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I know it's not the main complaint but...the secret to chili is you can add whatever you want. You don't need need a particular recipe -- just some tomatoes (fresh or canned) and a bag of dry beans. Ideally you should also have a bunch of peppers, garlic and onions. Soak the beans overnight if you have the time and change the water before boiling, but you can go straight to boiling them if you can't pre-soak. You might put some bullion in, but don't add anything else until the beans are almost done. Acidic ingredients like tomatoes will hinder softening and over-cooking will reduce the flavor of other things added early.

If you fry the onions/garlic before adding them, they'll give you an extra layer of flavor, but that's optional. Chop everything while you wait for beans.

Anyway, when the bean are soft, check that there's only enough liquid to cover the beans. Pour off excess and reserve in case you want to add it back later. Then dump chopped stuff in pot: tomatoes, onions, garlic, peppers (fresh, dried, or canned: examples: chipotle in sauce, poblanos, anchos, serranos, jalepenos), and whatever else you want -- even if it isn't considered 'proper': squash, tofu, celery, corn, or whatever. You can add a bit of oil for body. When that stuff is cooked, add spices such as cayenne, paprika, chipotle, powdered chili (note that sometimes 'chili powder' refers to just chilis and sometimes is mostly salt with a mix of spices). If using black pepper and fresh cilantro, add those last to retain maximum flavor.