I've been playing chess for about a month now, and I’d say I understand the basics. I want to play with my friends and people around the world on chess.com, but every time I tell myself I’m ready, I stop because I feel like I might play so badly that my opponent would laugh at me behind the screen. More than that, if I lose, it feels like confirmation that I’m dumber. I know it’s silly since it’s just some stranger I’ll never talk to, but I can’t help it.
So, I’d like to ask a question (especially to people who used to feel the same way)—how do I get over this fear and stop taking it so seriously? Simply telling myself that it's just a game is no use.
... I listened to the comments and decided to just swallow my pride and start playing even if I lost. Surprisingly, it's gone quite well! I've won many games, but I've also faced some challenging opponents and lost a few times. Nevertheless, I've enjoyed it much more than playing against bots and I haven't reacted to my losses as critically as I initially thought I would. Thank you for helping me!
submitted by /u/littlebunny15[link] [comments]