Manifest Your Dreams
The topic that is going to be discussed in this article is about the human memory and how it works. The depth to which one can manipulate and improve the memory to remember things better is fascinating and here is the definitive outline to it all.
I am going to guide you through the process of remembering using memory techniques and other devices such as mnemonics. Whether you want to be able to remember where you left your car keys or if you want to grasp the content of the exam that you so fear, here is where you will get all the tips about how to beat that. All the techniques that are employed will guide you through the process of making sure that the things which matter do not escape your memory again.
Memory Training
When it comes to the human memory, we find that there are many fascinating facets about the way the human mind works. If we were to be hard working in conditioning ourselves to improve the way our minds work, we would have a much better life. There are times when you wonder why you forget even the most important things; well you don’t have to be puzzled anymore. When we talk about the training of a person’s memory, we refer to the act of improving the ability t remember things in the human brain. This is one very old technique that has been in use for a very long time.
It can be very basic and rudimentary i.e. the use of songs to remember things like we used to do with nursery rhymes or can also involve the use of mnemonic devices or repeated recitation of the things that we want to remember until they cannot be forgotten unless under very special circumstances. There have been techniques that have helped in this field which include the changing of diet, exercise, management of stress, medication and neuro-scientific methods that have been developed from the knowledge gathered about the way the mind works over years of medical research.
Basic memory Training Tips and Tricks
It is known for a fact that there is no such thing as a bad memory. If you want to remember something, you will remember it. That is if you are optimistic about the whole process which can help you do that easily without stressing yourself up and having a hard time. The following are some of the tricks and methods that you can use when you are trying to remember things. These will help you when you have a hard time recalling particular events or facts that you should know. Even the place you last put something can be easily forgotten. So, dive in and work this out for yourself.
- Association Method
This is where if you want to remember something, you just relate it with something else and in that way, one thing reminds you of another. It is very effective and by the use of these metal images of things you can’t forget, you are able to remember things that you can forget.
We have two ways of using the association methods and these are:
- Association to recall facts– this is where you use an image or phrase to create mental images that will help you remember the facts. A good example would be when I tried to remember the year that martin Luther gave his ‘I have a dream’ I have been living in Kenya for quite a while and I know for a fact that they got their independence in 1963, therefore, I was able to associate the two common facts to remember the year. I was also able to recall the year that John F. Kennedy was assassinated by remembering the HBO series, 11.22.63. I associated the two and because I could remember one clearly, I could get the facts without struggling much.
- Association to recall numbers– this applies when it comes to ID numbers or important telephone numbers. You can just break the number down into smaller parts that mean something. For example my ID number is 992017. I am able to recall it because the number 99 is our house number, I got my first car when I was 20 and I met my girlfriend when I was 17 years old. This way, I can be able to recall the numbers by associating them with facts of things that I cannot forget easily.
- Chunking/Lumping
This is the categorizing/ grouping of things that you wishes to remember. For example, you may have a shopping list that includes a bunch of groceries, household items and other things that you may need. Because you want to remember this easily, it would be difficult to memorize a list that runs like so:
- Eggs
- Soap
- Mop
- Dishrag
- Curtain
- Pencil
- Milk
- Cucumbers
- Flour
Consider a list which groups them according to what they are, starting with foods, kitchen items and then the rest according to where they belong. You can do the same with numbers. For example consider the pass code for my bunker: 998562735447. It is not easy to memorize it the way it is. But what if you could just take it apart and lump the parts into smaller numbers like 998-562-735-447. They become easier to recall and can be recited easily without struggling.
- Rhymes
You may remember all the colors of the rainbow in their correct order from a nursery rhyme that you sang decades ago. This is because, the mind’s ability to recall songs and things that have a certain rhythm to them is higher than when you just have plain facts that are said rather than recited.
- Acronyms
This refers to the use of letters to remember certain things. For example, you can take the first letters in a certain sequence and use them to form a word that you will remember. By use of this word, you can be able to trigger your mind to bring forth the meanings of each letters. For example, ROYGBIV is for the colors of the rainbow.
- Acrostics
These refer to something similar to the acronyms, except that this time you use an entire sentence to remember things or sequences. For example, you can use ‘My Very Eager Mother Just Sent Us Noodles’ to remember the names of the planets in their correct order.
How to Use Mnemonics to Remember Useful Information
First of all, you need to know what mnemonics are before you can start using them. The term mnemonics refers to the memory devices that are used to recall large chunks of information in steps, phases, stages, parts or characteristics.
There are several types of mnemonics which can be used and they are listed here with the description of how they work in enhancing recall and good memory.
- Musical Mnemonics
The number of songs that you as a human can remember number in the hundreds and all of it was done effortlessly. There is a way that you can apply the way music works to recall information and it is the one that we call musical mnemonics. You may have noticed that when it comes to commercials on TV and Radio, the advertisers, use music to get the information across. You remember all the jingles easily because they are in music form. You too can make a song to remember lengthy lists of anything. This will be easier because you can just sing out the information on demand.
- Word Or Phrase Mnemonics
This is the most used type of mnemonics and it is very effective because it works by associating whatever you want o remember with something simple and easy to recall. For example: Boyle’s Law which states that; at constant temperature, pressure is inversely proportional to volume. This can be recalled by remembering that; Boyle’s law is best of all because it presses gases awfully small. In English we have the coordinating conjunctions which are For, And, Nor, But, Or, Yes and So. They can be remembered if you recall the word FANBOYS which is composed of the first letter of each of them.
- Name Mnemonics
Here, the first letter of each of the things that you wish to recall can be used to make a word or name that is used when remembering the words themselves. For example; ROYGBIV is used to recall the colors f the rainbow in their proper order; Red, Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue, Indigo and Violet.
- Model Mnemonics
These are very simple to construct and use. They can be used to recall formulas and other things. You just need to have a shape which can be divided into parts that contain the information you need. For example, speed=distance/time. This can be in a pyramid where the rest can be calculated easily. Distance is on top and speed and time will be at the bottom of the pyramid side by side i.e. distance =speed*time and time= distance/speed
- Note cards
These are cards that can be used in useful situations like when you are giving a speech that has many facts. You only need to glance down once and you can have your memory jogged by something that you have written on the cards.
Is Memory Training Difficult to Learn
In a word, no, it is not difficult to learn memory techniques and training. You will only need to be optimistic by first knowing that there’s no such thing as a bad memory and we are only impaired in this way because we are too lazy to work for it. It requires you to face it with the right amount of enthusiasm and dedication. Once you do that, you will not only enjoy learning the techniques but also be able to do so in a very short time frame.
How to Start Using Mnemonics and Memory Training
When we talk of combining the conditioning of the human brain to recall facts and the use of the mnemonic devices which form a very large part of that process, we can easily link the two to work together towards a better memory. When you start using mnemonics, you will need to condition your brain to remember the things you have learnt through practice using methods such as recitation and occasionally sitting down and writing as much of what you have learnt as you can recall. Some methods that have been used to link the two include the following:
- Strategy training– this is where the individual undergoing the memory training recites the information out loud teaches it to peers using stimuli and other devices that he/ she can come up with and be comfortable using.
- Core training– this involves the use of memory tasks that are very demanding of the individual who is training. The methods will vary in the hope that the individual will find one that he likes and stick with it. Also, it will help with the students who suffer from attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.
In this way, you can be able to include the two together to memory train and learn better.
Top 5 Surprising Uses of Memory Training
The uses of memory training may not be so surprising at all but the five uses that are discussed below will include the major uses of memory training. They can range from personal to competition purposes among other things.
- Examination Purposes
Exams should not be a thing that you fear every time it is mentioned. You need to be able to overcome your fear which is usually based on the fact that you feel you are not prepared enough. The memory training techniques can help you ace the exams without being stressed at all. You will be able to remember more content and therefore be able to have confidence and better grades in school.
- Recalling of Everyday Things
This will include the place where you last saw something in the house. The more you practice, the more that your mind is able to grasp in a very short time. You will no longer late because you forgot something simple at the house or at the workplace.
- Competition Purposes
There are competitions which are held to determine who has the best recall and memory. This will involve a bunch of tests where you are told to look at something and recite it or read something and re-write it down word for word. These competitions are prestigious and very interesting. When you have the training of the memory and how it works, they will be easy for you to participate in and even win if you are dedicated enough.
- Work Purposes
When you are at work, you may need to be able to remember some very important things and they may include the presentations, the lessons content as a teacher and it could be that your job is to talk to people about some things. It would be very embarrassing if you forgot what you are supposed to say to them. That is why you will need to have memory training and use it to better your work experience.
- Social Purposes
The power to remember what you talked about with your friends last week or the week before that can be very useful. By making them feel like they matter and by connecting with them, you can better your life and make it easier and more fun. Be it interaction with kids or with friends, the ability to connect can be very useful.
How to Use Memory Techniques to Ace Exams
Memory techniques do not just encompass the act of remembering the things that you learnt but by also doing the things that enhance the experience.
- Be organized– a cluttered desk just won’t do the trick. You need to be organized because the mind will pick up on that and be able to get all you learn in order too.
- Mind palaces– these are the visualizations that you are able to build just by using your imagination. This method is used to connect the various things that you imagine and store large amounts of information. See, Sherlock Holmes the TV series.
- Mnemonics– as they have been explained above, you will have the power to recall large amounts of information accurately.
- Rhyming– increases the time frame that you can remember something. Use it as much as you can for long lists.
- Music– you can use music to learn new things that are associated with the song of your choice. Anytime you remember the song, you can remember the things that you learnt.
- Use your other senses– for example a certain smell can be able to bring back vivid memories associated with a certain learning experience.
- Sleep and feed properly– this enhances your strength physically and mentally. That way you can be able to handle a lot of information without breaking down.
In conclusion, we can agree that memory training is very useful for everyday life among other things. Try to learn as much as you can the techniques that are used in this topic and you will have the ability to see a lot of change.
I’m nearly 50 and I enrolled for my MBA. I was having a melt down because I don’t know how to remember anything. I swear this was written for me. Great tips and ideas. Well written. I feel like I am in over my head but this was calming for me.
I’m currently in panic mode because I have a lot to memorize for my job. This calmed my nerves. Will definitely try to build memory palace of my own!
Funny thing: I’m trying to memorize this post because it has awesome tips for memory tricks. Actually, I wouldn’t call them tricks, but memorizing techniques. I’m confident that my memory will improve, and the more a practice these techniques, the more efficient the will be. All in all, great post!
Awesome!! how you get an idea to write on this topic ? In today’s world of computer we badly need this but unfortunately we don’t even know that we should train ourselves.
Great tips! Thanks a lot! I needed some tips to improve this side of my life. For some, this might seem like a normal thing to do, but for others, like myself, we need some extra help and this has been very useful.
Follow the tips and guide here and it really works. Thanks for this was able to remember my lesson.
I have been struggling in remembering things. I easily forgot some things. With this article that I stumble on the net helps me a lot. Simple tricks and techniques. Very good for this.
The tricks and methods that are discussed here is are very helpful and informative. Excellent work!
There is a huge amount of information that our mind can store. It however does not happen so because we fail to train the mind in a good way. I am happy to realize the fact that we can now train the mind and keep it for our own benefit. Looking forward to a fully implementation of this.
You might at one point think that this does not work. Forget about all other scam products out there. I have used this guide and seen it work. This is very real and works very fast. Clear instructions on how to go about the process are provided by the author. The tips are easy to apply and there are no side effects. The language used it also easy to understand.
Mentally combine everyday tasks with scents, emotions, or tastes that you enjoy. For example, think of lavender while brushing your teeth or link using the telephone with the flavor of chocolate.
This memory training system, once you’ve practiced it, will help you remember short sequences of digits like telephone numbers or historic dates.
It is not difficult to build a better brain, but you must be sure which memory workouts will train it better to help you achieve particular learning outcomes.
The more the newcomers practiced the memory training techniques, the more their brain activity started to resemble the brains of memory athletes.
It is not difficult to build a better brain, but you must be sure which memory workouts will train it better to help you achieve particular learning outcomes. The more the newcomers practiced the memory training techniques, the more their brain activity started to resemble the brains of memory athletes.
This memorization method isn’t just used by fictional detectives. Memory champions swear by the memory palace.
The ancient Greeks taught their students systems for recalling key information, and many memory-boosting techniques have been developed over the centuries since.