Our smart devices have become extensions of ourselves in a way that allows us to do almost anything with ease — store contact information, get answers to questions, organise calendars and manage our to-do lists. But, no matter how advanced technology gets, it is not a substitute for our memory.
Here are a few ways to start boosting your brainpower.
Pay attention
Depending on what you are doing – reading a document, meeting a prospective client or taking instructions – pay full attention to that particular thing in the moment. One way to do this is to mentally repeat mantras relating to what you need to remember. Things like “what is this person’s name”, or “this document is really important” can often make a huge difference. Science dictates it only takes eight seconds to commit something to your memory, but if you’re distracted nothing will go in.
Visualise it
Part of the reason you can’t hold on to something you’ve tried to memorise is because you didn’t really see it. Picture it in your mind. You could use an acronym, or relate it to something that it reminds you of, looks like or sounds like. For example, say I’m trying to memorise the fact that I have a phone call with an important client at 4pm. Rather than trying to drill the time into my head, I would picture my client sailing on a sailboat and throwing his/her phone into the ocean. Sailboats look like the number 4 when the sail is unfurled, and the image of my client throwing a phone into the ocean reminds me it’s a phone call. It might sound silly, but it helps me see it better. If you have just one meeting in a day, it may not be necessary, but this technique can really help when you have dozens of appointments or things to keep track of.
Then store it
Your brain is a cluttered room. You need to organise it. Take a place you know well, like your house or office, and when you’re memorising a list of things, imagine them there along a route in that space. For example, to memorise your busy schedule, picture yourself standing in front of your doorway and make a mental image of placing your first to-do item at the door. Next, mentally navigate yourself into your home and put down the image for the next item. Continue this process through your house with your entire list and voila, it’s memorised. When it is time to remember the list, all you have to do is go back to the start of your route in your head and pick up the images you left along the way.
Plan for what you’ll forget tomorrow
The future version of yourself is the person who forgets things. If you’re memorising something now, you’ve got it. But come two days from now, you’ll be asking yourself “what was it again?”. To plan for that forgetful dolt, make sure you set things up so you can’t miss them in future. If you always misplace your phone or wallet for example, make sure to put it in the same spot.
Stop telling yourself you have a bad memory
Networking events can be a nightmare if you’re bad at remembering names. To avoid being in the exceptionally awkward position of having to introduce people whose names you can’t remember, stop telling yourself you have a bad memory or that you’re rubbish with names — you are not. Next, choose a physical feature on the face of the person whose name you’re trying to remember. Picture their name in your mind when you hear it, and then put it together with the facial feature.
Learn a new skill
Gaining new skills can really give your brain a good workout – whether it’s learning a new language or how to edit videos or figure skating. If it’s new and difficult for you, chances are it’s doing wonders for your brain. Comfort and ease are the enemies of your brain, so try to challenge it. A new skill will also force you to use your memory to hold all that new information.
Get some rest
Recent research by Herriot Watt University shows that resting quietly for 10 minutes after learning something helps healthy adults retain that new information more easily. Also, daily exercise, which helps improve blood flow to the brain, and a healthy diet can improve focus and cognitive sharpness.
Build mnemonic confidence
People who say they have bad memories tend to … guess what? Have bad memories. The reverse is also true for people who say they have good memories. While some of it may be chalked up to actual natural ability, most of it is down to confidence. Flip the script. If you go around believing you have a good memory (which you do, when used), you’ll have a memory that works better.
Nelson Dellis is a four-time winner of the USA Memory Championship, an annual event where entrants try to memorise as much information as possible