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This page deals with how
to go about storing in long term memory any information which you want to be able to bring
to mind again easily on future occasions
There are many ways of doing this and some will
suit you better than others. There is no doubt however that the first two listed -
Association and Visualisation - are the most important for the majority of people.
They may seem difficult and slightly ridiculous at first, but you will find they work and
of course, no-one knows you are using them unless you let them into the secret.
People just notice your much improved memory.
Methods of Storing Memories
- Association of Ideas
The trick with this method is to link together in your mind something which you
already know and remember well with the new information you want to remember.
For example: I want to remember that the
beautiful flowers in my border are called Agapanthus, but whenever I try to tell someone
what they are, the information is not there ready in my mind.
So, I divide up the word to be remembered into two parts and come up with an Aga
cooker and a panther. As the flowers are blue my picture
to remember is a blue Aga and a blue panther. I make a mental picture in my mind of
my flowerbed with a huge Aga cooker placed where the flowers are, and on top of the cooker
sits a handsome panther.
As this is such a ridiculous and unlikely picture it is not difficult to remember, and I
think about the scene many times over several days.
The next time someone says, "What are those lovely flowers?", the picture I have
memorised flashes unbidden into my mind and I can immediately say, "Agapanthus
lilies."
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Until you try the method for yourself you will imagine that this all takes ages and that
you really haven't time to fill your mind with such a lot of useless clutter.
However, psychologists agree that unlike a computer, the human memory has no limits as
regards what it can easily store, and you will find if you give this method a trial that
it really works, and it is actually quite fun to think up the associations.
The next method is really an extension of the first, and if used in conjunction
with associations, enhances your chance of remembering the material.
- Visualisation - remember in pictures
Pictures are much easier to store than abstract facts.
Some people say that they cannot visualise, but this seems to be very rare. If
asked, most people agree that they SEE in their mind's eye the time the chip pan caught
fire, or when their child was the star in the school play.
- Exaggeration and Humour
If you exaggerate certain features of your visualised picture and in addition, make it so
that it appeals to your sense of humour and makes you laugh, then you are even more likely
to remember it easily.
We remember things which are out of the ordinary in some way, so exaggeration (as in a
cartoon) is a real help to memory.
Maybe you could bring your favourite cartoon character into the picture as well.
I have discovered that it is of some use when
you lie in bed at night and gaze into the darkness to repeat in your mind the things you
have been studying. Not only does it help the understanding, but also the memory.
Leonardo da Vinci |
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These are the most important methods of Storing Memories.
Other methods are on the next page
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