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Sunday, October 28, 2007
Sunday, June 17, 2007
Online Sales Lose Steam
Online Sales Lose Steam
By MATT RICHTEL and BOB TEDESCHI
Published: June 17, 2007
SAN FRANCISCO, June 16 — Has online retailing entered the Dot Calm era?
The New York Times
Multimedia Graphic
Online Revenue Growth Expected to Slow
Since the inception of the Web, online commerce has enjoyed hypergrowth, with annual sales increasing more than 25 percent over all, and far more rapidly in many categories. But in the last year, growth has slowed sharply in major sectors like books, tickets and office supplies.
Growth in online sales has also dropped dramatically in diverse categories like health and beauty products, computer peripherals and pet supplies. Analysts say it is a turning point and growth will continue to slow through the decade.
The reaction to the trend is apparent at Dell, which many had regarded as having mastered the science of selling computers online, but is now putting its PCs in Wal-Mart stores. Expedia has almost tripled the number of travel ticketing kiosks it puts in hotel lobbies and other places that attract tourists.
The slowdown is a result of several forces. Sales on the Internet are expected to reach $116 billion this year, or 5 percent of all retail sales, making it harder to maintain the same high growth rates. At the same time, consumers seem to be experiencing Internet fatigue and are changing their buying habits.
John Johnson, 53, who sells medical products to drug stores and lives in San Francisco, finds that retailers have livened up their stores to be more alluring.
“They’re working a lot harder,” he said as he shopped at Book Passage in downtown San Francisco. “They’re not as stuffy. The lighting is better. You don’t get someone behind the counter who’s been there 40 years. They’re younger and hipper and much more with it.”
He and his wife, Liz Hauer, 51, a Macy’s executive, also shop online, but mostly for gifts or items that need to be shipped. They said they found that the experience could be tedious at times. “Online, it’s much more of a task,” she said. Still, Internet commerce is growing at a pace that traditional merchants would envy. But online sales are not growing as fast as they were even 18 months ago.
Forrester Research, a market research company, projects that online book sales will rise 11 percent this year, compared with nearly 40 percent last year. Apparel sales, which increased 61 percent last year, are expected to slow to 21 percent. And sales of pet supplies are on pace to rise 30 percent this year after climbing 81 percent last year.
Growth rates for online sales are slowing down in numerous other segments as well, including appliances, sporting goods, auto parts, computer peripherals, and even music and videos. Forrester says that sales growth is pulling back in 18 of the 24 categories it measures.
Jupiter Research, another market research firm, says the growth rate has peaked. It projects that overall online sales growth will slow to 9 percent a year by the end of the decade from as much as 25 percent in 2004.
Early financial results from e-commerce companies bear out the trend. EBay reported that revenue from Web site sales increased by just 1 percent in the first three months of this year compared with the same period last year. Bookings from Expedia’s North American Web sites rose by only 1 percent in the first quarter of this year. And Dell said that revenue in the Americas — United States, Canada and Latin America — for the three months ended May 4 was $8.9 billion, or nearly unchanged from the same period last year.
“There’s a recognition that some customers like a more interactive experience,” said Alex Gruzen, senior vice president for consumer products at Dell. “They like shopping and they want to go retail.”
The turning point comes as most adult Americans, and many of their children, are already shopping online.
Analysts project that by 2011, online sales will account for nearly 7 percent of overall retail sales, though categories like computer hardware and software generate more than 40 percent of their sales on the Internet.
There are other factors at work as well, including a push by companies like Apple, Starbucks and the big shopping malls to make the in-store experience more compelling.
Nancy F. Koehn, a professor at Harvard Business School who studies retailing and consumer habits, said that the leveling off of e-commerce reflected the practical and psychological limitations of shopping online. She said that as physical stores have made the in-person buying experience more pleasurable, online stores have continued to give shoppers a blasé experience. In addition, online shopping, because it involves a computer, feels like work.
“It’s not like you go onto Amazon and think: ‘I’m a little depressed. I’ll go onto this site and get transported,’ ” she said, noting that online shopping is more a chore than an escape.
But Ms. Koehn and others say that online shopping is running into practical problems, too. For one, Ms. Koehn noted, online sellers have been steadily raising their shipping fees to bolster profits or make up for their low prices.
In response, a so-called clicks-and-bricks hybrid model is emerging, said Dan Whaley, the founder of GetThere, which became one of the largest Internet travel businesses after it was acquired by Sabre Holdings.
The bookseller Borders, for example, recently revamped its Web site to allow users to reserve books online and pick them up in the store. Similar services were started by companies like Best Buy and Sears. Other retailers are working to follow suit.
“You don’t realize how powerful of a phenomenon this new strategy has become,” Mr. Whaley said. “Nearly every big box retailer is opening it up.”
Barnes & Noble recently upgraded its site to include online book clubs, reader forums and interviews with authors. The company hopes the changes will make the online world feel more like the offline one, said Marie J. Toulantis, the chief executive of BarnesandNoble.com. “We emulate the in-store experience by having a book club online,” she said.
The retailers that have started in-store pickup programs, like Sears and REI, have found that customers who choose the hybrid model are more likely to buy additional products when they pick up their items, said Patti Freeman Evans, an analyst at Jupiter Research.
Consumers are generally not committed to one form of buying over the other. Maggie Hake, 21, a recent college graduate heading to Africa in the fall to join the Peace Corps, said that when she needs to buy something for her Macintosh computer, she prefers visiting a store. “I trust it more,” she said. “I want to be sure there’s a person there if something goes wrong.”
Ms. Hake, who lives in Kentfield, Calif., just north of San Francisco, does like shopping online for certain things, particularly shoes, which are hard to find in her size. “I’ve got big feet — size 12.5 in women’s,” she said. “I also buy textbooks online. They’re cheaper.”
John Morgan, an economics professor from the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley, said he expected online commerce to continue to increase, partly because it remains less than 1 percent of the overall economy. “There’s still a lot of head room for people to grow,” he said.
Matt Richtel reported from San Francisco. Bob Tedeschi reported from Guilford, Conn.
Sphere: Related Blogs & Articles
By MATT RICHTEL and BOB TEDESCHI
Published: June 17, 2007
SAN FRANCISCO, June 16 — Has online retailing entered the Dot Calm era?
The New York Times
Multimedia Graphic
Online Revenue Growth Expected to Slow
Since the inception of the Web, online commerce has enjoyed hypergrowth, with annual sales increasing more than 25 percent over all, and far more rapidly in many categories. But in the last year, growth has slowed sharply in major sectors like books, tickets and office supplies.
Growth in online sales has also dropped dramatically in diverse categories like health and beauty products, computer peripherals and pet supplies. Analysts say it is a turning point and growth will continue to slow through the decade.
The reaction to the trend is apparent at Dell, which many had regarded as having mastered the science of selling computers online, but is now putting its PCs in Wal-Mart stores. Expedia has almost tripled the number of travel ticketing kiosks it puts in hotel lobbies and other places that attract tourists.
The slowdown is a result of several forces. Sales on the Internet are expected to reach $116 billion this year, or 5 percent of all retail sales, making it harder to maintain the same high growth rates. At the same time, consumers seem to be experiencing Internet fatigue and are changing their buying habits.
John Johnson, 53, who sells medical products to drug stores and lives in San Francisco, finds that retailers have livened up their stores to be more alluring.
“They’re working a lot harder,” he said as he shopped at Book Passage in downtown San Francisco. “They’re not as stuffy. The lighting is better. You don’t get someone behind the counter who’s been there 40 years. They’re younger and hipper and much more with it.”
He and his wife, Liz Hauer, 51, a Macy’s executive, also shop online, but mostly for gifts or items that need to be shipped. They said they found that the experience could be tedious at times. “Online, it’s much more of a task,” she said. Still, Internet commerce is growing at a pace that traditional merchants would envy. But online sales are not growing as fast as they were even 18 months ago.
Forrester Research, a market research company, projects that online book sales will rise 11 percent this year, compared with nearly 40 percent last year. Apparel sales, which increased 61 percent last year, are expected to slow to 21 percent. And sales of pet supplies are on pace to rise 30 percent this year after climbing 81 percent last year.
Growth rates for online sales are slowing down in numerous other segments as well, including appliances, sporting goods, auto parts, computer peripherals, and even music and videos. Forrester says that sales growth is pulling back in 18 of the 24 categories it measures.
Jupiter Research, another market research firm, says the growth rate has peaked. It projects that overall online sales growth will slow to 9 percent a year by the end of the decade from as much as 25 percent in 2004.
Early financial results from e-commerce companies bear out the trend. EBay reported that revenue from Web site sales increased by just 1 percent in the first three months of this year compared with the same period last year. Bookings from Expedia’s North American Web sites rose by only 1 percent in the first quarter of this year. And Dell said that revenue in the Americas — United States, Canada and Latin America — for the three months ended May 4 was $8.9 billion, or nearly unchanged from the same period last year.
“There’s a recognition that some customers like a more interactive experience,” said Alex Gruzen, senior vice president for consumer products at Dell. “They like shopping and they want to go retail.”
The turning point comes as most adult Americans, and many of their children, are already shopping online.
Analysts project that by 2011, online sales will account for nearly 7 percent of overall retail sales, though categories like computer hardware and software generate more than 40 percent of their sales on the Internet.
There are other factors at work as well, including a push by companies like Apple, Starbucks and the big shopping malls to make the in-store experience more compelling.
Nancy F. Koehn, a professor at Harvard Business School who studies retailing and consumer habits, said that the leveling off of e-commerce reflected the practical and psychological limitations of shopping online. She said that as physical stores have made the in-person buying experience more pleasurable, online stores have continued to give shoppers a blasé experience. In addition, online shopping, because it involves a computer, feels like work.
“It’s not like you go onto Amazon and think: ‘I’m a little depressed. I’ll go onto this site and get transported,’ ” she said, noting that online shopping is more a chore than an escape.
But Ms. Koehn and others say that online shopping is running into practical problems, too. For one, Ms. Koehn noted, online sellers have been steadily raising their shipping fees to bolster profits or make up for their low prices.
In response, a so-called clicks-and-bricks hybrid model is emerging, said Dan Whaley, the founder of GetThere, which became one of the largest Internet travel businesses after it was acquired by Sabre Holdings.
The bookseller Borders, for example, recently revamped its Web site to allow users to reserve books online and pick them up in the store. Similar services were started by companies like Best Buy and Sears. Other retailers are working to follow suit.
“You don’t realize how powerful of a phenomenon this new strategy has become,” Mr. Whaley said. “Nearly every big box retailer is opening it up.”
Barnes & Noble recently upgraded its site to include online book clubs, reader forums and interviews with authors. The company hopes the changes will make the online world feel more like the offline one, said Marie J. Toulantis, the chief executive of BarnesandNoble.com. “We emulate the in-store experience by having a book club online,” she said.
The retailers that have started in-store pickup programs, like Sears and REI, have found that customers who choose the hybrid model are more likely to buy additional products when they pick up their items, said Patti Freeman Evans, an analyst at Jupiter Research.
Consumers are generally not committed to one form of buying over the other. Maggie Hake, 21, a recent college graduate heading to Africa in the fall to join the Peace Corps, said that when she needs to buy something for her Macintosh computer, she prefers visiting a store. “I trust it more,” she said. “I want to be sure there’s a person there if something goes wrong.”
Ms. Hake, who lives in Kentfield, Calif., just north of San Francisco, does like shopping online for certain things, particularly shoes, which are hard to find in her size. “I’ve got big feet — size 12.5 in women’s,” she said. “I also buy textbooks online. They’re cheaper.”
John Morgan, an economics professor from the Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley, said he expected online commerce to continue to increase, partly because it remains less than 1 percent of the overall economy. “There’s still a lot of head room for people to grow,” he said.
Matt Richtel reported from San Francisco. Bob Tedeschi reported from Guilford, Conn.
Sphere: Related Blogs & Articles
Saturday, June 16, 2007
A Weather Station Near Glacier To Study Global Warming
New Delhi, June 17 (IANS) For the first time, an Indian weather station is being set up near a Himalayan glacier to study the impact of climate change and provide weather details and warnings to mountaineers.
"We are setting up an Integrated Sensor Suite (ISS), a warning and recording system that includes a microprocessor controlled lightweight weather station, at the Chhota Shigri glacier in Himachal Pradesh," said P.C.S. Rautela, secretary of the Indian Mountaineering Foundation (IMF).
According to a report by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), several glaciers in India are falling prey to global warming.
"If the trend continues, then not many glaciers will be left for mountaineers to climb by the middle of the century. We want mountaineering, not rock climbing," said Rautela, a retired vice-marshal of the Indian Air Force.
"The station will allow scientists to stay and study the amount of precipitation, the impact of carbon dioxide, ultra violate rays on ice and the age and longevity of current snow slabs. All this will help India develop a model on climate change," Rautela told IANS.
The ISS is a microprocessor controlled, compact lightweight weather station that will update climbers and rescue teams with essential data on temperature, humidity, solar and ultraviolet radiations, wind velocity and direction and rain gauge.
He said the station would be able to give quick forecasting, onscreen graphics, view icons, weather warnings and forecasts on its built-in LCD console.
The system also includes a solar panel to power it and a data logger that can record sensor data of six months for retrieval later. It will help in generating crucial real time data with regard to global warning and climate change in the glaciers.
He said the station would use solar and wind power to meet its daily energy requirement.
"It would be a complete green endeavour. A three-member team, including one glaciologist and me, will leave for Chhota Shigri for field inspection. We hope the station will come up by the year end," he said adding that the initial investment would be Rs.2 million.
Rautela, who has undertaken over 12 expeditions, said they expected favourable cooperation from the ministry of earth science. "We have not asked for any financial help but will certainly work in cooperation with the government."
IANS
"We are setting up an Integrated Sensor Suite (ISS), a warning and recording system that includes a microprocessor controlled lightweight weather station, at the Chhota Shigri glacier in Himachal Pradesh," said P.C.S. Rautela, secretary of the Indian Mountaineering Foundation (IMF).
According to a report by the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), several glaciers in India are falling prey to global warming.
"If the trend continues, then not many glaciers will be left for mountaineers to climb by the middle of the century. We want mountaineering, not rock climbing," said Rautela, a retired vice-marshal of the Indian Air Force.
"The station will allow scientists to stay and study the amount of precipitation, the impact of carbon dioxide, ultra violate rays on ice and the age and longevity of current snow slabs. All this will help India develop a model on climate change," Rautela told IANS.
The ISS is a microprocessor controlled, compact lightweight weather station that will update climbers and rescue teams with essential data on temperature, humidity, solar and ultraviolet radiations, wind velocity and direction and rain gauge.
He said the station would be able to give quick forecasting, onscreen graphics, view icons, weather warnings and forecasts on its built-in LCD console.
The system also includes a solar panel to power it and a data logger that can record sensor data of six months for retrieval later. It will help in generating crucial real time data with regard to global warning and climate change in the glaciers.
He said the station would use solar and wind power to meet its daily energy requirement.
"It would be a complete green endeavour. A three-member team, including one glaciologist and me, will leave for Chhota Shigri for field inspection. We hope the station will come up by the year end," he said adding that the initial investment would be Rs.2 million.
Rautela, who has undertaken over 12 expeditions, said they expected favourable cooperation from the ministry of earth science. "We have not asked for any financial help but will certainly work in cooperation with the government."
IANS
Advertising Online Effectively
Friday, June 15, 2007
By KEVIN G. DeMARRAIS
STAFF WRITER
Confused about how to advertise effectively online?
A new book by four advertising veterans might help. The title is "The Online Advertising Playbook: Proven Strategies and Tested Tactics from the Advertising Research Foundation" (Wiley, 2007), and it could help marketers and entrepreneurs looking for ways to leverage the vast opportunities in Internet advertising.
The authors list several areas to consider:
• Target the right consumers with your ad. With online advertising you can locate and target precise groups of consumers, whether current customers or attractive prospects. Keep your focus on approaches that help create the most innovative, cost-effective and successful ads.
• Learn the magic numbers. Advertising effectiveness is all about reaching the right people the right number of times with the right combination of media. Strike a balance between reach and frequency. A common industry rule of thumb says that most brand objectives reach diminishing returns between four and 10 exposures to an individual.
• Don't try to recycle your offline ad. Create an ad with a prominent logo, clear ad flow and a format matched to the job it needs to perform to get your message across.
Colorful, engaging executions with eye-catching headlines or interactive capabilities will be needed as clutter increases and brand advertising becomes more interwoven with content.
• Strike a connection between online search and advertising. The first step is using offline print and broadcast advertising to drive consumers to their computers to search for your products. Consider using highly specialized search engines beyond Google, Yahoo! and MSN because research shows searchers who are on more intense missions spend more time at specialized sites.
• Take advantage of online shopping and buying. According to Reverse Direct Marketing, nearly 90 percent of shoppers do some research before buying from a Web retailer or offline store. This activity is a major opportunity for online advertising. Marketing and IT should work together to create a user-friendly, brand-building and action-driven experience with minimal hassle.
Most businesses maintain Web sites, but many don't know how to use them effectively to market their products or services, the authors say.
Companies looking for a business model might consider Campmor, the Upper Saddle River- outdoors merchant, which integrates online marketing with other media, including print advertising and direct mail.
From its founding in 1978 in an out-of-the-way former sheet-metal shop along the railroad tracks in Bogota, the company has combined a bricks-and-mortar retail store (now on Route 17 north in Paramus) with catalog mailings, toll-free telephone ordering and, in more recent years, a Web site.
"Navigating the world of online advertising can feel like a tall task for marketers, but it doesn't have to be guesswork," said Joe Plummer, one of the authors. "While it may seem like a new frontier, a lot of people have compiled a lot of research about online advertising and how it works. Use it."
The book is based on a review of more than 1,200 research documents on Internet advertising and it provides a comprehensive look at what it takes to build a successful online campaign.
"Most Internet advertising campaigns are based on hunches and guesswork, not on the endless amount of research that show what really brings great results in online advertising," said Plummer, former executive vice president at McCann-Erickson WorldGroup.
Service industry news appears Friday. E-mail: demarrais@northjersey.com
7151701
Herb Jackson's notebook on covering Congress and Washington.
Read 'Capital Games'
What is high school really like? Teens tell you what your child or school won't.
Read 'Listen Up'
All blogs
The Record Sportscast
Varsity Aces
Herald News
The Record
By KEVIN G. DeMARRAIS
STAFF WRITER
Confused about how to advertise effectively online?
A new book by four advertising veterans might help. The title is "The Online Advertising Playbook: Proven Strategies and Tested Tactics from the Advertising Research Foundation" (Wiley, 2007), and it could help marketers and entrepreneurs looking for ways to leverage the vast opportunities in Internet advertising.
The authors list several areas to consider:
• Target the right consumers with your ad. With online advertising you can locate and target precise groups of consumers, whether current customers or attractive prospects. Keep your focus on approaches that help create the most innovative, cost-effective and successful ads.
• Learn the magic numbers. Advertising effectiveness is all about reaching the right people the right number of times with the right combination of media. Strike a balance between reach and frequency. A common industry rule of thumb says that most brand objectives reach diminishing returns between four and 10 exposures to an individual.
• Don't try to recycle your offline ad. Create an ad with a prominent logo, clear ad flow and a format matched to the job it needs to perform to get your message across.
Colorful, engaging executions with eye-catching headlines or interactive capabilities will be needed as clutter increases and brand advertising becomes more interwoven with content.
• Strike a connection between online search and advertising. The first step is using offline print and broadcast advertising to drive consumers to their computers to search for your products. Consider using highly specialized search engines beyond Google, Yahoo! and MSN because research shows searchers who are on more intense missions spend more time at specialized sites.
• Take advantage of online shopping and buying. According to Reverse Direct Marketing, nearly 90 percent of shoppers do some research before buying from a Web retailer or offline store. This activity is a major opportunity for online advertising. Marketing and IT should work together to create a user-friendly, brand-building and action-driven experience with minimal hassle.
Most businesses maintain Web sites, but many don't know how to use them effectively to market their products or services, the authors say.
Companies looking for a business model might consider Campmor, the Upper Saddle River- outdoors merchant, which integrates online marketing with other media, including print advertising and direct mail.
From its founding in 1978 in an out-of-the-way former sheet-metal shop along the railroad tracks in Bogota, the company has combined a bricks-and-mortar retail store (now on Route 17 north in Paramus) with catalog mailings, toll-free telephone ordering and, in more recent years, a Web site.
"Navigating the world of online advertising can feel like a tall task for marketers, but it doesn't have to be guesswork," said Joe Plummer, one of the authors. "While it may seem like a new frontier, a lot of people have compiled a lot of research about online advertising and how it works. Use it."
The book is based on a review of more than 1,200 research documents on Internet advertising and it provides a comprehensive look at what it takes to build a successful online campaign.
"Most Internet advertising campaigns are based on hunches and guesswork, not on the endless amount of research that show what really brings great results in online advertising," said Plummer, former executive vice president at McCann-Erickson WorldGroup.
Service industry news appears Friday. E-mail: demarrais@northjersey.com
7151701
Herb Jackson's notebook on covering Congress and Washington.
Read 'Capital Games'
What is high school really like? Teens tell you what your child or school won't.
Read 'Listen Up'
All blogs
The Record Sportscast
Varsity Aces
Herald News
The Record
eBay Pulls Google Advertising After Event Spat
eBay pulls Google advertising after event spat
Posted by Martine Schroeder at 6:04PM, Friday 15th June 2007
Attempts by Google to promote its online payments service to eBay power users provokes a costly reaction from the auction giant.
Internet auction site eBay has decided to pull all of its online advertising from Google after a clash erupted between the two companies.
The two internet heavyweights planned promotional events over the same time period, provoking the row between the companies.
eBay was scheduled to hold its annual conference and largest event of the year, eBay Live, in which over 10,000 eBay enthusiasts would gather in Boston to network and explore new strategies and solutions.
At the same time, Google planned to host a "Google Checkout Party" to promote its online payment service. Google reportedly attempt to lure people from the eBay event. Google boasted that its event, also held in Boston, would provide free food, drinks, and messages. Google also claimed that it was "a celebration of user choice." Google has already clashed with eBay over Google Checkout, which competes directly with eBay-owned PayPal, the favoured online payments system for eBay purchases.
eBay subsequently announced that it would be retracting all of its advertising from Google. It is suspected that eBay cancelled their advertisements due to the rival Google event, but eBay declined to say if pulling their advertisements was a direct result of this. eBay is one of Googles' largest advertisers and typically spends about £12.5 million annually on US Google adverts alone.
Upon announcement of eBay's cancellation, Google quickly called off their party stating on their blog that, "eBay Live attendees have plenty of activities to keep them busy this week in Boston, and we did not want to detract from that activity. After speaking with officials at eBay we at Google agreed that it was better for us not to feature this event during the eBay Live conference."
Posted by Martine Schroeder at 6:04PM, Friday 15th June 2007
Attempts by Google to promote its online payments service to eBay power users provokes a costly reaction from the auction giant.
Internet auction site eBay has decided to pull all of its online advertising from Google after a clash erupted between the two companies.
The two internet heavyweights planned promotional events over the same time period, provoking the row between the companies.
eBay was scheduled to hold its annual conference and largest event of the year, eBay Live, in which over 10,000 eBay enthusiasts would gather in Boston to network and explore new strategies and solutions.
At the same time, Google planned to host a "Google Checkout Party" to promote its online payment service. Google reportedly attempt to lure people from the eBay event. Google boasted that its event, also held in Boston, would provide free food, drinks, and messages. Google also claimed that it was "a celebration of user choice." Google has already clashed with eBay over Google Checkout, which competes directly with eBay-owned PayPal, the favoured online payments system for eBay purchases.
eBay subsequently announced that it would be retracting all of its advertising from Google. It is suspected that eBay cancelled their advertisements due to the rival Google event, but eBay declined to say if pulling their advertisements was a direct result of this. eBay is one of Googles' largest advertisers and typically spends about £12.5 million annually on US Google adverts alone.
Upon announcement of eBay's cancellation, Google quickly called off their party stating on their blog that, "eBay Live attendees have plenty of activities to keep them busy this week in Boston, and we did not want to detract from that activity. After speaking with officials at eBay we at Google agreed that it was better for us not to feature this event during the eBay Live conference."
Friday, June 15, 2007
Speech of Vishwanath Anand - Chess Champion
Viswanathan Anand , the World No 1 and NIIT Mind Champion, delivered this speech in Chennai recently. Though Anand spoke extempore, his wife Aruna kindly put together his thoughts for the benefit of rediff.com readers. Thank you Aruna and Vishy!
I started playing chess at the age of six. I used to observe my elder siblings play chess and asked my mom if I could learn the game too. I never really thought I would make it big. I just enjoyed playing chess.
My sister decided I should join a chess club. Three days after joining the club I realised I could play my first tournament. I don't know if it was such a bright idea but when you are six optimism is never a problem.
I promptly lost my first three games in the tournament; the fourth I won by default. My opponent failed to turn up. I counted the seconds, anxiously praying that my rival wouldn't turn up at the last minute and spoil the fun. This was my first victory in chess. From then on, I played in many weekend events and state-level tournaments.
There was no specific goal or big picture. It was just a natural progression from one level to the other.
Work with new people
I began to work with young players with new styles and knowledge of cutting edge developments. These guys grow up with the latest techniques.
In the 1980s chess information used to arrive three months late. In the 1990s the information used to be posted in the form of diskettes. Nowadays, we download games and data in real time. So these were all inflection points.
Your chess and thought process has to change accordingly. Working with new people gives you a fresh perspective.
The most important lesson I learnt was that one had to experiment even when the going is good.
When you are in good form you have to keep constantly analysing yourself. When you are very resistant to change or are content with the way things are it is a sure sign that something is going wrong.
The temptation is always there to get into cruise control mode. You have to be willing to take the occasional hits so that you succeed over a longer period.
Each challenge and game should be a challenge and a learning experience.
Self criticism is also essential.
It is difficult to be objective about success or failure, but they are the two pillars on which you hinge your performance.
It is a lesson I try to learn every day. No amount of tutoring can teach you how to deal with success or failure.
It is your passion within that will make the difference.
I started playing chess at the age of six. I used to observe my elder siblings play chess and asked my mom if I could learn the game too. I never really thought I would make it big. I just enjoyed playing chess.
My sister decided I should join a chess club. Three days after joining the club I realised I could play my first tournament. I don't know if it was such a bright idea but when you are six optimism is never a problem.
I promptly lost my first three games in the tournament; the fourth I won by default. My opponent failed to turn up. I counted the seconds, anxiously praying that my rival wouldn't turn up at the last minute and spoil the fun. This was my first victory in chess. From then on, I played in many weekend events and state-level tournaments.
There was no specific goal or big picture. It was just a natural progression from one level to the other.
Work with new people
I began to work with young players with new styles and knowledge of cutting edge developments. These guys grow up with the latest techniques.
In the 1980s chess information used to arrive three months late. In the 1990s the information used to be posted in the form of diskettes. Nowadays, we download games and data in real time. So these were all inflection points.
Your chess and thought process has to change accordingly. Working with new people gives you a fresh perspective.
The most important lesson I learnt was that one had to experiment even when the going is good.
When you are in good form you have to keep constantly analysing yourself. When you are very resistant to change or are content with the way things are it is a sure sign that something is going wrong.
The temptation is always there to get into cruise control mode. You have to be willing to take the occasional hits so that you succeed over a longer period.
Each challenge and game should be a challenge and a learning experience.
Self criticism is also essential.
It is difficult to be objective about success or failure, but they are the two pillars on which you hinge your performance.
It is a lesson I try to learn every day. No amount of tutoring can teach you how to deal with success or failure.
It is your passion within that will make the difference.
Saturday, June 2, 2007
Save upto 75% on Printer Ink Cartridges
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