Royane Real
How to Improve Memory: 5 Memorable Tips
By: James Malone
Introductory comments
By Royane Real
Author of “How You Can Be Smarter - Use Your Brain to Learn Faster, Remember Better and Be More Creative”
Everyone can benefit from learning how to improve memory.
When you’re very young, learning and remembering come easily. The brains of children are designed to be “learning machines”. What goes into our memory banks at an early age is the sort of information we will need in order to become successful adults.
When we’re very young, our brains are very adaptable. We have a huge number of brain cells and connections between our brain cells that make learning and remembering fairly easy, especially when we are truly interested in the topic we are learning.
However, when we get to our teenage years, our brain undergoes a massive revision. Our brain starts to prune a lot of unused connections between brain cells. Unused circuits disappear and the brain goes to work on strengthening those memory connections that get used a lot.
That means that information and skills you don’t use often can easily wither away and disappear. The good news however is that the information and skills you use a lot will become much stronger. In this way your brain strengthens the skills and interests you are most interested in developing.
When we start to become forgetful, there are many possible reasons for our forgetfulness.
One reason is that we may be trying to access information we aren’t really very interested in. If we’re not interested in a topic, we won’t pay much attention in the first place, and we won’t review the topic with any degree of interest. When our brain senses we’re not very interested, it won’t make very strong connections between the brain cells that house that memory.
Therefore one important key to remembering something is to be very interested in the topic in the first place. When we are emotionally interested in something we have a far better chance of remembering it later. When we use several different senses in the learning process we can remember better than if we just hear a lecture.
When we are under stress, when we haven’t eaten well, or exercised, or slept well, our entire thinking and remembering process starts to become ineffective. We won’t think clearly or creatively, and we will have a harder time remembering things we need to remember.
In the following feature article which was written by James Malone, you can read some of his tips to help you become better at remembering.
(These introductory comments which appear above are written by Royane Real, author of the popular book “How You Can Be Smarter - Use Your Brain to Learn Faster, Remember Better and Be More Creative” Download it at http://www.lulu.com/real )
Feature article:
How to Improve Memory: 5 Memorable Tips
By: James Malone
Do you frequently walk into a room and forget why you were going there? Some of us have problems with remembering names and faces. The ability to do well on tests or promotional exams often hinges on the ability to retain and then recall information.
Despite its importance, how to improve memory is a topic that is often overlooked in our education.
Memory can be broken down into three basic components: imprint, retention and recall.
Imprint is when we encounter a new piece of information that we would like to store in the memory banks. Retention is the degree to which this information creates a memorable and lasting impression or not. Finally, recall is the ability to retrieve the retained information at will. Any of these three phases can be the culprit in a memory lapse.
Here are some tips that can help you improve memory.
Pay Attention
Sometimes people blame their recall abilities when a given fact escapes them, when really the error occurred during the imprint phase. If you are not paying attention, chances are you will not remember later. Part of the problem is that we are continually bombarded by trivial messages courtesy of the mass media. Attention follows interest, if something is important to remember, remind yourself of that at that time.
Make Associations
Neurologists tell us that the individual brain cells actually make physical connections with other brain cells in response to new associations. The more associations you make with a piece of information, the more likely it will be retained.
Just met someone named Richard and you want to be sure you remember his name? It would be pretty hard to forget if you created a mental image of Richard Nixon putting his arm around this new acquaintance while he said, “I am not a crook, and my friend Richard here isn’t either!”
The more colorful and comical an association is, the more easily it will be retained.
Get Enough Rest
Sleep deprivation and fatigue are proven to dampen all phases of memory. Elite military units intentionally create conditions of mental and physical exhaustion during the training and selection of new recruits to see if they can function properly under those circumstances. Many cannot and are dropped from the program.
Memory problems are one of the early warning signs that stress has gotten out of hand. Make sure you are getting plenty of sleep, rest and recreation.
Stay Hydrated and Oxygenated
All of the organs of the body require copious amounts of water and oxygen to function at their best, especially the brain.
Many of the health problems encountered the elderly are due to dehydration, including memory lapses. The brain uses a lions share of the oxygen brought into the body.
Make sure your living and work spaces are well-ventilated.
Deep breathing exercises as taught in yoga can also improve memory and mind power.
Watch Out for Negative Beliefs
A person gets to a certain age and it is almost inevitable he will begin to complain about the memory starting to get foggy. This is not to say that dementia and Alzheimer’s disease are not real maladies. However, the power of self-suggestion can impair memory in an otherwise healthy person.
A popular routine amongst stage hypnotists is to suggest to a receptive volunteer, in a moment the number between 6 and 8 will disappear, you will try very hard to remember it, but it will remain a blank until I snap my fingers. Lo and behold the number does seem disappear for awhile, where the otherwise intelligent person cannot answer what is four plus three?
The volunteer still has a perfectly fine brain, but the power of belief just created a temporary and amusing memory lapse. Use positive affirmations like “my memory and mind-power grow stronger each and every day” to combat negative thoughts and beliefs.
James Malone is a Certified Hypnotist from Point Pleasant, NJ and the publisher of the insanely popular Creative Calm online newsletter. NJ. Do you remember why you read this article? Hint: It’s because you want to improve your memory!
Will you remember to visit the Improve Memory Resource Page later on, or should you just visit there now to learn even more?
Article Source: http://www.many-articles.com
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