Thank you for taking the time to read my notes. The fact that you reached this point would seem to suggest that you share my interest in improving your memory. On this site I merely intend to skim the surface of the huge ocean we call memory.
The following thoughts are simply observations based on my own recollections and on articles that I have read in the past.
The techniques suggested are ones that I use myself and find very effective. In general, they have been around for hundreds of years. I do not lay any personal claim to them.
I find it useful to think of remembering as a 3-stage process:
When we say we have forgotten something, it might be truer to say that we did not register the memory properly in the first place.
If the event or whatever was not properly registered in our memory in the first place, we can't be expected to provide an accurate recollection of it in the future. Think of a faulty tape recorder; if it can't tape properly, it won't provide a proper record of the event.
So to have a good memory, we must ensure that we register the event/object/person properly in the first place
.When I was at Primary School in the 1960s, the alphabet, multiplication tables, poems etc were taught by repetition; repetition until they were permanently etched in my brain. This method worked, it was a bit boring, but it achieved its aim.
We also learnt rhymes to remember rules "30 days hath September, April, June and November.............." That worked too, and the rhyme was fun and functional.
Later on, to help with the multiplication tables, my parents acquired a set of vinyl records (the precursor of the CD) on which they were musical versions of each multiplication table, providing a memorable tune and rhyme with each multiplication sum. It also included a little test at the end, where you could call out the answers to certain sums.
This made learning fun.
We also learnt to use pictures to form mental images to help us to remember. It's a well-known fact that we remember far more of what we see than what we hear.
Thus we register things because
a) They are significant to us, and/or
b) They are associated with something else, and/or
c) They are fun or funny, ( or sad, for that matter) and/or
d) They formed a picture in our mind
By the way, did you notice that I started this section by talking about forgetting, and ended by talking about remembering? Could it be that I wanted to make use of the fact that we remember best the last thing that we are told?
This is a technique used by advertisers; the image they most want us to take way with us is the last image we saw.
When you store the memory away for future use, you need to have a method in mind to enable you to retrieve it. On your computer, for instance, you might file all your data files in a data directory. That way, you know where to look when you need to find them, rather than scouring your whole hard drive. You link the fact that you created the files with perhaps my data. I do the same thing with items I need to remember. I make associations and links; I make up silly rhymes and pictures.
When it comes to retrieving, I just think of the original trigger, this will link me the event to be recalled. It might be a picture, a peg (as in the peg method), a smell, a funny story.
I have found that the best way to improve my memory is to keep exercising it. Like most parts of our bodies, it develops with exercise. Keep practising the various methods I have detailed.
Continually find new associations with other memories; the more triggers and links you make, the more likely you are to recall the particular one that you seek. Our brains consist of billions and billions of neurons linked by synapses; we can reinforce these links by creating more links and routes ourselves. This will increase the likelihood of good recall.
When you are struggling to remember something, think of what it is associated with - where were you at the time, who was with you, what were you doing just before, and just after.
If all else fails, it is sometimes beneficial to simply let your subconscious work on the memory. It will use the same steps as above, but without the conscious effort.
