Most of us have trouble remembering things at times. Here are a few tips to help you improve short term memory.
Instructions
1. Associate the things to remember with a really absurd visual cue. For example, say you're trying to remember to take an envelope with you when you leave your house. Imagine a HUGE Envelope with big teeth and snapping jaws coming after you as you're walking out the door of your house. When you walk out the door for real, the visual will kick into your mind and you'll remember the envelope. The more absurd the visual, the more likely you are to remember it.
2. Use similar letters to associate thoughts. For example, my neighbors have 2 daughters. While I could remember the names, I never saw them often enough to remember which one was which. I made up a little letter association to remember - Sarah is senior. That way I remembered that Sarah was the older one.
3. Associate part of the name with a concept. Once when I was touring some caverns, the guide explained the difference between a stalactite and a stalagmite: A stalactite hangs "tight" to the ceiling while a stalagmite "might" reach the ceiling someday.
4. Use the first letters to make a memorable phrase. For example, all biology students remembers that King Philip Came Over For Good Sex. That's how they remember the classification system of all species: Kingdom, Phylum, Class, Order, Family, Genus, Species.
5. Use the first letters to make an acronym: KISS stands for Keep It Simple, Stupid.
6. If you have trouble remembering the names of folks at a social gathering, repeat the person's name after they've been introduced to you. Take an extra second to look at the person's face and associate it with their name. Most folks breeze through the introductions so quickly that the name never gets a chance to get a foothold in your memory.
You can practice this every time you eat out. The person who waits on you will usually introduce themselves. Repeat their name to yourself immediately and try to look at their name tag if they're wearing one.
If you're eating with someone else you can quiz them on the name - you'll be amazed how few people remember it even after a few seconds.
7. If you're trying to remember something and it's not coming to you, try visualization.
For example, if you're trying to recall the author of a book, visualize the front cover of the book. See the title there and then look at the author's name on the cover.
This won't work for everyone but it works well for some folks.
8. Play memory games. These will help keep your mind active and make your memory sharper.
Tags: their name, absurd visual, example trying, first letters, first letters make