week
My main goal is to stick to these rewarding habits for myself and then share strategies that can help you do the same in your chess training.
Who This Is For
I create content for chess improvers who are ready to learn and grow into better versions of themselves.
Your age doesn’t matter.
Your gender doesn’t matter.
Your Elo doesn’t matter.
If you’re committed to improving your chess and willing to put in the time and energy, this is for you.
But if you’re still searching for a magic pill—an easy, quick, and effortless way to improve—this isn’t for you. There are plenty of others happily selling that dream. If (or when) you get burned by it, I’ll still be here to guide you back to the right path.
What Content Will I Publish in 2025?
Here’s what stays the same:
- Fridays: A new newsletter in your inbox
- Saturdays: Publishing the newsletter on NextLevelChess.com
- Mondays: An older article or Friday newsletter on the Lichess blog
- Wednesdays: A new podcast episode on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and my website
And my courses:
- Beginner Chess Mastery: An all-in-one course to get you to 1200 Chess.com / 1400 Lichess
- Next Level Training: A proven method to simplify training and break through plateaus
Here’s what will be new:
I want to improve what I’m already doing and explore new platforms and ideas to help you improve further. But before I dive into anything, I’d love to hear from you.
How can I best help you improve your chess in 2025?
What’s the missing piece for your improvement? What type of content would you enjoy most? What platform do I really need to be on?
The more I know about you, the better I can help.
Here’s to an amazing 2025,
Noël
PS: This article was initially sent out to my Newsletter list. If you want to get chess improvement advice for free in your inbox, join 17,000+ chess improvers by signing up for Friday Grandmaster Insights here.
Whenever you’re ready, here is how I can help you:
- Want to know How to train chess well? Check out Next Level Training – The Chess Training Blueprint for Adult Improvers. This course taught 800+ students the How of Chess Training. Create your high-quality chess plan and learn how to study each part of Chess, from tactics to openings & endgames. Click here to learn more.
- Rated below 1200 Chess.com? Need to refresh your fundamentals? Check out my course, Beginner Chess Mastery. You’ll learn all the fundamentals, from strategy to how to get the most out of your pieces, tactics, and endgames. You even get a full opening repertoire for free. Click here to learn more.
