Everyone has experienced an incident where he can't remember anything. Luckily, no one is born with a “bad memory” and with certain tips and tricks you can improve your memory and make it easier to remember anything, whether it's memorizing an exam or your shopping list.
Step
Method 1 of 2: Memorizing Lessons
Step 1. Don't do multiple jobs at once
Concentration is very important in remembering. This is why you forget why you entered a room. It may be because you're thinking about your party plans together, or thinking about the television series you've just watched, you're not concentrating.
When you are studying or memorizing for school purposes, focus on only one task. Don't do many different tasks at once, or none of them will go well
Step 2. Stay away from external distractions
When you need to study, avoid things around you that could potentially take up time. It could mean you temporarily leave your home, family, friends, pets, television while you are studying.
- Find a specific place to study and don't do anything else while you're there (like paying bills, relaxing, etc.). Make sure you only study there, this will help your mind get into study mode.
- Choose a place that has good ventilation and lighting so that you will be more awake and not easily distracted.
- If you feel like you can't study and can't remember anything, take a break (don't take too long and don't do anything that can consume your time like playing the internet). Go for a walk, or buy a drink.
Step 3. Stay away from internal distractions
Sometimes distractions don't come from your friends or family, but from your own mind. Often when you are reading something about a lesson, you find your mind is not focused on the subject matter, but is thinking about the party you are going to attend or whether you have already paid the electricity bill.
- Prepare special notes to record distractions. If you have thoughts that you can take care of later (like paying the utility bill), jot them down and put them out of your mind so you can get back to studying.
- Take distraction as a reward. Tell yourself that after you finish reading (and understand and remember) this chapter, you will take a short break to deal with these thoughts, or dreams in broad daylight.
Step 4. Study during the day
Research shows that the choice of learning time is closely related to a person's ability to remember lessons. Even if you feel that you are a good person to study in the morning or evening, try studying during the day. You will be able to remember information better.
Step 5. Summarize each paragraph
If you're reading something you need to remember, write a short summary of each paragraph in the margins. Reading over and over will not only help you remember better, but it can also serve as a reminder as you look at your notes and read them.
Write down the important points each time you read, so you can remember them when needed and show that you read and understand what you are learning
Step 6. Write things down repeatedly
Writing repeatedly can strengthen your memory, especially the things that are difficult to remember like dates and foreign language vocabulary. The more often you write them down, the more they become ingrained in your brain.
Method 2 of 2: Using the Remembering Technique
Step 1. Use the donkey bridge technique
Certain things are so hard to remember using association or visualization techniques that you'll need to use another technique, called the donkey bridge. There are many different methods you can use. Some work better for certain information than other similar tools.
- Create an acronym for the thing you are remembering. Take the first letter of each word and convert it to an acronym that suits you. For example HOMES (to remember Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, Superior).
- Make an acrostic. Basically acrostic is the use of meaningless phrases/phrases to help you memorize the first letter of successive information (used in memorizing math formulas a lot). For example, the sentence "Extra clothes may be worn by Sule's sister" is used to memorize the order of operations: Parentthesis (brackets), Exponents (ranks), Multiply (times), Divide (divide), Add (add), Subtract (less).
- You can also compose short rhymes or rhymes to help you remember important information. For example: "i before e except after c" is used in English to remember that the letter e always comes after the i unless it is preceded by the letter c.
Step 2. Use word associations
There are many different types of association, the important thing is that you associate something you already know with something you are memorizing, what you already know helps you to recall what you are memorizing.
- Use funny or odd pictures. For example, if you are memorizing the story of John F. Kennedy's involvement in the invasion of the Bay of Pigs, imagine the American president swimming in the ocean with a herd of pigs. As silly as it may sound, the association of the beach and the pig will bring back memories of John F. Kennedy.
- Number association is associating a certain number with an image in the mind. This is why many people use passwords or codes that have an important bearing on their lives (such as birthday, your cat's birthday, wedding date, etc.). So if you are trying to memorize your library number (eg 52190661). You can say May 21, 1990 is your sister's birthday (52190). Then 66 years is your mother's age, and you only have one mother (to be 661). When you want to remember this number, imagine your sister with a birthday cake and then imagine your mother.
Step 3. Visualize
If you want to have a good memory, be sure to visualize what you want to remember. You have to focus on every detail. For example, if you're trying to remember a novel, focus on imagining the characters and scenes in great detail and make sure you know certain characteristics of each character that can help you remember them.
Step 4. Compose a story
When you have to memorize a series of pictures (or words, as in a shopping list) come up with a short funny story to help you. Stories can restore images in your mind, so you can remember them later.
For example you don't want to forget to buy bananas, bread, eggs, milk and lettuce, you can make up a story about a banana, a loaf of bread, and an egg trying to save lettuce that drowned in the milk pond. It's a very silly story, but in it all the elements are interrelated and this will help you remember
Step 5. Change the position of the items in the house
A great way to help you remember what you need to do is to place objects where they are visible and not where they should be. For example, you might put a thick book on your doorstep to remind you to do your final assignment. When you see an object that is out of place, it will intersect with your memory.
Tips
- If you're distracted while memorizing and can't focus, try sitting down and finding out what's bothering you. Once you know the cause, be it a personal problem, or something similar, solve the problem before you continue your memorization.
- Inhaling the aroma of rosemary is believed to improve memory and make you remember better.
Warning
- Telling yourself that you have a "bad memory" will actually make your memory worse, because you are convincing your brain that your memory is indeed bad.
- If you're having a lot of memory problems, especially if they happen early on, check with your doctor to make sure it's not a serious problem.
- Not all donkey bridge techniques are right for you, or suitable in every situation. Try them out and see which memory process works best for you.
