Tips & habits

Learning the steps isn't enough. These are the things J Perm says matter just as much: how you learn algorithms, how you turn, and what to practice.

Memorizing algorithms Finger tricks Look-ahead 10 common mistakes 10 beginner tips Practice & gear

How to learn & memorize algorithms

Learning an algorithm has two parts: information (getting it into your head) and recall (pulling it out quickly and smoothly mid-solve).

Getting it into your head

Compress it into a pattern. In Pi (R U2 R2 U' R2 U' R2 U2 R) the R moves just go up, down, up, down. The middle is the same two moves repeated, and the start and end mirror each other.
Watch a block. For algorithms with no letter pattern, follow a pair of pieces. In the Y perm: F, put this pair here, U', put it back, F'. Then take the other pair out and put it back a different way.
Remember what your hands do. The Y perm contains the "four moves", and the four moves before them are the same shape except they end with the left hand doing F' instead of U'.
Turn fast while practicing. The slower you turn, the harder it is to build muscle memory.

Getting it out quickly (recall)

Don't drill the same algorithm for 10 minutes straight. Once you can do it perfectly, more reps in a row aren't productive. Put the cube down, come back later, and notice which part you stumble on. Focus on that, take another break, repeat. Making your brain look for it again is what trains recall.
Practice the case → algorithm link. Setting up a case yourself doesn't count: you already know which alg is coming. You need the case to surprise you. That's what the trainer here (and J Perm's jperm.net trainer) is for.
J Perm's routine: learn ~3 algorithms at a time, train them together, then mix them with ones you already know, and eventually with the whole set.

Finger tricks

The basics

Home grip: thumbs on the front, middle and ring fingers on the back.
R and L: wrist turns. Nothing else should be a wrist turn.
U: right index finger. U': left index finger. D: ring fingers. F: index finger after a regrip, or a thumb.
Regrips are slower than an extra move. Saving moves isn't everything; you also have to save regrips.

The ones worth learning next

R U R' from home grip. J Perm calls this the most important one. Many people regrip so the right thumb is on top for the U. Instead keep the thumb on the front and push U with the index finger (it feels awkward at first). It's in almost every F2L case, so learn it with the left hand too (L' U' L).
U2 double flick: index then middle finger, with either hand.
D and D' with either hand, including the "reverse push" with the ring finger when your thumb isn't on the front (OLLs with D moves, E perm).
D2 double flick: ring + pinky. Saves a lot in the A perms.
U from other grips: pull with the right index when the right thumb is on top, or push from the back with the left hand.
M moves: M' with the ring finger, M with the middle finger, M2 as ring then middle. If an M2 lands mid-algorithm where you can't flick, do M' M' with both hands.

To learn a new finger trick, hand-scramble instead of using random scrambles, and use the new trick as often as you can while scrambling. In general: be creative, reduce regrips, and keep your thumbs on the front during F2L.

Look-ahead

What it is: while solving one pair, your eyes are already finding the next one, so there's no pause between pairs. With the beginner method this is the single biggest improvement.
When to start: only once you can glance at an F2L pair and immediately know the moves and finger tricks, without looking at it any more. You can't think about the pair you're solving and the next one at the same time, so the current one has to run on autopilot. J Perm puts this around the sub-15 to sub-25 range.
Until then, choppy is correct: solve fast, pause, look, solve fast. Don't force smooth slow turning before you're ready.
The hard part is breaking the habit of watching the pair you're solving. Keep reminding yourself to look away from it.
The same idea links the cross to F2L: plan the whole cross in inspection, so during the cross your eyes can find the first pair.

The 10 most common speedcubing mistakes

Solving one cross piece at a time. Leads to more moves and rotations. Learn to plan and solve several at once.
Bad cross finger tricks. Imagine the cross facing each side and pick the one with the fewest regrips and no rotations.
Under-using inspection time. If you're learning to plan the cross (or first pair), take as long as you need in practice, even way over 15 seconds.
Only solving the front-right F2L slot. Don't rotate every pair to the front-right. Solve into whatever slot it's near.
Look-ahead too early or not at all (see above).
Double recognition in OLL. The top plus two sides is enough to identify any OLL. Turning to see a third side costs half a second to a second.
Rotating before PLL. Recognize from any angle and AUF at the end.
Pausing on the last turn. Predict the final AUF during the PLL by tracking a block or a color.
Hunting for the "best" algorithms too early. Use a fast cuber's algorithms until you know enough finger tricks to judge for yourself.
Doing R U R' with a regrip instead of from home grip.

10 tips every beginner should know

Find all the cross pieces before you start. Even if you can't plan the whole thing, knowing where they are helps, and it stops you from tunnel-visioning on the easiest piece.
Proper turning technique: wrists only for R and L. Index fingers for the top, ring fingers for the bottom.
Get a good speed cube. It should corner-cut (turn even when slightly misaligned), turn fast, not pop, and be lubed. A bad cube trains you into constant small realignments.
Look for patterns when memorizing (hand patterns, watching blocks).
Can't find a piece? It's in your blind spot. For the last cross piece, that's the four pieces at the back. Same for F2L pieces.
Reduce cube rotations. Turn the top to find pieces instead of turning the whole cube.
Do both timed and untimed solves. With a timer you fall back to old habits ("I'll just do the cross on top"). Without one you can stop and ask "could I do this better?"
Learning something new will make you slower, and that's okay. It's new, so you're not practiced at it yet.
Color neutrality is optional. It's better in theory, but takes lots of practice. You get most of the benefit from just two opposite colors (e.g. white and yellow).
Know your goal. Beginner method plus shortcuts gets you under a minute. If you want to be properly fast (sub-30 and beyond), move on to CFOP.

Practice & gear

Timer: J Perm uses cstimer.net. It keeps your times, averages and sessions, and generates scrambles. At competitions he uses a phone app.
Stackmat timer: only worth it if you care about competing. Starting and stopping on a stackmat is a different habit from a spacebar. Get a mat with it.
Cube: there's no cube that's "too good" for your level. If money matters, start cheaper: you won't notice the difference much until you're faster.
Lube: unlubed cubes collect dust and get worse over time. A long-lasting general lube plus a "fast" lube covers most needs, and a little lasts a very long time.
Competitions (WCA, worldcubeassociation.org) are more like meetups than contests for most people. You don't need to be fast to go.
Daily cross practice: a few minutes of "scramble, plan the cross, check" adds up. Use the cross trainer.

Sources: How to Learn & Memorize Algorithms Faster, Finger Tricks Tutorial, Top 10 Most Common Speed Cubing Mistakes, 10 Rubik's Cube Tips Every Beginner Should Know, How to Learn the CFOP Method, HOW TO BECOME A SPEEDCUBER, Solve the Rubik's Cube FASTER with the Beginner Method.