As an aside, if you play games competitively and you want to get better you should _always_ seek better players to play against. That's how you improve your game: you set the challenge just above your current level. The "just" part sorts itself out because players significantly more advanced will not find it very challenging to play against someone much weaker, so you 'll get fewer games against them anyway.

Another thing is to play people you don't know and find new playing partners often. That helps you avoid getting stuck in a rut.