Looking for ways to learn anything fast and remember it in 2018 (whatever it may be)?
You’re in the right place.
Why?
Because 2017 was a landmark year for the Magnetic Memory Method blog and podcast.
To sum up the year, I’ve gathered 18 of the most highly-shared and impactful posts from 2017.
Scroll up and click play to hear me sum up the year on the podcast.
Then get busy downloading each of these episodes and make yourself an audiobook so that you know how to study without forgetting what you have studied in 2018.
For the first category of memory-boosting material from 2017, we begin with:
Many people don’t know how to distinguish between every day forgetfulness and the kind of memory loss that should send you running for the doctor. Please check this material out.
But if you want to know how to make your brain stranger and train it for focus, you need strategy. Like knowing R.A.M.S. and which one to avoid:
Good news:
You’ll learn everything you need to know about how to attract information into your memory on that video and the learn faster post. Please check them out.
Lynne Kelly wrote the best memory improvement book of 2017.
Why?
Because in The Memory Code, she connects memory techniques for our deep past and shows how they’re just as relevant to human survival today as they were in prehistoric times.
Learn the tradition and use it traditionally.
You’ll be glad you looked to the elders for guidance.
Why else would they have worked so hard to preserve all that knowledge except for your benefit?
If The Memory Code shows us the link between memory and survival, Jennie Gorman’s visit to the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast extends it to modern medicine.
If you’re struggling with severe memory loss, her story will give you tips for a simple checkup that most people never consider.
Lurkers must be connected to the Digital Amnesia problem.
But it’s not just lurkers. Even people willing to use their own names come along who are ready and willing to claim that because something didn’t work for them…
It couldn’t possibly work for anyone else.
We set that negative lie to rest in 2017 and hope it stays resting in 2018.
In case not, it’s important to remember that the negativity comes from the human desire for quick wins.
15. Learn To Love Delayed Gratification By Using These…
It’s normal to get frustrated when you don’t get immediate results.
But the Internet has created a world filled with people who have unrealistic expectations.
According to Will Self, that might be the result of the Gutenberg Mind having said bye-bye in the age of Digital Amnesia:
That is very compelling, but as far as most of us are concerned, even without a history of reading novels, memory techniques work super fast and fine.
But what I like about Self’s critique for those who come to memory techniques is this:
Depending on your age, level of interest and exposure to depths of plot and imagination, picking up mnemonic skills can require varying degrees of take time.
And that’s a very good thing, I venture.
Why?
Because no matter who you are or where you come from, you are the only person who can experience memory techniques in quite the way you will experience them.
When you get in touch and share your experience, we learn more about how these memory techniques work with greater specificity about for whom and under what conditions.
In other words, learn to love delayed gratification. It rewards all of us when you arrive and send your report from the frontier of your own imagination.
And yes, as you can see on this live version of today’s blog post, those of us who belong to the Magnetic Memory Method Family are practicing long form discussions about memory improvement using the available technology. And loving it:
Make sure you’re subscribed to the Magnetic Memory Method on YouTube and have clicked the bell icon so that you’re notified the next time we go live.
How do you change yourself when old habits die hard?
We start by thanking our lucky stars for Barbara Oakley.
And if you haven’t read Mindshift yet, you are missing out on something truly special.
You may need an especially big mindshift if you believe Aphantasia is the reason you can’t use memory techniques, for example. (Hint: It’s not the reason.)
Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies are currently one of the most challenging, and yet most important topics on the scene. I’m grateful Jonathan stopped by and created this course to help us all out.
Of course, I’m not 100% in favor of all technological change.
But as I hoped to demonstrate in the podcast and post on why memory implants make no sense to me, if you want a properly functioning brain and memory in the future, you’ve got to keep a healthy division between your brain and technology.
Will my opinion change in the future?
Perhaps.
I’m a scientist, after all. New evidence always plays a role in shaping – and reshaping – my convictions.
But as of the end of 2017, I can tell you this:
As with my 2016 State Of Your Memory Address, journals, friendships and learning a new language remain the most likely ways to experience optimal brain health and superior memory.
Stick with the fundamentals and keep clear of smartphone addiction if you want to learn anything fast and remember it, Memorizers, and you’ll do just fine. Here’s a free course to show you how:
More than having your learning accomplishments be just fine in 2018, your mind and memory will become truly Magnetic.
Happy New Year and thanks for all the great memories of 2017!
Have you been looking for the perfect learn Japanese app…
Or maybe just wondering how to learn Japanese on your own with memory techniques?
Are you still at the level where you’re searching Google with “learn Japanese alphabet,” unaware of its unique character sets?
Or how about that wish to know how to speak Japanese fast?
Well, in today’s guest post and featured podcast guest host, Kevin Richardson share his experiences using the best app to learn to speak Japanese in the world:
The Memory Palace.
But not just any Memory Palace.
A Magnetic Memory Palace.
Scroll up and click play to hear my interview with Kevin and read his separate assessment below. Take it away Kevin!
The Man Who Almost Gave Up On Learning Japanese
Without Magnetic Memory, I would have packed up my bags and given up on ever learning the readings of Japanese kanji.
Now, I have no doubts that I’m going to complete my mission. I want to be fully literate in Japanese … and I want to be able to handwrite kanji too.
In for a penny, in for a pound!
This is actually my second attempt at using the Magnetic Memory Method.
I won’t lie to you, the first time I tried making a Memory Palace wasn’t a great success.
So take heart, don’t give up if you don’t get everything right the first time. Treat it as a learning experience. I promise you, you’ll get better quickly.
I’m still only a fledgling Memory Palace maker, yet now I’m able to remember up to thirty kanji readings in a single day!
Best of all – I know they’re there forever!
Before employing the Magnetic Memory technique, I’d used Heisig’s “Remembering the Kanji” volume 1 to memorize over two thousand kanji meanings in six months.
I wasn’t setting the world on fire, but for someone who can’t even remember why I’ve gone to the convenience store, I was still pretty pleased with myself.
Maybe The Memory Palace Stuff Wasn’t For Me…
In hindsight, I wish I’d known more about Memory Palaces when I set about using Heisig’s method, but my first attempt wasn’t very successful and I resigned myself to thinking maybe this Memory Palace stuff wasn’t for me.
By happy coincidence, I was just starting to think about the daunting task of learning thousands of readings for the kanji characters. I knew that if I could get the hang of it, this would be make or break.
After all, Japanese people take about ten years to accomplish the same task; so for me, any technique that’s going to supercharge my memory was worth a punt.
My first Memory Palace was a modest affair. I drew a sketch map of my apartment in Japan, numbered my memory stations in a logical route from bed to genkan (the place you leave your shoes).
The first kanji vocabulary word I added to the bottom of my bed – 主に (omoni – ‘mainly’). The story, “oh money is mainly found at the bottom of my bed”. Next, 大気 (taiki – ‘atmosphere’) …
That utter tyke, Russ Abbot singing “Oh what atmosphere, I love a party with an atmosphere” in the cupboard next to my bed. And as the tour went around my apartment, the story developed into a bizarre journey that I couldn’t forget.
Do you remember the Hana Barbera cartoon of Godzilla? I always hated the baby Godzilla, “Godzuki”, yet when I came to the bathroom, I have to think about that dinosaur, Gojira (as the Japanese say) … I’m a big fan of Godzilla … (dai no gojira zuki desu).
My Mind Couldn’t Help But Fill In The Gaps
I took Anthony’s advice and walked through my Memory Palace ten times that first day. That made a big difference; I think by walking through the same linear path through my apartment, visualizing the story ten times, the story in my mind became like a sequence of video clips.
My mind couldn’t help but fill in the gaps, so I’d see myself mainly getting my omoni from the bottom of my bed, so that I could throw some spare yen at Russ Abbot busking “atmosphere” in my cupboard etc etc.
The next day, I walked through it in my mind a couple more times during breaks at work. I loved the fact that I didn’t need any technology, no batteries and could simply walk through my Memory Palace whenever I had some downtime.
I decided that I’d start making one Memory Palace a week from that moment onwards. I’m now on my fifth Memory Palace and have gone from making twelve Magnetic Stations to now making over thirty Magnetic Stations in each Memory Palace.
(* Note: During the making of this Memory Palace, a mosquito collided violently with my notebook … to honor it’s death, I shall always remember “Yuu HAVE made a mess here”)
I’m not rushing anything. Like I say, I’m still a fledgling at this technique, but in the course of a month, my Memory Palaces are becoming richer, stranger, surreal and most importantly … unforgettable.
I now draw my map and number my Magnetic Stations. Then I think of a mnemonic to connect the kanji with it’s reading.
Then I write the whole story out as a walkthrough. Read it to myself and my mind can’t help but connect one station to another.
My favorite on this page has to be Hulk Hogan speaking in his “hougen dialect”!)
Now, I remember Olly and Anthony talking about the effort of making Memory Palaces being “top loaded.”
Certainly seems to be true for me at the moment – I spend far more time constructing my Memory Palace and creating a walkthrough story.
The Time I Save
BUT … it works … and if it means I don’t forget anything, that’s time I save in the long run.
In time, I can see myself not needing to write out my walkthrough story … and in time, I’ll eventually be able to take forty or fifty kanji readings, plot them out in my head, walkthrough the Memory Palace without having to write everything down.
I can see how that will give me the ability to remember hundreds of readings a week … but small steps grasshopper … I’m happy enough that I’ve gone from having a sketchy memory of maybe six readings a week, to now remembering fifty or so kanji readings a week.
That’s already a massive improvement … it’s certainly given me a huge boost in confidence that this heady goal of remembering thousands of kanji readings is much more achievable than I’d ever thought possible.
Would you like free tickets to participate in or watch the upcoming Memory Games in Las Vegas?
If so, hit play on this episode of the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast.
This is a tremendous opportunity for Magnetic Memory Method fans in the Las Vegas area.
Of course, even if you’re not in the area, you can help spread the word about memory techniques by sharing this page.
If you know anyone who would like some free memory training and an opportunity to practice them, please pass this information along to them as well.
You can also watch for all the details about getting free tickets in this video:
Hosted by Dave Farrow, these Memory Games present a great opportunity to learn new memory skills, practice the ones you already know and challenge yourself to a friendly and fun competition amongst fellow memory training enthusiasts!
This competition will teach you the memory techniques used in the games in a low stress environment. You’ll develop courage and confidence with your memory while making new friends.
This event is a precursor to the annual Pan American Memory Games in Florida and the annual US Memory Tournament held at eBay in San Jose, so if you’d like to be informed, make sure to get in touch with Dave so you can be notified.
Is This Memory Games Event Just For Adults?
Not at all.
Of course, memory games for kids help young people develop skills that will be useful throughout life and this is a great entry-level opportunity for all ages and skill levels.
Also, tune in to this episode of the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast to learn about:
* A forthcoming book with contributions from Alex Mullen and myself.
* The major reasons entrepreneurs and professionals need memory skills more than ever before.
* Why memory games are a great way to learn these techniques.
* Why the spelling bee competitions may be slowly disappearing and why competition might be one of the best memory activities for students.
* Options you have for using memory techniques, even if you’re not visual or experience aphantasia.
* And much, much more!
If you’d prefer to pay for tickets, please grab your Memory Games in Las Vegas now. More information about the event, including time and location are on that page.
To contact Dave Farrow directly, please email him using the link provided in the video and podcast or go directly to the contact page on Farrow PR.
About The Host Of The Las Vegas Memory Games
Dave Farrow earned his second Guinness World Record for memory by recalling the exact order of 59 decks of shuffled playing cards.
He created ‘The Farrow Method’ to help combat his severe dyslexia and ADHD and this is now a certifiable memory system backed by a double-blind neuroscience study at McGill University.
Dave has been a featured guest on Dr. Oz, Steve Harvey, The Today Show, Discovery Channel and many others.
Most recently, Dave won the grand prize on episode 5 of the hit FOX TV show, SuperHuman.
Thank you for attending this event if you can make it.
If you can’t, we deeply appreciate you helping spread the word about the 2017 Memory Games in Las Vegas. Your involvement in keeping this tradition alive is as central as learning and using the techniques themselves.
Let us know in the comments below how you found the games or were otherwise able to participate!
What is Bitcoin and cryptocurrency? And why should memory improvement fans memorize a long list of virtual currencies?
To help answer the question, Jonathan Levi joins me on this episode Magnetic Memory Method Podcast.
And to help us understand why the topic is so challenging for even the smartest learners, we discuss:
* The most important definition of Bitcoin (and probably all new digital currencies to come) and the software involved that you need to understand.
* The truth about fiat currencies and the BIG problems with fractional reserve banking.
* How Jonathan discovered Bitcoin and found cryptocurrency compelling enough to use his SuperLearner skills to learn how to buy Bitcoin stock in an easy and secure way.
* The most popular crypto currencies and why so much terminology is needed to discuss how to buy bitcoins and store them in different kinds of wallets.
* How Jonathan answered the central question: Is Bitcoin mining worth it?
* Why even people in underprivileged countries can buy Bitcoins with a debit card and participate in a democratized currency that will allow them to buy valuable online education programs (like for learning a language).
* The history of money and why everyone interested in this emerging form of currency needs to use their memory to help them learn about it.
* Why bitcoin is a revolution in both commerce and technology the provides a strong alternative to a fiat currency and the current culture of debt.
* Some of the history of money that “rots” as described by Lewis Hyde in The Gift and its relationship to the BlockChain.
* Blockchain technology explained clearly for those who need a “blockchain for dummies” guide to understanding the irreversible functions of mathematics that updates the ledger across the word.
* The special relationship between Internet money like Zcash and intellectual property that can never be copied.
* How Filecoin and other services help transfer shares properly and establish proper ownership in the hugest paradigm shift since the introduction of the Internet itself.
* A clear description of the problems being solved by bitcoin miners on the bitcoin market and how this creates tangible value.
* Why mining transactions and rewards take place every ten minutes and yet involve trillions of difficult transactions designed to keep out bad actors.
* Why the brilliant decisions of Satoshi Nakamoto helped make Bitcoin fraud very difficult, if not outright impossible.
* Why credit card charges are so expensive and make Bitcoin value projections climb higher and higher.
* Why every cellphone has the ability to function as its own bank without the need for a third person or elaborate trust structures.
* The future of credit card bonuses, air miles, incentive points, interest and transaction fees in this new era of Internet money.
* Why Bitcoin value is directly linked to a true understanding of democracy.
* The ultimate answer to the question: Is bitcoin mining worth it?
* Omisego and how serving the unbanked will prove revolutionary for learners around the world.
* Why Copay is the best and most secure wallet to use when learning how to buy Bitcoin.
* The role of transparency in a changing world of privacy and security and the role of anonymity when using these new forms of currency.
* The role of a passwords manager when using Bitcoin and other issues of online security.
* The ultimate question of whether these cryptocurrency solutions are making the world simpler or more complex.
* The number one opportunity with Bitcoin, the number one strength you’ll need and the number one fear each person should have – and how to avoid the need to fear getting involved in the cryptocurrency of your choice.
If you’re interested in learning more, click the image below to take a free intro course that will teach you even more:
Do you reserve your Saturday afternoons for the brain fitness promised by crossword puzzles?
If not, congratulations. That could be a wise decision.
But for over 50 million people, crossword puzzles are a part of their daily lives.
And they think it’s helping them.
In fact, there’s a pernicious myth out there.
One that is generally assumed by far too many people who hope, wish and pray that doing word puzzles regularly can help keep your brain young and active.
Many people also believe that the health benefits of crossword puzzles can even keep Alzheimer’s or dementia at bay.
The question is…
Why Do People Believe These Crazy Things About Crossword Puzzles?
Here’s one reason:
Many consider crossword puzzles to be the pastime of the intelligent and knowledgeable people – a connection that we are only too happy to have.
More importantly?
Playing word games may legitimately improve your vocabulary.
Then again, so will developing your own mind as the perfect vocabulary builder (our focus on this YouTube playlist):
So, ultimately…
The idea that crossword puzzles will develop your memory is true enough.
For some people, at least.
Here’s Who Really Benefits From The Memory And Brain Fitness Benefits Of Crossword Puzzles
Can you guess who gets the most bang for their buck in the crossword universe?
The answer is simple:
The people who design crossword puzzles – the cruciverbalists – experience the ultimate benefits.
As dedicated logophiles, crossword puzzle designers love using obscure words whenever and wherever they can.
And because they’re the architects of these games, they’re the ones most likely to remember the words they’ve enjoyed building into them.
To give a parallel example, it’s kind of like how songwriters find it easier than anyone else to remember the lyrics they’ve penned.
When Did We First Get Hooked on Crosswords: A Fascinating History
The crossword – a standard feature in newspapers across the globe – celebrated its hundredth birthday on December 21, 2013.
And it’s still going strong!
However, when journalist Arthur Wynne invented and printed the first ever “word-cross” puzzle in the New York World newspaper on December 21, 1913, it was hardly met with much fanfare.
An editorial in The New York Times published on November 17, 1924 called crossword puzzles “a primitive sort of mental exercise” and a “sinful waste” of time.
The craze of word puzzles spread after publishing firm of Simon & Schuster launched its career in 1924 with a book of puzzles. This was the same year when the World published its first daily crossword puzzle.
Years later, the puzzle’s success surprised Wynne:
“… all I did was take an old idea as old as language and modernize it by the introduction of black squares,” he said in 1925. “I’m glad to have had a hand in it, and no one is more surprised at its amazing popularity” (Lynn J. Feigenbaum, Crosswords at a Crossroad, The Puzzle Turns 100. What is the clue to its Survival?).
Wynne was inspired by ancient word squares – where words read the same across and down.
Wynne also took inspiration from another puzzle, the acrostic – in which sets of letters (such as the initial or final letters of the lines) taken in order form a word or phrase or a regular sequence of letters of the alphabet.
Ultimately, the current format with its compact square diagram of white spaces and black bars, with connected across and down words, and numbered clues became popular.
The Addiction Theory Of Why We Love Crossword Puzzles
Word puzzles are not only fun, but immensely satisfying as every crossword problem has that one perfect solution – the feeling of perfection we miss in our everyday lives and seek through art, literature and now the Internet.
There’s also an almost addictive pleasure to finally finishing a puzzle.
Why is that?
Recall that ‘aha’ moment when you finally get that elusive word or phrase solution. Moments like those confirm, even if it’s only to yourself, how knowledgeable, smart and well-informed you are.
That’s A Heady Feeling!
Yet, therein lies part of the problem:
Isn’t it really the case that solving crosswords is the opposite of quest for knowledge?
When you think about it, crossword puzzles are kind of like a quest for confirmation. A journey to confirm that you are knowledgeable in a way that gives your brain that addictive high of accomplishment.
There’s more:
Some people have even called the crossword a sort of geometric Rorschach test, a kind of psychological experience that reflects the human need to solve a mystery.
Want to Know The Real Story?
In reality, crosswords encourage you to give up on things you don’t immediately know. For instance, if you don’t know a particular word linked to a clue …
You don’t know it!
And here’s the kicker…
Even if you did research to find the answer, would you remember it over the long term?
Worse:
The amount of time the average person spends actually challenging their mind is questionable.
Why?
Because we usually know when we don’t know something.
As a result, we stop right there.
The instant our lack of knowledge becomes clear…
We’re gone!
Worse:
If the original motive to complete a crossword was to develop your brain, stopping the instant you feel challenged is as good as cheating.
Why Is Crossword Cheating Bad For The Brain?
Simple:
When it comes to playing word games, we find an imbalance between frustration and challenge.
The frustration is often too strong. It overrides the fun of challenges that propel you forward throughout the puzzle without creating barriers that make you want to quit.
Or worse, cheat and look up the answer without submitting yourself to much of a challenge in the first place.
The Stimulating Benefits Of Working With Crosswords
All’s not lost though…
While the research results in this area are mixed, some studies have found doing crosswords can actually stimulate the brain.
It was not all good news, however. Check this out:
Once mental decline sets in, the deterioration is usually rapid. However, some findings suggest that word puzzles did help delay the onset of dementia.
For example, researchers at the University of Exeter Medical School and Kings College London analysed data from more than 17,000 healthy people aged 50 and over. They found that the more regularly people did crosswords, the better their brain functioned in later life.
“It is essential that we find out what lifestyle factors really make a difference to helping people maintain healthy brains to stop the soaring rise of the disease (dementia). We can’t yet say that crosswords give you a sharper brain — the next step is to assess whether encouraging people to start playing word games regularly could actually improve their brain function.”
This quote is from Clive Ballard, Professor of Age-Related Diseases at the University of Exeter Medical School.
Basically what he’s saying is that the results don’t really demonstrate that crossword puzzles help. There are too many competing factors to tell.
To make things even more confusing, check this out:
According to Dr Doug Brown, Director of Research of Alzheimer’s Society:
“This new research does reveal a link between word puzzles, like crosswords, and memory and thinking skills, but we can’t say definitively that regular ‘puzzling’ improves these skills.”
He recommends “keeping physically active, avoiding smoking and eating a healthy balanced diet” to reduce the risk of developing dementia.
What Are We Supposed To Conclude From These Confusing Contradictions?
Well, for one thing, these researchers are trying to have their cake and eat it too. They are saying that “yes, solving puzzles helps” on the one hand, “but it probably really doesn’t” on the other.
Which is it?
The truth:
It’s Not all Fun and Games When it Comes to Helping Your Brain (And It Doesn’t Need To Be)
If only games could help you gain brain power!
While crosswords can be fun and satisfying, after the first dozen or so puzzles, the activity doesn’t offer enough variety or difficulty to engage your whole brain.
And as suggested, the temptation to skip over the challenging parts or cheat is so high that the actual amount of exercise you’re receiving is highly questionable.
And because of this high capacity for cheating and giving up that crossword puzzles invite, many people are actually not experiencing the ingredient that matters.
The Key Rule: What Matters Most for a Healthy Brain
The key to a vibrant, healthy brain includes challenge and novelty. Doing only crosswords will help you get really good at solving crossword puzzles but nothing more.
This is because brain games can primarily improve the specific function that it is being trained for.
A 1999 study found that being more experienced in doing crossword puzzles didn’t offset the effects of aging when it came to mental tests of vocabulary and reasoning.
Moreover, the study revealed that success in solving crossword puzzles largely appeared to be a function of the amount of knowledge the individual already had, with little or no contribution of reasoning ability.
An independent panel set up by the National Institutes of Health also concluded that there is “no evidence of even moderate scientific quality” that exercise, drugs, dietary supplements or increased social engagement, reduces the risk of Alzheimer’s disease.
I can’t emphasize this enough.
Research also states that any positive effects of being proficient in crossword solving does not elevate frontal lobe brain functions like decision-making, planning and judgment – functions that allow us to carry out our daily lives.
Moreover, just like physical exercise, when you stop doing the mental workouts, your brain loses the immediate gains.
How Crossword Puzzles Work For Kids Vs Adults
Surprisingly, solving crossword puzzles can build confidence and poise in school kids. This was the result found during a project presented to the Faculty of the School of Education, The University of Southern California.
The project also found that solving puzzles can also help young people learn to concentrate, develop systematic work habits and build the ability to recognize and deal with various problems.
Moreover, according to the report, puzzles with their natural inference to games, can stimulate children’s interest. (Robert Louis Ramsdell, Educational Use of Crossword Puzzles for Elementary Schools)
A Better Way to Improve Your Brain and Get Smarter
Now:
One quick and easy way to make you smarter is to address people by name every time you see them and dialing frequently from memory rather than using speed dial.
If you are looking for a complete brain workout try this brain fitness method…
Click on the link below to get started:
Memory improvement training should always be linked to memorizing information that will immediately improve your life.
And that’s at the core of Magnetic Memory Method.
When you build Memory Palaces the Magnetic Memory Method way it lets you measure your memory improvement activities.
Why Is This Important?
Because tracking your outcomes leads to rapid improvement.
You not only get to remember the information faster, but also get predictable and reliable permanence that grows in strength each time you use the Magnetic Memory Method.
Even better:
All other memory techniques including playing crossword puzzles can be used inside of Memory Palaces.
But this never takes place the other way around (For example, you can’t use Memory Palaces inside of the Major Method the way you can use the Major Method inside of Memory Palaces.)
The Real Value Of The Crossword Puzzle
Crossword puzzles do have a value – but these ultimately amount to being little more than recreational in nature.
At the most, if you can solve a puzzle, you know your brain is still pretty much intact. But whether your brain is getting stronger and sharper, the more puzzles you solve, is a matter of opinion.
The undebatable fact remains that using Memory Palaces the Magnetic Memory Method way can help you see some real improvement in your brain’s problem solving faculties.
It not only stimulates your brain, it also helps move information into long term memory faster and with predictable and reliable permanence.
So, let’s get started playing the games that truly help. (Hint: It’s using the Memory Palace to learn and remember anything forever!)
For many people around the world, dumping hundreds, if not thousands of dollars per year on the hope that pills in a pretty package will lead to a boost in memory is a common habit.
Sadly, many seniors believe that it is essential to take nutritional supplements to combat against age related memory loss, brain fog, everyday forgetfulness or to deter the onset of Alzheimer’s or dementia.
But falling for that ruse isn’t just for the older generations.
Even for the young and healthy amongst us, it is not uncommon to take vitamin pills in an attempt to improve retention or recall of information, learn a new language or excel in studies.
It has long been argued that regularly eating foods rich in vitamins and daily exercise is the best way to maintain a healthy body and mind.
Can vitamin supplement pills that help with memory be an easier option to provide the same nutrients to your body and mind?
Let’s find out.
What The Heck Are ‘Vitamins’ Anyway? An Astonishing History
Vitamins are a group of organic compounds – different from fats, carbohydrates and proteins – that nourish our body and are essential for our growth and functioning. We usually get them through the food we eat.
More importantly, research shows that vitamins are important to maintain brain health.
Check this out:
“In particular, research over the past 5 years has provided exciting evidence for the influence of dietary factors on specific molecular systems and mechanisms that maintain mental function.” That’s from Dr. Fernando Gomez-Pinilla, a leading authority on nutrition and the brain at the University of California, Los Angeles in his research paper, Brain Foods: The Effects of Nutrients on Brain Function.
Here’s Something Even More Important:
While we need vitamins only in small quantities, if any vitamin is absent from our diet, a deficiency disease may occur – a fact first noted by William Fletcher in 1905.
In 1912, the Polish-born biochemist Casimir Funk discovered a mysterious compound that he termed ‘vital amine,’ which later came to be known as ‘vitamin’.
A year later, in 1913 that a biochemist named Frederick Gowland Hopkins discovered Vitamin A – the first vitamin to be discovered.
By early 20th century researchers had identified the 13 compounds or vitamins crucial to maintaining a healthy life.
They had also found that the underlying trigger for obscure illnesses such as scurvy, beriberi and pellagra was vitamin deficiency.
That’s not all…
It was around the same time that deficiency in certain vitamins was linked to loss of memory, focus and concentration.
Today, dietary supplements like B vitamins (folic acid, B6, and B12), antioxidants (vitamins C and E), herbal supplements (ginkgo biloba), and nutraceuticals (fish oil, coconut oil) are very much in-demand as pills that help with memory.
The Most Important Fact About Vitamins For Memory In The World
Remember this:
Deficiency in Vitamin B12 can cause memory loss. This means that Vitamin B12 probably presents the most critical case in which supplements can help improve your brain’s ability to remember things.
But here’s the kicker:
If you are already getting adequate B vitamins though your diet, getting extra through supplemental pills will not give you a memory boost.
In the century since their discovery, vitamins or rather vitamin supplements have become big business.
In the United States alone, annual sales of all multivitamin and mineral containing supplements totalled $14.3 billion in 2014.
Since the 1940s, Americans have been taking multivitamin and mineral supplements.
But get this:
To date, there has been no concrete study to substantiate that popping vitamin supplements has improved people’s health or their memory more than what can be achieved by a healthy diet and exercise.
Manufacturers decide the types and levels of vitamins, minerals, and other ingredients in their supplements based on factors that are not always guided by science or in your best interest.
The Demons In Your Daily Diet
Now let’s get down to the core of the problem:
Processed or refined food is routinely fortified with added vitamins to increase its price as well as appeal among consumers.
So when you are taking supplements, on top of vitamins added to your foods, you really don’t know whether you are ingesting more than your daily requirement.
This is a potentially deadly fact that matters above all:
Consuming more vitamins than your daily dietary requirements can be as detrimental to your health as being vitamin deficient.
Research by McGill University geneticist Rima Rozen and her colleagues reveal that taking 10 times the recommended daily intake of folic acid – often the dose recommended by doctors for pregnant women – causes liver damage in mice.
Research has also found that Vitamin E at doses of 400 international units (IU) or more per day is risky for people with heart disease. Such dosage may also raise the risk of prostate cancer.
Moreover, other studies show that Vitamin E, ginkgo biloba, and fish oil supplements can slightly inhibit blood clotting. When combined with an anticoagulant drug, such supplements can actually make you bleed or bruise more easily.
Messing Around With Memory Vitamins Is No Joking Matter
So you see…
Taking vitamins in the form of pills is not to be taken lightly.
You can’t just grab any bottle off the shelf and expect to get the outcome you seek – certainly not increased mental focus. That requires memory and concentration training.
And keep this in mind:
Any vitamin supplement has to be taken in context of your diet and how your body absorbs nutrients. This is one of those occasions where it’s okay for things to really be all about you.
Let’s face it:
Our bodies are constantly undergoing change due to social, psychological, physical and medical factors which in turn affect our intake, digestion, absorption and excretion of nutrients.
Consuming highly processed food or not cooking your vegetables properly can also cause inadequate vitamin intake.
These factors need to be taken into consideration when selecting your memory pills.
In any case, you should always consult with your doctor before taking any supplements to rule out overdosing on any particular vitamin.
Rooting Out Flaws In The Plan
While many vitamin supplements, fish oil and herbs like ginkgo biloba are touted to improve memory, there is hardly any evidence to back up the claims.
A 2013 study in the Canadian Medical Association Journal found no evidence that drugs, herbal products or vitamin supplements (including vitamin B6 and omega-3 fatty acids – products thought to help brain function) helps prevent memory loss in healthy people.
In fact, the study revealed that certain treatments actually seemed to contribute to cognitive problems.
That’s completely the opposite of the goal!
Worse:
Healthy women who were given estrogen hormone treatment to improve memory actually suffered from higher memory loss over time, compared to subjects who were given a placebo.
The Ugly Ginkgo Lie About Alzheimer’s and Dementia
A study showed that ginkgo herb did not decrease the incidence of Alzheimer’s disease or dementia.
According to the 2007 National Health Interview Survey, ginkgo is one of the top 10 natural products used by Americans as the best supplement for memory and concentration.
The issue is even bigger than that:
Since dietary supplements are not regulated the same way as prescription or over-the-counter drugs, manufacturers don’t have to pass the rigorous Food and Drug Administration process to ensure they are safe and effective before selling their products.
So, manufacturers can claim that the supplements “support” or “help” memory without needing any strong medical evidence supporting those claims.
Dietary supplements – that include vitamins, minerals, herbs, botanicals, and other ‘natural’ substances – also pose a big risk for consumers.
Not only that, but get this:
Between 2008 and 2011, the FDA received 6,307 reports of health problems from dietary supplements, says a 2013 report from the Government Accountability Office (GAO).
That’s a lot of problems!
The Truth About How To Improve Brain Function and Memory
When it comes to brain vitamins for studying or memory enhancing drugs, nothing works better than a balanced diet, lots of hydration, an active lifestyle and 7 hours of sleep every night.
Easy isn’t it?
Well, hang on there, because it gets even better…
Foods like walnuts, green tea, blueberries, salmon are all super foods when it comes to protecting you from brain fog and memory loss.
The best part?
An easy-to-follow Mediterranean-style diet can have lasting benefits for brain health, confirmed a 2017 study. It showed that participants who closely followed a Mediterranean-like diet were less likely to lose brain volume as they aged, compared with those who didn’t follow such a diet.
Another study published in the journal Neurology suggests that a Mediterranean diet – rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, beans, potatoes, nuts, olive oil and fish – may help make your brain about five years younger.
Processed foods, fried and fast foods, snack foods, red meat, poultry and whole-fat dairy foods are usually eaten less under this diet plan.
D.O.C. & Vitamin M: The Best Scientifically Proven Vitamins For Your Memory
Apart from good food, if you want a real memory booster you’ll need to exercise your brain.
Your brain is a muscle and like all muscles it must workout to retain and grow its strength.
In other words, you must use your mind. Regularly!
How do you do that?
Use D.O.C.
It’s a special compound anyone can muck together at any time and dose themselves with.
Broken down, the compound tells us that doing is the origin of confidence.
Memory confidence, that is. Also general mental competence.
Why is confidence so important?
Because confidence is a powerful “substance” that nourishes everything in your brain. It leads to accomplishment.
And working your mental muscles in a way that creates accomplishing-by-doing is one of the best brain supplements in the world.
The other vitamin that can really help improve memory is Vitamin M.
Vitamin M comes from creating Memory Palaces the Magnetic Memory Method way.
This is by far the coolest and easiest way to boost your brain function and make it easy to learn and remember anything.
That’s not all…
D.O.C. comes almost free because getting started involves nothing more than a simple drawing that follows some simple principles.
Why Is The Memory Palace The Best Memory Vitamin?
The answer is simple:
Unlike mind mapping, which unlocks multiple intelligences, a Magnetic Memory Method Memory Palace approach does that and more.
Creating Memory Palaces the Magnetic Memory Method way allows you to develop and use spatial memory in a way that unlocks the power of your multiple intelligences plus autobiographical memory, episodic memory, semantic memory, procedural memory and other kinds of memory.
This incredible combination of intelligence and memory strengthening is very powerful because, combined with Recall Rehearsal, the holistic process lets you move information from short term memory into long term memory faster.
Even better:
You not only get to remember the information faster, but also get predictable and reliable permanence that grows in strength each time you use the Magnetic Memory Method.
Memory Palaces also have another unique characteristic:
All other memory techniques can be used inside of Memory Palaces. But this never takes place the other way around (For example, you can’t use Memory Palaces inside of the Major Method the way you can use the Major Method inside of Memory Palaces.)
If you choose this memory training technique…
Click on the link below to get started:
Vitamins For Memory Are Not At All About The Fruit
Now…
It is super-simple to use a Memory Palaces, but you’ve got to create time for it.
And a great way to make sure you get time for your daily dose of ‘memory’ pills is through P.E.A.C.H.
What the heck is P.E.A.C.H.?
Practice Encoding At Calm Hours
This is such a powerful principle because the question is not how to practice memory techniques (just take the free course to learn how).
The real question is: when?
If you take the time to practice building Memory Palaces and exercising your brain through other means during times when you are uninterrupted, it leads to better implantation of that information in your long term memory.
When you P.E.A.C.H you also get the time to create effective Magnetic Imagery and perform effective Recall Rehearsal – both essential to building effective Memory Palaces.
Using the Magnetic Memory Method is great because, once you’re rolling, good memory abilities get you more time.
More time means you can practice memory enhancing techniques more often.
And that means experiencing better memory, better focus, clarity and concentration.
It’s a win-win!
0.2% Advantage?
No magic pill or supplement can help improve your memory or lift brain fog. In fact, vitamin supplements can at best give you a .02% verbal memory advantage (whatever that means).
It’s only through a balanced diet, meditation, sleep, and an effective, dedicated memory strategy (like the Magnetic Memory Method) that you will be able to enhance your memory, concentration and focus in a way that improves your entire life.
Are you sick of taking language learning courses and falling flat on your face?
Let’s face it:
Language learning is a multi-million dollar industry, ranging from online video courses to books to slips of paper you can flip in your hands.
And not all of them are designed to help you succeed.
In fact, there’s a delicate balance between general language learning skills and the tangible results you get from second language acquisition with the help of a skilled teacher.
The questions you might have are numerous. They might include…
Are any languages easier or harder than others? And which language learning courses truly and authentically help, regardless of real or imagined difficulty and your current level?
These are all great questions, and in this episode of the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast, Olly Richards joins me to discuss how he’s using story and experience to make language learning courses more immersive.
Not only that, but Olly’s devoted to creating multiple quick victories that create motivation, remove obstacles and keep you moving even when they arise.
For a taste of how Olly’s courses works, checkout what I’ve found to be the best free Spanish language learning video series out there:
I suggest you click the image above now and register for Olly’s new course even if you’re not learning Spanish. You’ll learn great principles that apply to any language you might be studying, online or off.
Once you’ve registered, click play on this episode as Olly shares:
* Exactly when shared characteristics between languages gives you “short cuts” and when they create obstacles.
* The ultimate answer to “what is language acquisition?” (By understanding how the similarities between language acquisition and language learning can help your journey towards fluency, you’ll save yourself a lot of headaches!)
* Why quick victories help you compound your activities and keep your energy high during the language learning process.
* The truth about “cognate rules” and why Olly never introduces them into his language teaching.
* Why you need to spend time with the language you’re learning.
* Why not having time is rarely the real problem for most language learners, certainly not in the way they think.
* Why the struggles most people experience with language learning have nothing to do with the language.
* The different kinds of “emotional turmoil” Olly has experienced and how to understand them when – not if – they happen to you.
* How do to deal with the consequences of learning hurdles people face so you don’t have to give up.
* How to find and enjoy language learning experiences that don’t force you into panic mode.
* The real reasons why the Michel Thomas recordings may work for some people, but don’t for others.
* The importance of listening and reading in ways that allow you to listen and observe naturally without the need for rules.
* Why story is the root of all human communication and learning.
* How story can connect you to all elements of the culture of your target language.
* How to structure your week so that you have time every day for learning with a language course online.
* How to model yourself after a great linguist to learn any language.
* Why taking long breaks does not help in learning a language.
* Why “conquer the morning, conquer the day” is not true for all people and how to find other times of day for consistently showing up to accomplish your learning goals.
* How Digital Amnesia plays into the language learning experience and how Olly thrives by keeping a healthy majority of his learning offline.
* The only two apps Olly uses in his language learning and why they’re useful.
* The true path to “deep focus” with simple study tools that immerse you in the task.
How about you? What’s your experience with online language learning courses? How have you balanced them with offline materials and avoided some of the “Digital Amnesia” issues we’ve discussed in this episode?
There are three causes of forgetting that memory science strangely never mentions.
Oh sure, the scientists talk about short term memory and long term memory.
Retrieval failure and ineffective coding.
Motivated forgetting and memory loss due to brain trauma, not unlike the kind we learned about in this episode of the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast (and how to bounce back from it):
All important stuff.
But let me ask you this:
What About The Real Causes Of Forgetting?
To find out, you’ve got to be a bit of detective.
I’m going to suggest three of the biggest causes, but at the end of the day, you also need to seek out the causes in your own life.
Like a detective.
But the following three are widely unknown, and the best time to start ousting them from your life is now.
The first is simple:
It’s general mental and memory fitness.
But the majority of people?
They’re doing nothing about it.
And get this:
Not Exercising Your Memory Is A HUGE Mistake
Why?
Well, let me ask you something:
You know all those little slips all memory experts make from time to time?
They’re nothing.
N-o-t-h-i-n-g.
Certainly nothing like the Garden of Oblivion featured on this Wiki page about forgetting some people make it out to seem:
Definitely not a problem compared to the mountains a person with decent memory skills can move when push comes to shove.
But if you’re not keeping your mind fit with organic memory exercise – not “apps” – you’re cruisin’ for a bruisin’.
A lot of people out their aren’t telling the truth.
They’ll tell anyone who’ll listen about having a weak or bad memory.
Look:
It’s bad enough if you lie to yourself.
But lying to others?
That’s a big problem.
Why?
Because those to whom you lie might actually hold you accountable to the things you tell them about your memory.
Never Ever (Ever!) Insult Your Memory
Look, I know it seems innocent enough, but telling people you have a bad memory is far from in.
In fact, it’s a crime.
Why?
Because your thoughts matter and you should NEVER insult your memory.
How To Stop Lying About Your Memory
Instead of saying, “I can’t remember” and things like that, try something else.
When memory “fails,” try saying things like, “I’m sorry. I’m always exercising my memory. It’ll come back to me.”
I promise.
By doing this, you’ll create an entirely new and more powerful relationship with your memory.
This new relationship will make you very happy and bring you immense success.
How To Chill Out And Remember More
Do you want to know why memory improvement seems like such a drag when others teach it?
Because they put so much pressure on making it happen.
No. Oh no. Please no.
We’re not in a competition here, not in the Magnetic Memory Method universe.
Sure, the Magnetic Memory Method can help you win competitions. I’m happy to announce that my memory training has contributed to such triumphs not once, but twice:
That’s a happy side effect, and one I’m proud of.
By my core focus falls on getting you to relax your memory so you can slide important info into long term memory.
Info you want to stay for awhile.
Not Bland, Boring And Mind-Butchering Info You’ll Never Use!
In some cases (like when you’re learning a language or skill), you want that info to stay forever.
The blunt, cold hard truth:
If you’re as rigid as a rock, it never will. Information will bounce off your brain faster than you can blink.
I mean, we love using the term “from head to toe,” but…
When it comes to everything that happens between these two parts…
There aren’t a whole lot of straight lines.
That’s why we need a dedicated Memory Palace strategy when it comes to memorizing human anatomy.
And even if the human body is ultimately a whole unit, it is built from multiple systems.
That’s great because the Magnetic Memory Method operates from the basis of multiple Memory Palaces.
(I prefer to think of these Memory Palace systems as “networks” because of how one Memory Palace strengthens the other.)
Here’s the raw truth:
If you’re using just one Memory Palace, you’re not even close to the awesome power of multiple locations optimized for memorizing information like human anatomy.
But first things first:
Why Use A Memory Palace For Human Anatomy?
When you look at the alternatives, the most direct and honest answer is this:
Because Memory Palace systems and mnemonics are quite simply more fun.
More fun than software.
More fun than flash cards.
More fun than the stress and strain of forgetting the words again and again (especially if you have medical exams looming).
But the reality is this:
Not All People Love Using A Memory Palace For Human Anatomy!
And you know?
As shocking as we mnemonists find this to be, it’s totally normal.
You don’t have to enjoy the process to get results.
But it certainly helps.
And you’ll probably find that the reason you don’t like using memory techniques for human anatomy is simply that you find it a boring topic.
Assuming you’re on board to use memory techniques for human anatomy whether you love mnemonics or not, it’s useful to know exactly what we’re talking about.
Unfortunately, the term “Memory Palace” is poorly misunderstood. This leads to a lot of questions, for which “yes” is usually the answer.
Yes, you can reuse Memory Palaces (just watch out for the Ugly Sister Effect).
Yes, a Memory Palace is something that you create in your mind.
Yes, it is ideally based on a place that you’ve seen before.
But at their core, Memory Palaces are really just points in space. You are turning spatial coordinates already known to you (thanks to a free resource called spatial memory) into mnemonic devices, one Magnetic Station at a time.
The Goal With Proper Memory Palace Creation Is Simple:
You use your spatial memory to help create efficient Memory Palaces that REDUCE cognitive overwhelm.
This point is significant because most people create Memory Palaces in ways that INCREASE cognitive overwhelm.
That’s because they’re trying to imagine the Memory Palaces at the same time as the Magnetic Imagery used in Memory Palaces.
And that, Magnetic friend, is a huge no-no.
(More on avoiding that huge no-no in a bit.)
How To Create A Memory Palace For Human Anatomy
The topic is best learned with some Memory Palaces up on the screen and a “homework” assignment. Just click here to get started:
Once you’ve taken the free course and submitted your assignment, the only thing left to do is create multiple Memory Palaces and use them.
How To Know How Many Memory Palaces You Need
To create your Memory Palace networks in the best possible way, it’s good to decide how many Memory Palaces you need in advance. Here’s a YouTube Live discussion we help that will help you understand the concept:
To put this part of the art of memory into the context of human anatomy, let’s say you’re going to become an Ear, Nose and Throat specialist.
I’m not a specialist myself, but even without invoking Digital Amnesia by using Google to hunt down some info, it’s safe to guess that I’ll want to memorize the anatomy and systems related to the:
Inner Ear
Middle Ear
Outer Ear
Nose
Throat
Mouth
Skull
So, keeping it simple for the sake of creating an example, that’s at least seven Memory Palaces.
Or is it?
I ask because it looks like the entire ear could be covered by a single Memory Palace.
Myself, I would start with the outer ear and focus on the three most important parts on most ear diagrams I’ve seen:
Auricle
Auditory canal
Tympanic membrane
All three could fit in a single room based on three Magnetic Stations (or less).
In the next room, I would have the middle ear, but probably divide this into two rooms because the ossicles have parts of their own: malleus, incus, stapes.
And the ossicle bones don’t stop with just 3 names! They are also called the hammer, anvil and stirrup. For that, I would probably use the Pillar Technique.
Ultimately, the exact management comes down to your experience using these techniques.
Using The Power Of Pre-Organized Structures
If you’re using the Magnetic Memory Method, you could alphabetize your Memory Palace network. In this case, it probably will not make sense alphabetize the information inside of each Memory Palace, but it is an option depending on your Mnemonic Style.
The reason the alphabet is such a powerful tool is this:
Just as you know the buildings from which you create Memory Palaces by heart, you also know the alphabet by heart.
This simple fact means that when you’re practicing Recall Rehearsal, you can easily progress through the Memory Palaces in an order.
You can also create a mnemonic hook built into the network that tells you which Memory Palace needs to be renewed next.
Again, everything begins with knowing how much you need to know so that you can get your Memory Palaces created and tethered to the information you need to learn.
From there, you can proceed based on the robust foundation of pre-organized structures in the world such as the alphabet.
How To Use A Memory Palace For Human Anatomy
The next step involves creating Magnetic Imagery.
What is Magnetic Imagery?
It’s incredibly easy.
Let’s say you want to memorize the three parts of the ossicle (all six names).
You would next create a Magnetic Image while mentally considering a point in space in a Memory Palace.
You don’t have to literally “see” these things in your mind. And yes, you can get results from this technique even if you have aphantasia:
All that matters is that you can tap into your Magnetic Modes and start to create Magnetic Imagery that is:
Bright
Vibrant
Dynamic
Big
Colorful
Crazy
Strange
Emotional
Physical
Animated
Forceful
Loud
Rhyming
Punning
And beginning to play with these terms now…
I am thinking of my own Ear, Nose and Throat specialist from when I was a kid…
In one corner of his examination room, I begin to imagine Malcolm McDowell wrestling with an eel…
Now he’s smashing the Toys R Us logo into the eel using a plastic toy “hammer”…
Like this:
Malcolm + eel + hammer + Toys R Us logo = Malleus and hammer.
Sure, that’s a picture, but I’m not really “seeing” it in my mind. I’m feeling it, hearing it, sensing it, playing with it as a concept.
Put all of these sensory elements together with your spatial memory in a Memory Palace and you will be able to encode and decode any information in a way that enters long term memory fast. In fact, there techniques are …
So Simple, Even A Child Can Do It!
Really, there’s no reason to struggle with using memory techniques for human anatomy.
You’ve just got to get your strategy sorted out.
And I know that a lot of people think it takes too much time…
Looking at the amount to be learned…
Making some projections and equations…
Creating the Memory Palaces for anatomy…
They think it’s going to be too much work.
But here’s the thing:
If It Feels Like Work… You’re Doing It Wrong!
I make no apology for this declaration. It just simply is the case that mnemonics for any subject are never hard. And they’re certainly NEVER work.
You’re at play in the fields of your mind!
You just need to understand something Tony Buzan once suggested:
The Rules Set You Free
And speaking of rules, there’s just one more set you need to understand.
Once you’ve got your Memory Palaces up and running…
Once you’re filling them up with memorable Magnetic Imagery so that you can learn and encode all the human anatomy words that you need linked with the areas of the body to which they correspond…
You need only get those words into long-term memory.
It’s really easy.
The Memory Magic Of Recall Rehearsal
Just revisit the Magnetic Imagery you created in your Memory Palaces.
As with how you will develop your own mnemonic style over time, you’ll also develop your own style of Recall Rehearsal.
You’ll learn exactly how many times you need to revisit the information in order for it to stick.
And you always have ways to speed up the process using the Big Five Of Learning that I teach throughout the Magnetic Memory Method trainings.
Follow these principles using your Memory Palace network and you will never forget human anatomy again.
On the other hand, fail to follow these principles, and you can hope for the best with the flash cards, spaced-repetition software and other techniques that you hate because they keep letting you down.
These tools can be good, but we must admit one thing: They are built for use in environments that create digital amnesia.
But understand this:
A Good Memory Palace And Mnemonics Practice Will Never Let You Down!
Not if you’re using them well.
And using them well means that you’re making your memory more and more Magnetic each and every time you sit down to study.
It’s really that easy.
Again, if you need help understanding Memory Palace creation, please take the free course. Or if you prefer ongoing support, consider subscribing to the Magnetic Memory Method Print Newsletter.
Enjoy your new ability to use a Memory Palace to memorize human anatomy and talk soon!
Nothing is more valuable than the benefit of hindsight from someone with experience, especially if you want to become a mnemonics dictionary.
I know because I’ve been there. I used to struggle.
Big time.
But then something changed.
And these days, many people marvel at how rapidly I toss out powerful mnemonic examples on demand.
The truth:
I trained myself to do it.
And I’ve trained thousands of others since then to unlock this simple power.
The only problem is…
A lot of people never reach their goal of being about to pop out reliable Magnetic Imagery (a.k.a. mnemonic imagery) because they get the impression that creating mnemonics is too hard.
(That’s too bad, because the truth is, you don’t even have to have a dictionary full of images in your mind in order to mnemonics to work.)
People also worry that creating effective mnemonics takes too much time, even though all the evidence in the world shows that if you’ll just learn the skill, it gets faster and faster.
Here’s What Most Unsuccessful People Do…
They go running all over the Internet looking for a mnemonic generator or mnemonics dictionary, never understanding that true skill with memory techniques comes from honing your “mnemonics psychology,” a.k.a memory improvement mindset.
And let’s not even try to dodge one basic truth:
Becoming a person who can create useful mnemonics on the fly (even faster than they can create an impromptu Memory Palace) requires some personal power.
After all, you’re summoning up the best powers of your imagination, after all. And that takes…
A Magnetic Fountain Of Mental Energy!
The truth is that getting started can feel like effort.
And some beginners with mnemonics need more energy than others.
But here’s the thing:
The effort needed when using memory techniques like a Memory Palace all amount to a special kind of effort.
A kind of effort that is not only easy and fun to employ, but one that gets easier over time as you transform into a mnemonics dictionary.
What Is A Mnemonics Dictionary?
Basically, most mnemonics dictionaries serve as a crutch.
Some mnemonics dictionaries show you pictures that will help you remember words. They could be for medical terminology or help remembering vocabulary while learning a language.
But the difference between Chineasy and the kind of mnemonics dictionaries I create is this:
Whereas others tend to throw you piles of mnemonic examples on end without helping you understand your mnemonic style, I teach you the skill behind creating the mnemonics.
Not only so you can develop your own mnemonics dictionary for a language you’re studying or a particular body of expertise.
But so that you actually understand how your memory and imagination work and can ultimately teach these simple skills to others.
That leads to pure happiness. Seriously, just look at these smiles:
Best part?
When you learn how to fish instead of letting someone fish for you, the reduction in effort happens fast.
And you come to understand one fundamental truth most people don’t know:
You’re Using Mnemonics All The Time Anyway!
You just don’t realize it.
And you probably don’t have a positive outlook on what “effort” really means.
The Truth About “Effort” Everyone Who Wants To Be A Mnemonics Dictionary Needs To Know
The effort involved in using mnemonics is like kissing or eating chocolate. Once you understand this simple point, you become the world’s best mnemonic generator.
And because you’ll remember all the mnemonics you’ll create, you’ll also become the world’s greatest mnemonics dictionary.
It’s Really Simple To Understand That Math, Isn’t It?
Whether it’s kissing or eating chocolate, in both cases, you’re using the muscles of your mouth.
And in both cases, your mouth requires energy.
But even though effort is involved, you hardly notice the effort because the experience of kissing and tasting the chocolate feels so good.
Whipping Out Magnetic Imagery Like A Human Mnemonics Dictionary Feels Even Better!
Seriously. Get this simple point and you will quickly become a walking, talking mnemonics dictionary.
And the wonderful after effects linger for a long time too.
But I still have my regrets. I experienced painful learning curves. I sometimes got frustrated.
Here’s the thing:
Becoming A Mnemonics Dictionary Is A Journey, Not A Destination
It doesn’t have to take long to get rolling (2-5 hours with the Magnetic Memory Method). But it is a skill that you grow with over time.
More than a decade in, I’m still growing myself.
And trust me:
If you’re still a beginner, you can’t even imagine all the things memory techniques will do for you when you’re just at the beginning.
Best part:
When you stay on the path with mnemonics, you have so many things to look forward to. More than you could ever imagine.
But if you’re still sitting on the fence about becoming a mnemonics dictionary, these 5 things I wish I knew before starting with mnemonics will help you.
As always, everything starts with the foundations of the Memory Palace.
1. No One Cares About The Size Of Your Memory Palace
When people start out with mnemonics, they usually start working on one MASSIVE Memory Palace.
I made this mistake myself once in awhile at the beginning, and have at times have created mega-sized Memory Palaces.
But almost every time…
The bigger the Memory Palace, the harder it was to use. They were effectively useless.
Small is almost always better, like this one from a Magnetic Memory Method student:
What I’ve learned is that a Memory Palace is usually most effective when it is:
* Small in size * Based on corners and larger fixtures * Used for memorizing tactically chosen information * Used for drilling immediately useful information into long-term memory
But that shopping mall? Grand Central Station? Tiergarten?
No – they’re all far too massive for the beginner mind to conceive.
And that means you have less time and attention to focus on what matters. Instead, work on developing…
The Skill Set Of A Mnemonics Dictionary Master!
For the mind of a memory skills master, massive Memory Palaces are indeed interesting, but not nearly as useful as smaller Memory Palaces for the same reason.
The focus should always be on the Magnetic Imagery, not on the Memory Palace.
Because even if the Memory Palace technique is the ultimate foundation, here’s the truth:
Memory Palaces Are Just One Tool In The Toolbox Of Mnemonics
And without mastering them and moving past this skill, you never quite get to the part that matters:
Using Magnetic Imagery so that you can have a mnemonics dictionary in your head.
Frankly, your Memory Palace should be like a constellation. You should create it with enough simplicity that you can see and feel it in the same way you see the Big Dipper.
In other words, you know it’s the Big Dipper at a glance, WITHOUT having to impose a spoon on the constellation.
Where does my biggest Memory Palace cap out?
50 Magnetic Stations appears to be my general sweet spot.
(Yes, I have a magnificent Memory Palace with 58 Magnetic Stations, but 5 rooms with 10 Stations in each is a solid number when you can get it.)
And as luck would have it, you usually have no problem putting that together in an apartment or home.
The Mnemonic Magic Of Drilling Down
But here’s the thing:
I’ve recently been enjoying great benefits from thinking of individual rooms as a Memory Palace.
Whereas in the past, I would have considered my entire apartment a Memory Palace, I now think of the studio, bathroom, kitchen, etc. as their own independent Memory Palaces.
My current apartment is still held for the exclusive purpose of learning Chinese, but I’ve found that shifting from “apartment as Memory Palace” to “room as Memory Palace” has made Recall Rehearsal much more fruitful.
2. The Map Is Not The Territory
Over the years, I’ve made many Memory Palaces that have never been used.
This is a good thing!
Why?
Because Memory Palace creation is a mnemonic skill until itself. Memory Palace creation exercises your spatial memory and keeps you thinking about the most important mnemonic strategy we’ve got: location-based mnemonics.
Using a Memory Palace, on the other hand, is also an art unto itself. It’s in using the Memory Palace that the real memory magic happens because the other tools of mnemonics come into play:
Magnetic Association and Recall Rehearsal.
So the irony is that you really can improve as a Memory Palace architect merely by blueprinting. But the only true growth and depth if insight takes place when you dive in and spend some time inside your mnemonic creation.
3. The Memory Palace Must Be Drawn
I spent a long time creating Memory Palaces based on what I read in books. But never once did anyone suggest drawing out a Memory Palace.
Looking back, this strikes me as insane. Every advantage I’ve experienced and principle I’ve discovered for creating well-formed Memory Palaces comes from getting pen and pencil in hand.
And in nearly every case, the drawn Memory Palace works far better than one that is merely imagined on its own.
Since teaching this important principle, I’ve received hundreds upon hundreds of Memory Palace drawings from people. They don’t always follow the key principles of identifying certain core Magnetic Stations.
But because they’ve drawn the Memory Palace, it’s easy for us to look together and better strategize the mnemonic journey they’ll be using to learn and remember their topic.
4. Small Sets Of Info Enter Long-Term Memory With Greater Ease Than Monster Lists
Although any mnemonist can Magnetically encode and memorize large amounts of information, there’s a difference between short term and long term recall.
And if you want the amount of info in your mind that only a mnemonics dictionary can provide…
Long-term retention is always the goal.
Think about it in business terms:
Maximizing the return on time and energy invested is the key factor.
But because not all information is created equal, no reasonable person can expect a fast and solid guideline that applies across the board.
The amount of Recall Rehearsal needed for some words may be more than others. You might encode one mathematical formula once and hold it in memory forever and require more exposure to another, even if it’s technically easier.
That said, Recall Rehearsal, based on Dominic O’Brien’s Rule of Five, is a go-to starting point.
Modify from there based on your needs and work with small sets of information for each recall session so you maintain focus over the long haul. You’ll get more information into long-term memory by working with small sets over the course of a month than you will by cramming.
5. Never Cave Into Self-Critical Perfectionism And Judgment
Judging the appropriateness of my Magnetic Imagery plagued me for far too long.
No, I’ve never been a prude. But I was raised to be a gentleman and had suffered some abuses to my imagination from a religious upbringing that caused me concern as I developed my memory skills.
Don’t fall prey to internal or external judgment.
Memory techniques work best when you eliminate the stress of judgment. Although the associations you make might seem extreme, they’re just in your mind. Chances are you’ll even forget them anyhow, holding only the target information in mind.
Likewise, don’t let perfection get in the way. The Magnetic Memory Method shows you the best ways to proceed, but again, the map is not the territory. You’ve got to dive in, take action and even make the odd mistake. Without taking action, you cannot learn.
Knowing what I know now and having experienced the absolute power a superb memory brings, I wish I’d known these five things in advance. They are game changers when you have large learning projects.
And as we all know, time is so short in this life.
I hope this set of 5 hindsights help you avoid some of the problems I faced so you can race straight to getting results with the mnemonics dictionary you’re building in your mind.
It could be that our bodies and minds are trying to build up energy to deal with the pain. But we do it in a childish way.
Ludwig Wittgenstein has been credited with originating the story of the child who made his way into a cocktail party.
While there, the child banged his knee on a table and started crying loudly.
“There, there” said all the adults when they saw his bloodied knee.
And the adults continued cooing at the child to comfort him as they applied rubbing alcohol and a bandaid to the wound.
Now imagine the same cocktail party.
This time, instead of a child, a grown man bangs his knee.
He feels the exact same pain and his wound produces the same amount of blood.
But the difference is that the man does not bawl in public.
Instead, the grownup observes silently that he has banged his knee and excuses himself to the washroom.
There, he finds the rubbing alcohol on his own and administers a bandaid.
Do You Scream In Silence?
Why does the man do all of this in silence instead of crying his heart out?
Simple:
Social conditioning over the years has not changed the nature of the pain or the work needed to care for the wound.
But social conditioning has changed the nature of what makes for an appropriate response to the pain.
According to some self-punishment theories, even the maturest of adults have minds that still need conditioning so that they respond in mature ways to mental pain.
Exactly How To Mature Your Mind And Stop Mentally Punishing Yourself
I don’t know about you, but in my past, I’ve called myself an idiot for the verbal mistakes I’ve made at least a thousand times.
In fact…
I’ve said many things worse than that to myself. And no, I’m not going to repeat them.
But I’ve come to understand that they were just the signs and symptoms of an untrained mind. There was nothing wrong with that mind. It just hadn’t been matured.
And although this self-punishment still happens once in awhile, I’ve learned to settle the self-abuse down.
The cure mostly comes down to a combination of relaxation, mindset and huge respect for memory and the practice of memory improvement and maintenance over many years.
Here are four ways I’ve dealt with the self-punishment so that it no longer chews up memory power, no longer bashes self-esteem and no longer has the power to reduce life satisfaction:
Tip #1: Learn The Scary Truth About Social Inattention
Here’s a power reality:
A HUGE percentage of the things we say to others tend to be forgotten.
In fact, thanks to something called inattentional blindness, most people barely perceive what you’re saying at all.
Why?
Because the people you’re talking to are barely paying attention.
Even if they were, human memory is flawed in your favor.
If the minds of other people are barely tracking a tenth of what you’re saying, they are encoding far less than that into memory.
The Ultimate Proof That Few People Remember What You Say
Want proof?
Go ahead and study yourself when listening to others and I think you’ll find that it’s true.
You’re not focused like a laser on what they’re saying.
You’re not enjoying photographic memory, nor recording everything like a video camera.
Quite the opposite.
The truth?
Your Mind Is All Over The Place!
More than half the time, you’re thinking about what you’re going to say next. You’re probably even obsessively repeating what you want to say in your mind so you won’t forget.
The rest of your conscious mind is either thinking about the past, the future or fantasizing about some alternate present.
This significant amount of brain activity means that you’ll miss entire details completely.
All this happens despite the fact that you’ll be experiencing reality as an unbroken continuity.
Scary, but true.
What this all means is that when you say inappropriate things, you shouldn’t get too worried about it and start flagellating yourself.
But if you get all hot and bothered about something you said, the best trick I know is to confront the feeling head-on.
Just ask the person point blank:
“Did what I said about x a little earlier offend you? Because I apologize if it did.”
Chances are you’re the only one bothered by what you said, and it’s probably already been forgotten – assuming it was registered in the first place.
If you punish yourself at all for things you’ve said, please take up this practice of publicly confronting this feeling.
You will feel tremendous relief when you do.
Tip #2: Take Responsibility For Your Verbal Oil Spills
As I’ve just suggested, one great solution to managing your anxiety about verbal diarrhea is to confront it directly. If you’ve said something that bothers you, don’t be afraid to draw attention to it.
And go in prepared to do so.
Decide to be a conscientious conversationalist and own up to every faux pas you make.
In other words:
If you say something that either is insulting or you feel could be interpreted as insulting, be the one to call yourself out on it.
What’s the worst that can happen?
The answer is simple:
The worst that can happen is that people think you’re weird…
Not such a bad thing, is it?
In all likelihood, they’ll probably appreciate you more and admire you.
Why?
Because you take ownership over your mouth – even if they never noticed the thing you said in the first place.
Unfortunately, even with the strict dietary controls I place on my diet, it’s impossible to know the location of every farm and every nibble eaten by every chicken.
So yes, some things send me into a conniption that can last far too long. But overall, I’m generally a calm and cool guy.
I owe that stability to a few things.
The first is regular meditation. I practice multiple kinds, mostly structured around the sit-just-to-sit variety I learned from an Alan Watts recording.
I’ll also practice Savasana, breath-withholding and walking meditations that incorporate a bit of both. (Yes, you can lay down in parks during walks.)
Use Memory Techniques Everyday For Mental Relief
Second, I use memory techniques everyday. For reasons that go beyond learning.
Make no mistake:
A lot of people use memory techniques as a means to an end, which is great.
That’s what memory techniques are there for.
Learning a new language, remembering numbers, remembering names, and more.
Why Memory Techniques Are Better Than Psychoanalysis
But there’s also tremendous therapy to be had from memory techniques. They make you feel confident, composed and relaxed.
These outcomes are especially important when you’re a guy like myself who is always fighting for stability and hoping to stay off medication to do it.
If you want the background to that story, here’s a video from quite some time ago when I declared I was going on the psychopharmaceutical sauce for good:
As brave as I sound in that video, it was actually one of the scariest things I’ve done in my life.
But everything worked out.
Why?
The answer is simple:
Memory Techniques + Meditation = The Perfect Time Machine
When you practice meditation and memory, you’re always more in the moment.
In other words, you’ve got a “time machine” that keeps you focused on the present.
Why is being present so cool?
Because true presence means that you’re paying attention to what you’re saying BEFORE you say it.
And that’s the ultimate solution to self-punishment:
Pre-awareness that prevents you from making the kinds of errors you punish yourself for in the first place.
Tip #4: Learn To Listen To Yourself And Others
This one is going to require a bit of self-analysis and the study of others. It might also be considered half-lunacy, as Freud himself noted in his General Introduction to Psychoanalysis lectures.
Beyond that, the premise is that we all unconsciously encode messages in the things we say that seek to communicate what we’re really thinking.
We typically tend to send these messages in the form of the stories we tell or off-handed remarks. They can be attempts at manipulation, retaliation or simply telling truths too dangerous for our conscious mind to handle.
I learned to spot the tendency to encode information unconsciously in myself and others from Robert Langs.
Langs was a controversial figure with whom I underwent Communicative Psychotherapy in New York. His style of therapy is based almost entirely on dream interpretation in a situation in which death anxiety is deliberately invoked by the therapist.
Langs died recently and I’m still stunned by his passing.
He seemed like one of those timeless figures who would always be around, particularly because his ideas were so impactful and larger than life.
Although I only spent six months in weekly sessions with him, in addition to reading his books, my time with Langs completely changed my way of living and communicating.
How To Get The Best Psychotherapy In The World At Very Little Cost
The best way to learn how to spot your unconscious communications without the help of a therapist is to journal your dreams. You’re not going to try and interpret them as such, but just get a feeling for the kinds of narratives that come up.
In a session with Langs, he would ask you to narrate one or more dreams. He would then have you free associate to it and recite whatever came to your mind.
This task always brought up a lot of irrational resistance in me. There was never any reason not to tell Langs the things that came to my mind, but yet it would often seem threatening to do so. Sometimes the resistance would bring the session to a complete shutdown.
Gradually I learned to open up and reveal the connections that would come up in my mind. I couldn’t always do it, but Langs would always ask what the dream and how I related it had to do with him.
It was always a perplexing question, but I’ll never forget the day I finally drummed up the courage to start answering it.
Because the truth is that when we tell stories to others, there does always seem to be some comment we’re making on the present situation and the person to whom we’re speaking.
So if you can find someone to whom you can tell your dreams and who can hear what you’re REALLY saying, this is a great way to practice the awareness of what you’re saying in any conversation.
And you can learn to listen to others better too. That doesn’t mean judging them or necessarily telling them what you’ve perceived. But it will help you form better ideas about the real messages you’re receiving and shape how you respond in more sensitive ways.
Ready To Stop The Self-Punishment?
Although it won’t necessarily happen overnight and may still recur from time to time, you can get a handle on punishing yourself for saying stupid things.
Just use the tips above and you’ll start to see a difference immediately.
And if you’re interested in learning more about how self-directed dream therapy can help, I recommend getting my video course with its bonuses, How To Remember Your Dreams.
In this course, you’ll learn more about hearing your true voice by unlocking an aspect of memory improvement that you’ve likely never considered before.
Use Coupon Code “DREAM” and take $50 off your tuition in this exclusive memory improvement course. Alternatively, you can get How to Remember Your Dreams as part of the Magnetic Memory Method Masterclass.
The choice is up to you and we’d love to hear you in the conversation below. What are your thoughts on defeating self-punishment for the stupid things we sometimes say and do?
Hate flying? I sure do, but with a solid walking meditation, all aspects of the flights I take go much smoother.
Same thing with going to the dentist or making your way to the surgical table. Having a go-to walking meditation method takes the edge off.
Oh, and walking meditation helps create everyday stability too.
And since most of us walk at least a little every day, why not use that time to experience memory improvement?
The question is…
What is walking meditation?
It’s a means of practicing mindfulness and presence.
And how mindfulness and presence help your memory is about to be revealed…
3 Reasons You Should You Develop A Walking Meditation Practice
1. Meditation reduces stress and causes your brain to release healing chemicals.
2. Meditation has also been shown to improve concentration and memory, likely because of how the practice makes you more attentive throughout each day.
And since you can’t remember what you haven’t registered, anything that increases your present-moment awareness is worth every second you spend developing it.
3. Meditation is a form of rest. In my own experience, a solid meditation of just 9-15 minutes can feel just as restful as a good night’s sleep.
Yes, meditation is that powerful.
Why Walking Meditation Is Bliss On Wheels
And the fact that you can meditate on the way to the grocery store makes everything about the practice even better.
Instead of frittering away the time on useless thoughts and worries, you can focus on your physical being in the present moment. You’ll enjoy life more and experience increased health.
Both of which can lead to more time in which to enjoy your improved awareness.
To help you out, here are three relatively unheard of ways to kickstart one of the best habits you’ll ever develop.
1. Breath Counting Meditation
One of the easiest ways to start a walking meditation practice involves nothing more than tracking and counting your breathing.
Every time you breathe in, give the breath a number. Likewise, give each exhale a number.
I like to count each number twice, i.e.:
In 1 Out 1 …
In 2 Out 2 …
In 3 Out 3 …
You can count to as high a number as you wish.
Take note of anything that distracts you or causes you to lose count.
Then gently bring yourself back and start over at ‘1’ anytime you wish.
Leave Judgment At The Door
No matter what happens along the journey, it’s important not to judge yourself or cast evil spells against your memoryif you lose count while practicing.
Simply allow yourself to practice.
If you choose to see it as a challenge, always do so in good spirits. If you set meditation of any kind up as a game, you will find it frustrating because if it’s a game, random thoughts will always win.
But meditation is not a game. If it were, the only way to lose is by not practicing it at all.
2. Syncing Counting With Steps And Breathing
Another way to count your breath as you practice walking meditation is to sync each breath with a step. You can create a number of patterns starting with a one-to-one correspondence.
To begin, inhale and step and then exhale and step.
Next, take two steps per breath. As you inhale, take two steps and then exhale as you take two steps.
Increase the number of steps you take per breath up until 10 steps per breath or until it feels uncomfortable.
The goal is to maintain focus on the practice, not pass out, so take care that you increase your steps slowly.
Follow your instincts and enjoy the process. Pay attention to everything happening to you, including heart rate changes and thoughts that arise.
3. Sensory Style Walking Meditation
You can practice the next approach on its own or in combination with breathing. The goal is to focus intensely on your physical body and its connection to the surrounding world.
Beginning with your feet, notice each area and how it contacts the ground.
Notice how your feet handle your weight and explore placing different levels of emphasis on various parts of your feet as you move. (You can also practice meditatively studying the way your feet contact the world while standing.)
From your feet, scan your entire body. Notice the sensations of your clothing on your skin.
Then, narrow your attention on the feel and temperature of the air.
Instead of hearing environmental sounds, practice experiencing them as physical sensations in your ears. (You can practice sound as a physical sensation with music too.)
The more immersed in physical sensation you become, the less random thoughts control your mind. You’ll find the world unbelievably peaceful when you take it as a physical reality without thinking about it or making judgments.
Take It To The Next Level With Impromptu Memory Palaces
Once you’ve had some experience with walking meditation, try using the same immersive and breathing principles while reading, eating and even conversing with other people. You’ll be more involved with your life in the present moment.
It’s a super-simple technique and one you can use any time you wish in just about any location.
The Ultimate Walking Meditation Benefit
In a word?
Presence.
Presence is the most precious thing in the world.
Why?
Because it helps you encode more information into memory.
But please note that meditation works best with regular practice. Many experts agree that a minimum of 4 sessions per week are required to experience substantial benefits.
I would suggest going in with an abundance mentality and meditating daily. The trick is to take it small at the beginning and enjoy the ride. Meditation is best learned by doing and walking meditation requires doing above all.
Like when you’re walking to your next flight and feeling anxious…
Or taking a trip down to surgery…
Don’t overthink the process. Don’t give in to analysis paralysis.
Instead, take action.
I’ve shared these three practices as a guide for exploration so you don’t have to do anything but implement the techniques.
And after you’ve taken action, then let analysis have a cameo.
Analyze what happens after you perform a walking meditation.
That way, you can improve your practice over time.
And do feel free to report your results. I’d love to hear what happens!
This technique draws upon the spatial memory and spatial imagination of your brain.
Don’t know how to make a Memory Palace?
No problem. Just claim this free, complimentary Memory Palace training kit:
Once you have a Memory Palace with 12 Magnetic Stations, it’s time to start associating each month with a simple Magnetic Image.
Annoying Janet Smashes The Jam Jar
Ever see Rocky Horror Picture Show?
If so, then it’s going to be easy to associate the abstract idea of January as a period of time with Janet from that movie.
This Janet could serve as a one off image before you move to February, or she could be the Bridging Figure you follow throughout your Memory Palace for the Zodiac and other horoscope related information.
Don’t know Rocky Horror Picture show?
No problem! Any Other Janet Or G.I. Jane Will Do!
Perhaps even a close match like Jane Fonda. Or Janie from that Aerosmith song…
The important point is to associate the Janet you pick with an object and an action.
Smashing a jar of jam on the ground works well. Especially if you can make the jam specific.
(Note: Some people in the memory training world call such a chain of associations PAO, and this is a rare case where I would use a small PAO set for a limited purpose. Here’s why I normally do not use a PAO system, however.)
Like the raspberry jam your babysitter used to make.
Or the BOB jam in Sweden you remember from camping near Östhammar back in 2013.
(Oh no, wait. That was me. Enjoyed BOB a lot that first while in Sweden. But the point remains the same: Specificity matters to your United Nations of Understanding.)
The Gangster Unicorn Pops A Cap
Let’s review:
At this point, you’ve got a Memory Palace.
You’ve got someone named Janet in mind.
She’s smashing some particular jam that means something to you on the ground.
Now you need to imagine something in your mind that you can associate with the weird-sounding word, “Capricorn.”
Like how about a gangster unicorn?
You know the kind, right?
They all wear a dark gangster hats, have a gold-capped teeth and swear they’re gonna pop a cap in yo’ you know what.
Oh, and that ain’t just any kind of gun he’s toting.
It’s a gun that shoots corn. These are the unicorn’s bullet caps.
At the first Magnetic Station, associate Jane smashing a jam jar on the ground with the gangster unicorn furious enough in response to start shooting his corn gun.
Rinse And Repeat A Bundle Of Associations
Once you’ve completed this step, move on to the next Magnetic Station in your Memory Palace.
Give each month a Magnetic Image and associate it with the star sign.
Use the Memory Palace to help you practice recalling each association you create until each is in long term memory. The Rule of Five should get you there.
Hold On There, Star Cowboy! What About The Specific Date Crossovers?
Oh, right.
In this strange and silly system, Capricorn becomes Aquarius on January 20th.
No problem. I just see a giant nose sneeze so loudly it blows both Janet and the gangster unicorn out into space.
Why a giant nose?
Because I use the Major Method for numbers. That also happens to be my image for the 10 of Spades.
If you don’t have a way to memorize a deck of cards, here are 13 reasons you should have a system for remembering cards.
Since all transitions across the Zodiac star signs occur between the 19th and 23rd, each transition point is covered by a playing card if you use the Magnetic Memory Method approach to card memory.
Super-cool, or what?
The D.O.C. C.U.R.E. For Memorizing The Zodiac
Even though I’ve given only one example here, you can easily come up with your own for the rest of the year. And if you want, this precise same process will let you memorize the months of the year in any language.
With a bit of imagination, you can come up with dozens of applications for the simple memory technique you’ve just learned.
It all makes for great brain exercise, and you can give compelling cold readings if you’re a mentalist or magician. (Just be honest about the fact that your psychic powers are not real. Ian Rowland’s Full Facts Book of Cold Reading is highly recommended.)
If you need more help with creating mnemonic examples, join the Masterclass. You’ll be invited to an upcoming Implementation Bootcamp where we can practice creating the images you need together.
The point?
D.O.C.
Doing is the Origin of Confidence
Doing is the Origin of Creativity
Doing is the origin of Consistency
And together that amounts to the C.U.R.E. for forgetfulness.
Create a Memory Palace for a targeted purpose
Use your Memory Palace
Review what you placed in your Memory Palace using Recall Rehearsal
Explain what you remembered and enjoy
That’s all there is to it, and when you need more help (or just want to join the fun), the Magnetic Memory Method Masterclass remains the world’s premier resource for all things Memory Palace and beyond!
And on this episode of the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast, scroll up, press play and you’ll learn:
Why pronunciation is one of the first barriers language learners face and why lack of familiarity with sounds frustrates most people.
Why Gabriel talked about memory scientist Hermann Ebbinghaus as a masochist, and how he’s helping eliminate masochism from the language learning process.
The role of learning a language without translations to cause your brain to make associations you wouldn’t discover any other way.
How to create useful language connections using Google images and create fill-in-the-blank-sentences.
Why Gabriel is working so hard to replace one of the most commonly used SRS software for language learning.
Why you need to make your own flash cards and the decisions you can make to take a more active role in your language education experience.
What makes SRS and search-based websites such a huge burden and Gabriel’s hard won experiences learning to use them with “two-handed mouse and keyboard maneuvers.”
The difference between “busy-work” related to language learning and actually learning the language.
The role of choice in language learning and why it pays off big time in language study.
Why you need differentiation when looking at variation sentences for your memory to benefit from the Von Restorff Effect and related memory effects.
The value of looking at words both in context and out of context.
How engineering influenced Gabriel’s quest to create a language-focused SRS app better than any other in existence.
How Gabriel has tested and optimized the user experience in order to create an easier learning process with real people.
The hidden connection between desperation, motivation and the unexplainable sources of inspiration that lead to the “joy-fueled” energy that propels learners towards fluency.
Why you don’t need to know your “why” to learn a language.
Fascinating ideas on how to use recordings to help you remember gendered nouns – an incredible idea that you’re not going to want to miss!
Oh, and Gabriel’s a great singer too. Check this out:
So, what do you say? Are you excited?
I know I am, so make sure to check out Gabriel’s Language Blog on the Fluent Forever website so you can learn more about his upcoming app and how to get involved.
Additional Resources for Gabriel Wyner And Fluent Forever
As I go through my early memories, I’m unpacking so much creativity, so much energy, so much joy.
In your past, you’ll discover so much about yourself.
You’ll discover so many people you’ve known. So many places you’ve been.
Even better, you’ll realize that you always have all the assets you need to accomplish any goal or need.
Right now.
But if you don’t mine your past for the gold…
You’ll Be Stuck Swimming With The Fishes Of Your Own Invention
Frankly, I find that outcome unacceptable.
It goes completely against all ethics, morality and the Paradise of Multiple Intelligences we learned about from Tony Buzan brimming inside each and every person in the world.
What must you have to do to unpack your glorious multiple intelligences?
The answer is easy:
Use them!
Often!
Proudly!
The Number One Reason People Stay In The Goldfish Bowl
You know the answer, don’t you?
It’s confidence.
People lack confidence for a number of reasons.
Maybe they had poor childhood experiences…
Maybe some disease crippled their bodies…
Maybe they have a speech impediment…
Whatever.
None of those issues have stopped the best of the best from succeeding.
And yet when you accept a limiting story about your attention span, you’re the most crippled person on the planet.
How To Gain Confidence In Anything Faster Than The Speed Of Light
Two steps:
1. Understand D.O.C.
D.O.C. is an acronym.
It stands for:
Doing is the Origin of Confidence
It really is that simple.
If you want to gain confidence in an activity, all you have to do is get started.
Most of us are spooked by unfamiliar territory.
Me too, quite frankly.
But if there’s one thing that distinguishes those who playing to win from those playing not to lose is this:
They enter the darkness.
And simply being in the darkness sheds more light on the unknown than you’ll ever need.
Then comes the next trick I’ve got for you:
2. Don’t Give Up At The First Sign Of Trouble
You know why it’s so lonely at the top?
Because 99.9% of people who enter a field of mastery give up at the first sign of trouble.
Why? Barbara Oakley cites evidence in Mindshift that it has a lot to do with the insular cortex.
That scientific fact creates one illuminating and elucidating power:
The pain you feel when something feels hard or doesn’t go right the first time?
Completely Normal!
And all you have to do to get accustomed to it is simply try again.
What you’re looking for is something quite simple.
It’s called a “quick victory.”
Sometimes you get them straight up. Other times, the quick victory doesn’t come so quick.
To be fair, there may be times when the quick victory isn’t coming at all.
When To Cut Your Losses Without The Shame Of Giving Up
Look:
I’m not preaching that you should bang your head against the wall.
There’s no use in doing that. Ever.
But as you give things several good tries and observe yourself in the process, you’ll know that it’s time to back out based on one simple metric:
The Magnetic Memory Method P.I. (No, Not ‘Private Investigator’)
Basically, you have to learn a bit more about what gives you pleasure, and the different kinds of pleasure available to you and your brain.
For example, there is the satisfaction of a hard day’s work.
Or there is the feeling of being in “the zone.”
It could also be the feeling of progressing towards a goal by knocking off milestones, one at a time.
And as you knock off those milestones, you’re documenting the process like an artist in a sketchbook so you can see your progress.
Whatever you do, you need to create a Pleasure Index. Know what turns you on. What rattles your cage. Discover the signs and symptoms of growth and celebrate each and every one.
This Is How Attention Span Grows And Grows
Nietzsche pointed out that the human species will always need myths.
But we don’t need to blindly accept them.
Rather, we can choose the myths we use to guide our progress through life.
In place of the goldfish attention span myth, why not pick something more empowering?
Be like an arrow flying toward a goal.
Or be like the hawk, observant of every movement in the field, hunting only those objects that sustain self and family.
Otherwise, we all risk living a disempowered life.
And the moments that filter past while we’re spinning circles in the fishbowl?
They’re never coming back.
I’d rather be up in the sky, soaring over the world and basking in the fullest possible attention span the human brain can achieve.
It’s so quiet up here where the better myths of human psychology fly free.
Near the end of my time in Berlin, I spoke English so infrequently, I was gradually losing my mother tongue.
Worse, when I did speak English, it was usually over Skype.
Nothing wrong with that, right?
Wrong.
Telecommunication is great, but it starves the brain of so many non-verbal cues.
Sure, the pros outweigh the cons, but…
All The Pros In The World Can’t Defeat The Force Of Linguistic Deskilling!
I first realized I had this problem when I read about linguistic deskilling in Mindshift by Barbara Oakley.
At the time, I had no particular means of combatting the problem.
After all, the people in Berlin with whom I spoke English tended not to be native speakers.
That meant I would pick up their habits with English.
Even crazier, my English often took on the characteristics of German grammar.
And that was especially bad when I found myself speaking English with my wife and making all kinds of mistakes she would then incorporate into how she used English.
Even more alarming, I was about to embark on an adventure in Beijing, completely unaware of how long we’d be spending in the city.
Of course, the excursion was great for my Chinese!
Neither of my in-laws speak English and only a handful of April’s relatives know it well enough to string along a conversation. I was forced to listen like a hawk and speak Chinese a lot.
All Of It Chipped Away At My English
I don’t mean to exaggerate the problem. But more and more I felt as though I was reaching for words in English that normally would have leapt to mind. The Ugly Sister Effect also seemed more prevalent than ever.
But within a few weeks of settling in Brisbane, I noticed that the lumps in my English pipes seemed to clear.
Then something great happened:
The bumbling around that had become so characteristic on the podcast seemed to completely disappear!
It was like the difference between day and night. Until…
Language Learning Tragedy Strikes!
The problem with winning back English and narrowing my focus on Chinese?
I began experiencing the deskilling of my German.
I knew it was coming, which is why I was careful to enact the Dieter Dictum.
The Language-Preserving Power Of The Dieter Dictum
Dieter is my former father-in-law.
Odd how divorce and re-marriage shifts these people around, but I’ll always think of Dieter as a father-in-law no matter what. And there’s no reason not to, what with the ex and I remaining such good friends.
Anyhow, Dieter moved around a lot in his career and apparently he once told my ex-wife something I’ve never forgotten:
Responsibility for keeping in touch falls on the shoulders of the one who left. That’s why, even with its lack of verbal cues, I make sure to spend time with friends on Skype at least 2-3 times a month.
Put in the context of linguistic deskilling…
1. It’s Your Responsibility To Maintain Ties With The Languages You Want To Preserve
And you need to do it in multiple ways, ideally ones that harness all of The Big Five Of Language Learning:
When it comes to maintaining and even flourishing an attainment of fluency, you’ll need at least three of these 4 Cs:
Community
Culture
Concepts
Clapping (i.e. Recognition and reward in the form of encouraging applause that you meaningfully deserve)
To be honest, I haven’t quite cracked the code on how to get this for German in Brisbane. That’s because…
2. Effective Learning Experiences Should Align With Your Values
I was so excited when I discovered the Brisbane German Book Club.
And after discovering its existence, I had just time enough to prepare by reading Im Krebsgang by Günter Grass.
Just that one book alone would easily satisfy all of the Four Cs. With a short book review written auf Deutsch, I would have easily covered all of the Big Five of Language Learning too.
The problem…?
Culture be damned, I’m sick of reading depressing stories about war, terrorism and broken families.
Burning Torches Of Negativity Sucks In All Languages
And it turns out that the next few months feature similarly downer texts at a time I’m craving light-hearted literature – or at least darker stuff from a more Romantic era.
There Are Always Solutions
Turns out there is a Saturday German school for beginning students just up the street. I might be able to preserve my skills by pitching in and offering to help.
The important point is that, there’s little to be gained from frustrating or boring language maintenance materials.
Instead…
3. Align Language Learning Materials With Your Interests
As I continue searching for German-speaking community in Brisbane, it’s important to keep exposure to the language high.
And since I’ll need to await for some alignment with the local German bookclub, I performed a simple inventory of what I’m currently interested in.
Turns out that my current fave topic, Advaita Vedanta, is also loved by Germans. So much so that there is an abundance of books and videos on the topic.
The best part?
German speakers discuss topics in ways that English speakers do not.
Sure, the differences aren’t that huge, but listening to discussions on this topic in German still opens perspectives that I doubt ever would have come alive in a thousand years of English study.
(Often German Wikipedia entries, such as the one on vedanta are either more detailed, better prepared and or peppered with richer/alternative hyperlinks not featured on the English pages.)
Why Does This Exposure Matter?
Because when you can study a topic in a different language, you’re getting perspectives from people who have read dozens, if not hundreds of books in their native tongue that have never been translated into yours. Chances are they never will be.
And if you fail to keep up with that language you learned and let linguistic dskilling have its way…
You risk missing out on more than just the joys of communicating in that language.
Worse, you risk losing the myriad of worlds each language contains.
The solution?
Memory of course. Here’s how to get it on your side:
Let’s face it. Everyone has fantasized about having a memory implant.
You know the kind:
A small, unobtrusive thing, patched directly into your brain …
… capable of letting you learn and remember at miraculous speeds.
Heck, maybe this neural implant or brain prosthesis (whatever you want to call it), doesn’t even need to break the skin.
It may even be possible that your memory could be manipulated by radio waves or some other external signal.
But until that time, unless you’ve already decided you’re going to be the first in line …
Here are 7 reasons why memory implants are probably going to suck.
#1. Memory Implants Won’t Eliminate Practice
I conduct a lot of surveys here at the Magnetic Memory Method headquarters.
And that scene from The Matrix …
… comes up a lot.
The problem is:
People don’t watch the movie for what it’s really saying and the true metaphor about the value of training and journeying we can extract from the tale:
Downloading IS NOT Learning!
Not only does Neo have to get into the dojo and spar with Morpheus as a form of “accelerated practice” …
… Morpheus next cajoles Neo into jumping off a building, part of a chain of events that causes the “real” Neo to bleed.
Morpheus then tricks Neo with the woman in the red dress, proving again that downloading isn’t enough.
Far From It!
The mind still needs to be trained.
The mind still needs practice.
And let me ask you something:
What is Neo’s ultimate showdown with Agent Smith other than another training exercise? An exercise that actually requires Neo to die before he experiences an awakening …
… That leads to two sequels where he needs to practice being Neo even more until he can surrender his life to the war between humans and machines and finally die.
And even then, some people reckon that Neo’s not really the one:
The point is this:
When people fantasize that a memory chip implanted in their brains is going to give them knowledge …
They’re just plain wrong about the definition of knowledge.
Knowledge may well involve things you can store and retrieve …
But at its core …
Knowledge Is The Ongoing Practice Of Knowledge
And that knowledge/practice coupling should ideally become better practice over time. But it can only be earned through consistent acts of practice, consistently applied.
The level of learning most people want will never be instant. It will always require practice over time. And it will always involve an interesting combination of weaving and navigation as you create the paths you travel.
Understanding takes time. Even understanding must be practiced through consistent contemplation.
Yes, Yes, But I Still Want To Know … Is There A Shortcut?
As a matter of fact, yes there is. A short cut even better than the shortcut many people seek.
The only (and best) shortcut to contemplation is memory techniques. Learn them a.s.a.p.!
Why? So you can STOP dithering around with the consumption process and get on with processing information.
No computer can do that for you. Ever. That’s entirely on you.
#2: If You Think Advertising Is Bad Now …
A lot of people whine and complain about advertising. Sadly, this kvetching often comes from the same people who sacrifice hours of their time to social media and mindless television.
To tell you the truth, it kind of makes me miss the PBS days …
What people who complain about advertising don’t realize is that this big media platforms are chewing up your attention span by selling ads …
… and THEN telling content creators how to make their content in ways that serve ads better and more frequently.
Serve ads better – not necessarily you.
And you had better believe that the first thing they’re going to do if implants succeed is erect billboards in your head.
At least now we can fend off Digital Amnesia by digital fasting.
But once the branded devices are fused with your brain, you’ll be the walking receptacle of advertising you can’t switch off.
#3. The Nightmares Of Hardware Maintenance … In The Flesh!
Taking care of our human bodies is hard enough. People do a better job with their pets and vehicles a lot of the time.
And since we know the implant market will follow the trends of manufacturing processes, there will be an ongoing attempt to make the hardware as cheap as possible to maximize profits …
Think about that.
Do you really want a brain prosthesis built in a sweatshop constantly breaking down and rotting in your head?
When you could simply learn memory techniques and have way more than you ever need?
Plus, bad people will be constantly trying to hack into your implant.
And the first place they’ll go is your passwords manager, while also working to put your entire brain on the fritz.
#4. Medical Maintenance Monstrosities
And that’s just the tech side of the equation.
Imagine a hacker being able to cause electrical shocks or worse, simply by writing a line of code and “email thinking” it at you? Someone writing a “Brain Aneurysm” virus is almost a certainty.
And it would be so medically disgusting. Or disgustingly erotic, as David Cronenberg envisioned the human-computer interface in eXistenZ:
#5: It Could Become Very Expensive (Even Deadly) NOT To Have A Memory Implant
Don’t have an implant?
Too bad, kemosabe. You’ll have to go live in the camps.
Assuming the scientist can solve all the biotech problems I’ve just predicted, I foresee even worse problems.
For example, what will it matter if you have all the currency in the world, if you don’t have the brain implant by which it is traded?
Just as we are all now forced to have email accounts to do just about anything, social trends may wind up forcing a majority to adopt a thoroughly unhealthy implant just to keep up with the joneses.
This Problem May Lead To All Kinds Of Terrifying New Governance
We already see how slowly sovereign powers around the world have risen to deal with the Internet.
And we see more and more control over this precious tool that will lead to greater control over the inside of our minds and memory if we allow wired neuralinking and the government lurking behind it to penetrate our skulls.
Pause:
In case you missed it, we were jamming on related topics with reference to everything from Jacques Ellul to the Unabomber to Videodrome on this Magnetic Memory Method YouTube Live. Feel free to enjoy the replay:
#6: Memories Are Generated, Not Recorded
Okay, enough Sci-fi …
Another big reason brain prosthetics will suck is that our brains don’t record memories. They encode them, breaking them apart for reconstruction later.
It’s a chemical process that can be guided by thought (itself produced out of the chemical brain).
But if an implant “records” a memory for you, then it is not encoded.
This will atrophy those beautiful parts of your brain, mind and willpower that need the fitness.
Those parts of your brain need fitness as badly as the muscles in your arms and legs need pushups and squats.
Just walk around: Couldn’t more people use more physical fitness?
Just talk to people: Aren’t most conversations a series of statements like, “I’ll have to look that up and send it to you”?
Well, having an implant in your brain might make it possible to perform a quick search and send a thought email …
… And heck, why not thought-Tweet it to everyone in the world at the same time? …
That Will Only Create More Noise
Worse, we’ll suffer even fewer instances of meaningful information consumption.
More twitchy people who are less and less interesting to talk to.
Because now instead of constantly monitoring their phones in the middle of conversations, they’re zoning out from inside their heads.
#7: Non-Wired People Already Struggle With The Failure To Disconnect
What will they do when it becomes impossible to unplug?
Download and scan Orwell through their minds, and in a Neo-esque moment of triumph, proclaim, “I know 1984?”
Not likely.
Is There An Upshot?
Sure.
Through neural implanting, blind people have been able to experience sight. Valuable triumphs like these have been going on for a very long time.
Perhaps there is even hope for brain lesions, curing Alzheimer’s and other problems that plague humanity.
But as science discovers more ways of fusing technology with the brain through neuralinking, neural implants and the like, let’s understand this:
The brain is not now and never will be technology. Even if a strong enough neuralink is established, people who fantasize that machines will learn on their behalf completely misunderstand what memory and learning mean and how practical, everyday life will define it.
And nothing will ever replace the amazing feeling of being accomplished in several areas of interest, skill and aspects of human and scientific knowledge.
Don’t Want Those Things? No Problem. (Or Is It The Biggest Problem In The World?)
Keep playing with your apps and fantasizing that spaced repetition software is the path to a truly powerful memory.
Go ahead and be the first in line when the chopshops open up to perform neural implant surgery. Let the surveillance parameters of both computer hacker criminals and government and the marketers they barely control have at it.
I’ll point out in conclusion that humans are very poor at predicting the future, including me.
But whatever direction this project of neural implanting takes us, just don’t call it memory. The great tradition of memory techniques and the current Mnemonics Renaissance only holds meaning through our own acts of preservation through practice and practice as preservation.
Tired of note taking techniques during lectures that sound like they’ll be effective …
…but ultimately fail to help you remember information?
You know the kind:
The ideas look good, but … not exactly something you would ever do.
And every time you try some new note taking technique …
No matter what, all of them seem to lead to one place:
You … writing down loooooong strings of notes verbatim.
It’s usually boring, and (stand by for truth pill) …
Boring Note Taking Rarely Works!
It gets worse:
These boring note taking styles mean that you’re always struggling to keep up. You often wind up missing huge sections of the lecture and struggle to reconstruct what was said from the notes.
And if you’re anything like me, you don’t want to struggle with your memory!
Pause for a second.
Do you have time for a quick question?
Do you like live discussions? Here’s one about note taking that I think you’ll enjoy:
We had some great questions and contributions on the call and some really interesting books and resources were mentioned. Click play and see if this kind of learning experience suits you!
Back to our regular scheduled blog post:
If you’re tired of struggling with your memory after note taking, then you’re in the right place. I’m going to give you some counter-intuitive note taking techniques to try.
Some of them even tap into episodic memory and how to improve it (check out that post and Magnetic Memory Method Podcast episode for 4 super-powerful episodic memory exercises).
But please understand the following …
This is The Brutal Truth About Note Taking Techniques
You can read all the articles on note taking in the world, but it’s never the note taking techniques that should take the blame when you fail to remember information.
There are other factors at play and they all meet in one central place:
You.
So if you’re taking lecture notes verbatim, that’s the first thing that should change. This practice is taking you out of the presence of the information at a moment when your focus should be on its source.
To help you increase your focus and memory, get ready for techniques that I’ve used myself to remember more and develop tremendous confidence in any subject area.
The 6 Guiding Principles That Govern Magnetic Note Taking
But before diving into my Magnetic Note Taking Techniques, let’s take a step back and look at a few other factors.
We need to be aware of them for one simple reason:
All the best note taking techniques in the world won’t help you for even a second if you haven’t got the following aspects handed. After all, your note taking can only ever be as good as the state in which the notes were taken.
1. Be well rested
Seriously. I’m on YouTube Live every once in awhile, and always astounded by how late some learners in the world stay up.
No note taking efforts in the world can help the information enter your mind at the highest possible level. We can’t properly pay attention to what we’re learning when we’re tired and often wind up taking notes about unimportant details.
But when you’re well-rested, you pay closer attention to the information that matters. This raised level of awareness already makes every note taking technique you try instantly better.
To help you get a better rest and benefit from the improved memory abilities sleep creates, check out this Magnetic Memory Method Podcast episode on sleep and memory improvement.
2. Nutrition and Hydration
Foods that improve memory aren’t hard to find. Luckily, many of us don’t have a hard time finding water either.
We don’t need to dwell on this topic for long, but please understand that your brain shrinks when it’s not properly hydrated. Many foods deplete your hydration. By making a few simple dietary changes and drinking more water, your note taking abilities will go way up automatically.
3. Fitness and Meditation
Your brain is a physical entity. The more you exercise it, the greater focus you’ll experience.
Note taking skills work better if you know about the Primacy Effect and Recency Effect. You’re much more likely to remember the beginning and end of a lecture, for example.
But even if these general rules don’t fall in your favor, the forgetting curve will take its toll unless you do something about it.
The science of memory, particularly as it stands in support of a Memory Palace approach, should be covered immediately. It will add a great deal to how you think of note taking from a meta level.
Never forget: practical tips are great, but understanding why the tips work is golden. Using tips based on understanding makes you and your memory Magnetic.
5. Be Prepared
We’ll talk in a moment about pre-reading, but as a global point, too many learners show up to lectures unprepared.
As a student myself, I can’t tell you the amount of times I heard people asking, “what’s this week’s lecture about?”
That should never be the question on your lips. You should know the syllabus or plan inside and out so that your brain is primed and prepared to lock-in on the most salient points.
Seriously:
If you want to help yourself remember more, stack the chips in your favor by reading as much as possible in advance.
Heck, you can even email the speaker and ask what you should read to be better prepared if it isn’t already clear to you.
I’d even suggest pushing for more suggestions. Even if you only have time to skim over the suggested material, you’re feeding your brain with velcro hooks. And the more hooks you have before you show up, the more material will stick.
6. Know Your Learning Preferences
Finally, a huge shortcoming to all note taking is that many people aren’t aware of their learning preferences. They don’t know if they’re primarily visual, auditory, kinesthetic or conceptual.
And when you lack that knowledge, you can’t determine your MMM Learning Hierarchy. I’ll be talking a lot about how to do this in a new book I’m releasing. For now, just understand that you probably have a sensory preference of which you’re unaware.
The following techniques on offer here reflect some of mine. Regardless of how I learn, the most important thing is this:
Experiment with different note taking techniques based on your MMM Learning Hierarchy. You’ll quickly find yourself remembering more when you honor the way your brain prefers to learn by matching your note taking approach to these preferences.
You’re about to discover some of my most prized – and totally counterintuitive – techniques for taking notes at lectures.
These are significantly different from how I would take notes from a book. You can explore that approach here on my podcast and infographic about How to Memorize a Textbook. Everything in that teaching applies here as well, provided that you take your notes on index cards or move them over to index cards.
None of the techniques you are about to discover are mutually exclusive. You can use some of them at the same time. You can even use all of them to varying degrees in the same lecture.
But what you should never do is experiment with new note taking techniques when the stakes are high. Like gambling, only try something new when you can afford to lose.
With that caveat in place, here are …
My Favorite And Most Magnetic Note Taking Techniques For Lectures
1. Release Yourself From Note Taking
To be honest, I often prefer not to take notes at all if I can avoid it.
At least … not the first time around.
How is avoiding note taking possible?
How is it even responsible? Desirable?
Especially when you’re someone dumping thousands of dollars into a university education, a certification course or other live educational event.
Easy.
Just press record.
Many speakers will allow you to record their talks. And when you can record, you can simply release yourself to absorb the information without distracting yourself with the need to capture any of it.
I know this is counter intuitive, but it’s well worth practicing. I suggest that you go to a few public lectures where you don’t need to remember anything and then use the room as a Memory Palace as you listen.
Don’t know how to create a Memory Palace? No problem. Just grab my:
Once you have the Memory Palace tool working in your favor, cool things can start to happen.
When you remove the consequences of forgetting and then think back to the lecture and allow yourself to remember, I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised by what comes back.
It’s almost as if you’ve said to your memory, “Go ahead and forget everything. It will be fine.”
Of course, you’re not actually saying that, and this “reverse psychology” could backfire. But by releasing the outcome, you’ll likely focus more on the proceedings and remember more by default.
Pros:
You can practice being more present in the room and using a Memory Palace.
Allowing yourself to recall information without notes provides you with profoundly powerful memory exercise.
Cons:
Things can go wrong with recording devices. But if you have a solid network of friends, they can supply you with their notes and commentary.
2. Take Notes From The Recording
Recordings are powerful assets. You can listen to them anytime you want in the future, as many times as you want.
And you can take notes at your leisure with one powerful asset:
You’re encountering the information for the second time, not the first.
You’ve already got the broad overview, and you’ve primed your memory with reverse psychology. And you’re also in a position to listen more strategically.
Plus, when you take notes from the recording, you’re able to do it in a preferred environment free from the distractions of other people in the room. You’re even free from the visual distractions created by many speakers themselves.
Pros:
You can review recordings as often as you wish.
If you like 2x-ing your content, you can listen to it faster on the second review.
You can also pause the recording so that you’re taking notes without missing out on any of the information yet to come.
Cons:
Speakers often don’t prepare lectures for the purpose of creating recordings. Their lack of intention to perform for your posterity can make the recording slow, punctuated by “dead air” and filled with the sounds of people and paper shuffling.
3. Minimize Notes, Maximize Creativity
Although I do like to attend lectures and take no notes at all, I still always have a notebook.
And in that notebook, I like to doodle. I’ve doodled in lecture halls around the world. And it’s also a great activity while watching or listening to recorded lectures.
The longer the lecture and the more attention they require, the more I find doodling beneficial.
Why?
Because long content can make me fidgety. No matter how enthralling it is, I like to be moving.
The best part?
Drawing doesn’t exclude note taking. Rather, it shapes and informs it.
As I draw, I write down keywords and notes that seem interesting to me and useful for further exploration.
In a way, doodling while paying attention to information is like mindmapping, but without creating a deliberate mindmap. It also helps me focus on the information as it flows in real time without being distracted by writing down things said seconds or minutes ago while new information is accumulating.
Wow – Cool! Two Kinds Of Drawing
There are also different kinds of drawing that are useful. I would divide these between doodling abstract shapes and forms and drawing characters.
For many years, I drew abstractions almost entirely. Then I started drawing figures. Doctor Fuse Less is one figure in particular who came up in my notebooks again and again.
In either case, I found that by drawing the same things repetitively while focusing on lectures helped me focus even more on the material. It’s being creative and giving the body something to do without creating anything from scratch.
This lowers the cognitive drain of the doodling and maximizes how it can focus your attention like a laser on what you’re learning.
After that, the keywords you write down on the page are triggers or catalysts for remembering what was discussed.
Pros:
You increase your focus on the content.
You give your memory exercise by letting it decode keywords you’ve made, rather than having to read through hastily written notes later.
Cons:
You might struggle to decode the keywords you noted down.
You also might get better at drawing, but you can’t expect to get an A+ on an exam if you cover it with doodles.
4. Be A Note Taking Maximalist (If You’re Prepared To Follow-Up)
Sometimes I like to take massive amounts of notes. To do this, I just go hog wild.
There is no particular strategy. It’s just to write down as much as I can in a linear fashion.
Is this effective?
Yes and no.
But in order to make sure that it is effective as possible, I tend to type these kinds of notes later into a document or a summary.
I talked about the power of writing summaries last week when we discussed instant gratification, and that raises an interesting point.
Writing down as much as you possibly can during a lecture is essentially succumbing to scarcity. You’re acting out of the fear that you’re going to miss something.
We need to be really careful about this fear.
Why?
Because chances are, fear will cause you to write down a bunch of useless information and actually miss the most important points.
Why does this happen? Because you’ll be note taking while the more relevant information is streaming past you, outside of your awareness.
And you can’t write summaries of information you missed.
So if you’re going to use the maximalist technique, back it up with a recording so you can review the lecture later.
Pros:
Your wrists and arms get lots of exercise. You feel like you’ve accomplished a lot.
Cons:
Most times you won’t have accomplished much. Instead, it was a bunch of activity that crowded your attention when you needed to be focused elsewhere.
5. Have a note taking strategy and style planned in advance
Now that you have some more approaches in your note taking arsenal, you can start practicing them.
But I find that one of the most important aspects of note taking is simply being strategic about what you write down.
For example, I’ve had a lot of students who write down all the book titles I mention … but they’re not the type of students who ever go and read those books.
As a result, they miss out on what I’m actually saying about those books while writing the titles down.
But if you notice that you have the habit of writing down a bunch of information you never follow up on, you stand to gain a lot by writing down only so much information as you can and will follow up on during the post reading phase.
On the other hand, maybe you don’t have to attend the lecture at all. You can skip a whole lot of lectures entirely by simply reading an article written by the speaker and then reading all the books and articles mentioned in the bibliography. I have done this many times and feel confident that I gained as a result and never lost.
Or, you can combine reading material by the lecturer and attend the lecture. Pre-reading is a great strategy and one that will maximize the value of every lecture you attend.
Pros:
You’ll be prepared and have maximum flexibility.
Cons:
None. Unless you’re the type of person who gets so caught up in preparation that you suffer analysis paralysis.
Magnetic Tips For Beyond The Lecture
Speaking of pre-reading and post-reading, one of the best things you can do regardless of how you take notes is read beyond the lecture.
And understand that you get more bang for your buck if you also speak with others about what you’ve encountered in lectures.
Some of my favorite memories of university involve the discussion groups I attended with my fellow students.
In English 1300, for example, a small cluster of us all walked away with the top grades.
Why?
Because after many of the lectures and tutorials, we met to discuss the material further.
I’ll never forget sitting up in the 7th-floor Grad Lounge of the Ross Building.
I don’t think we were aware of it at the time, but think of the unconscious message we were giving ourselves.
A first-year course and we chose the grad lounge as our meeting room for discussion. We treated this first-year course as if it was graduate-level material and that gave all of us a cutting edge.
Later, in grad school, I recall other student groups with different dynamics.
In one of my favorites, we would each voluntarily read an article to present to the group. In this way, each of us was exposed to additional reading material for which we had no time. Yet, we could still take notes about the key points, remember these and enjoy the effect of priming our memory for future encounters with that text or references to it.
Effective Note Taking Is A Process That Develops Over Time
Effective note taking skills are everywhere. There are scientific studies well worth your attention too, such as this Scientific American article about not taking notes with a laptop.
Whatever you do, I suggest that you approach note taking as an art and a science. Make sure that you experiment with multiple styles and track your results.
As you pay attention to what’s happening more consciously, you’ll learn more about what works for you and lean towards your preferences with greater understanding.
But at all times, choose flexibility. Make sure you have on hand what you need whenever you attend a lecture or recording of one so that all your bases are covered.
And above all, remove all stress. So many learners bring so much worry about the game of education that they forget to play it.
But learning really is a game. It’s one you can win too, provided you put your memory first.
And to help with that, I’m confident these note taking techniques – if you give them a try in combination with the bigger picture of your rest, relaxation, health and a Magnetic Memory Palace Network – will force you to remember more without so much as breaking a sweat.
Bonus:
Matthew Clark was one of my favorite profs in grad school. Through the magic of the Internet, I now have the chance to take some notes from one of his lectures.
The experience of memory loss creates the kind of story you normally only see in the movies.
Yet, for Jennie Gorman, the experience of memory loss was all too real.
Although we all experience the occasional mild loss of memory, it’s difficult to imagine what it must be like dealing with a disorienting and painful experience like this:
Luckily, Jennie found incredible resources within herself that drove her to find a solution.
And that solution could well help you too.
If not now, possibly in the future.
So buckle in, click play above, and discover the root cause of Jennie’s memory loss and how she solved it.
The Nasty Substances Creating Your Current Or EventualMemory Loss Story
We all put things into our body that don’t serve us.
For some of us, it’s a bad habit like smoking (here’s the Magnetic Memory Method way to stop smoking if you need help).
Not everyone can get away from medication, but as Jennie points out in this podcast and video …
… the substance rotting your memory ability might not be booze, tobacco or a medication.
That means, you’ve got to dig deep to find the problem.
Like Kasper Bormans is trying to do:
The Truth About Memory Loss And The Dark Of Night
The quantity and quality of your sleep influence your memory in many ways.
That means you can get a ton of sleep, but if it isn’t good sleep, you’ll still suffer memory problems.
Likewise, you can get quality sleep, but still not enough of it to make an impact.
In all cases, sleep deprivation is a memory killer. Avoid it at all costs.
Protect Your Brain
That brain of yours is like an egg in a shell. Brain trauma can happen anytime, so please exert caution when riding your bike, driving or engaging in sports.
The sad thing about injuries to your head is that the symptoms and problems might not show up for decades. That’s why we must all exercise maximum vigilance at all times.
Entrepreneurial Memory Secrets
One of the most intriguing elements of Jennie’s story involves her success as an entrepreneur.
As the incredible leader of Connexions Unlimited, Jennie is a master networker. The ability to recall names and faces is very important when you’re in business and her memory loss threatened this skill in an immediate way.
Luckily, Jennie recovered her memory, which is also a key part of her work with Business Mastermind Groups in Brisbane, Australia.
The level of care she brings to helping entrepreneurs grow their businesses extends far beyond their names. It involves helping them manage their business vision, mission and a number of goals and milestones.
Apart from memory techniques … what’s the secret to keeping your memory fresh and alive when you’re in business?
Plenty of networking and Masterminding, of course!
Seriously. Keeping social and avoiding isolation helps your brain coat itself in healthy chemicals that will preserve your memory.
Unfortunately, far too many entrepreneurs lock themselves away. But that too can create brain trauma of an even more pernicious kind …
The Pen Is Mightier Than Memory Loss
But if you’re going to isolate yourself, a great way to fend off memory loss is regular writing.
Writing is an unknown memory preserver because of how it stimulates your brain.
It doesn’t really matter if you write or type, but you do want to consider the advantages of handwriting for your memory, especially if you’re a student. Here’s more information about the memory advantage of handwriting based on some killer science:
Even if you’re not going to write books and articles, just 5-10 minutes of daily journaling can give your brain and memory huge benefits.
You know that instant gratification is the real reason you struggle to learn and remember information, don’t you?
Good news:
If you’d like the cure, let me instantly gratify you and jump right in. Here are three:
1. Understand the Sickness of Instant Gratification For What It Is
That’s right:
Instant gratification is a disease.
Think about it …
What building gets to scrape the sky overnight?
What skill worth having leaps into existence in a flash?
None do.
And if any ever penetrate this instant gratification psychology … it’s really only a very few.
If there are examples of instant gratification, well …
One exception is the Magnetic Memory Method, a rare memory skill you can learn fast and experience quick victories with …
But these happen so fast only because the Magnetic Memory Method harnesses the power of information you ALREADY know.
And even then, let’s face it: You’ll still need to practice a bit before you really hit your stride.
So settle in and make sure you’re trained up:
Go ahead and click that big blue image and take my free course. I’m confident you won’t regret spending the time.
2. Practice Long Form Learning
Now that you’ve admitted that you’ve got the instant gratification sickness, it’s time to combat it.
How?
First, know your MMM Learning Hierarchy. You’ll discover what this is in a new book I’m releasing soon. For notification, please keep your eyes open for an announcement soon.
Once you’ve got that covered, learn how to memorize a textbook properly and read books in a traditional manner for good measure.
Watch long videos and take notes. Listen to podcasts and audiobooks without 2x-ing the content. Stop training your brain to consume everything faster.
3. Balance Input With Output
Consuming information is important. It’s how we learn.
The problem is …
Few people balance their consumption with production.
As a result, they never really learn anything.
If you want to learn … REALLY learn …
Then you’ll need to process that information through multiple channels.
The Professors Who Forced Me To Balance Input With Output
Back during my M.A. and Ph.D. years, I completed a lot of directed reading courses instead of taking seminars.
These directed readings were a great alternative to attending class and watching the other students pretend they read the books and articles.
Plus, I got to have the professors I studied under for some precious one-on-one discussion of learning topics at levels deeper than seminars allow.
The catch?
Two of my directed reading professors DEMANDED summaries of everything on the reading lists.
And not just one or two fruity little paragraphs …
They wanted two to three pages!
Well, let me tell you …
It Was The Most Worthy Work In The World!
By keeping good notes and processing the information through writing summaries …
… Followed by verbal discussions in meetings …
I remember so much more from those books than any other.
And because I used the textbook memorization technique I linked you to above for some of these books …
I had a ton of Magnetic fun too.
The Shocking Truth About Instant Gratification
Here’s the truth:
When you stop letting instant gratification corrode your ability to learn and remember …
You’ll find that all learning becomes much more gratifying.
Having a plan for building and enjoying discipline in your life helps too:
Once you have discipline on your side …
The gratification you need comes …
Instantly!
So the true path to instant gratification requires just a simple shift in perspective.
Just like when you Mindshift your perspective about memory techniques and the use of a Memory Palace.
The shift in perspective creates an instant victory that makes all learning thereafter much more gratifying.
It truly is that simple.
And if you’d like to experience true instant gratification that lasts forever, make sure you’re subscribed to this website so I can show you just how gratifying using your memory can be.
Do you see what’s happening here? Can you guess why I might have hesitated to approve the ironic snark lurking in this comment?
The problem is this:
Macovei assumes that … because he learns a particular way … everyone else should learn that way too.
That’s poor logic.
Worse, Macovei seems to think that …
Because He Hasn’t Found A Faster Way …
A faster way …
… couldn’t possibly exist.
Here’s the ugly truth:
These two logical errors amount to crimes against humanity.
And thanks to the Primacy Effect and Recency Effect, people get pushed into limiting corners of negative belief thanks to logically fallacious comments like these.
Sadly, there are enormous mountains of them floating around.
Like evil … hypnotic spells.
Don’t let them catch you!
Evil Spell #1: The Lie That Sentences Shouldn’t Be Broken Down Into Pieces
A lot of critics say that you should just go ahead and learn entire phrases.
Yeah, go on. Spend a couple hundred hours stuffing your spaced-repetition software with long strings of words …
BEFORE you’ve developed the ability to use memory techniques to remember even one single word.
Sorry, Macovei, but there really is an alternative.
One that teaches you how to memorize individual words. One that appeals to enough learners that it’s worth all that I do just to help them.
The skill is easy, fast, elegant and fun.
The best part:
It’s a skill you can extend to entire phrases very soon. But you’re much more likely to get there faster if you start with memorizing one word at a time first.
The Memory Palace Alternative
For example, imagine you get really good at learning how to use a Memory Palace. (Hint: It takes only about 2-5 hours. After that, you stand a chance at becoming a memory champion if you wish).
Make a Memory Palace.
Don’t worry if you’re skeptical. Making and using Memory Palaces is 100% scientific. Here’s the proof.
In it, memorize ten words.
Yes, just ten.
Make them cornerstone words. Really know them inside and out.
And then (and only then), go back to the first word. Add a phrase to it.
Then add a phrase to the second word.
The third.
And so on.
By starting with individual words, you really can scale much more quickly.
What makes the difference is the NATURE,QUALITY and UTILITY of the words you choose.
And let’s be frank:
How To Make The Right Choices Isn’t Always Easy!
But on this Live Call, the Magnetic Memory Method Global Family and I buckled down to the truth:
To sum up that Magnetic Memory Method YouTube Live for you, here’s what we concluded:
You find the right vocabulary and phrases along the way by …
Cultivating curiosity …
Mental independence …
And generating your own curriculum as a language learner.
How To Deal With Conflicting Language Learning Advice
You’ll come across a lot of different opinions.
Ignore the bulk of it. Especially when the come from the kind of self-proclaimed language learning gurus like I take to task in this video:
A lot of people give in to negative self-hypnosis and pass it on to others in an attempt to hold the rest of the world down. They don’t want to be lonely down in the bottom of the crab bucket, after all.
Their attempt to hold you down isn’t necessarily evil or even malicious.
But it is infectious. Negative messages draw the attention of the eye and take hold in the brain.
The good news?
Simply by knowing this fact about them, you can weaken their power.
You can also release yourself from their hold by learning memory techniques and buckling down to the truth that you need both skills:
Vocabulary memorization AND phrase memorization. Unlike those crabs pulling each down into the bucket, when it comes to memorizing vocab and phrases …
One Helps The Other!
But here’s the problem:
Many (but not all) human brains get overwhelmed by entire phrases. That’s why I free them to the power and glory of finally making some headway into learning a language. One word at a time.
A person who provides evidence of having memorized one word is using the Magnetic Memory Method discussion area to call Memory Palace use for language learning slow.
As far as I can tell, this person hasn’t even tried the technique.
And if that’s the case …
How On Earth Can You Cast Judgment On Something You Haven’t Tried?
I’m not a psychologist, but when I read flat out dismissals like these, I see, hear and feel … pain.
Exhaustion.
Fear.
At some level, I think these people are like muscleheads at the gym who are afraid to be seen lifting smaller weights …
… Even though the body has many muscles you can develop if you’re willing to put your ego aside and master a few simple moves with lighter weights first.
That’s how I’ve developed a lot of muscle at the gym and it’s how I’ve won the war against overwhelm in language learning on a daily basis.
The Big Five of Language Learning helps too.
And you can just go ahead and wind up the clock and time yourself if you don’t believe how fast it can go.
But what else other than ego-based fear could be driving the certainty behind such convictions and hypnotic spell casting?
Truly? What else?
And in case you’re thinking …
Hold On There, Magnetic Cowboy!
What’s driving YOUR certainty, Dr. Metivier? Could it also be some kind of fear and pain?
Nice. Try.
But I have no certainty. None.
And that’s the point. This is the art and science of memory. There’s nothing to fear so long as you’re true to the craft and the evidence.
And like most of the best in the memory training game, as both a lifelong student of memory techniques and teacher, I too started as a skeptic.
The reality is that skepticism is a power – but only if you’re testing it.
And you need to begin with the only skepticism you can test – YOUR skepticism.
My suggestion:
In the time it takes to graffiti the Internet with yet another argument against something you haven’t even tried …
You could have memorized BOTH a new word AND a new phrase.
And anyone who has spent any time learning a new language knows that you have to do both.
You Should EMBRACE Both
And you should understand that memory techniques for language learning lovingly encourages both.
That’s true for other realms of vocabulary memorization too, such as anatomy.
But my core message that all your struggles end when you put your ego at the door and learn to develop your memory … one word at a time …
That message shall remain.
Why?
Because it works for those who struggle to find any other way.
And it works for the mega-polyglots too, even if they save the Memory Palace just for the Stubborn Quintile or other words worth remembering, like the ones covered in my How to Improve Vocabulary With Mnemonic Examples Playlist:
You don’t have to make the Memory Palace the cornerstone of your practice, after all.
But since the technique is useful for so many other things in life you might want to commit to memory …
Assuming you’re making your Memory Palaces properly Magnetic …
You’ve got nothing to lose and everything to gain.
In sum:
Be Wary Of All Spell Casters Who Speak Without Experience
Ignore the fearful critics who speak without experience. Follow your interest and bliss instead.
But please, spare the world your time and energy whenever you feel the need to wax messianic about why things you’ve never tried can’t and won’t work.
We’re busy freeing people from The Matrix of lies and illusions here, not holding them in prison with you.
(Side note: Can you believe that’s way back to Episode 9 of the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast! Thanks to your support, you can click the audio above to listen to this post as episode 180!)
Here’s The Bloody Truth No One Else Will Tell You
Although you do need memory systems of a sort, YOU need to learn how to create them.
And then you need to follow through and actually create them.
That’s right. YOU.
And if you do it right, you’ll discover that you, like me, will also think about the word “system” very differently.
And here’s the very good news:
Right Thinking About Memory Systems Will Solve All Your Memory Problems And Pains – FAST!
And once you’ve come to share my admittedly biased (but always Magnetic) opinion that the only memory systems that matter are the ones you create yourself …
You’ll be a master of your memory.
The only question is …
What are these memory systems that you need so badly?
I’m glad you asked.
There are just 4.
They’re simple to understand, fast to get in place for yourself and super-easy to use.
It all begins with …
#1: A Location-based Mnemonic System
Not such a sexy term, is it?
Well, don’t fret. It has many other names.
Looked at from the top, there are oodles of mnemonics out there, ranging from rhyming to creating crazy images that you let float in the void of your mind.
Many people experience all kinds of success with the different kinds of mnemonics to choose from.
But most people can’t just create a mnemonic and then toss it out into the void of their mind.
They need to connect their Magnetic Associations to something in the world.
Like a location.
There are other kinds of locations that are more abstract, like Virtual Memory Palaces, but here’s the truth:
Keeping It Concrete And Real Works Best For The Vast Majority Of People
And that’s why having a system for creating Memory Palaces is so powerful.
You can create them strategically by building up a storehouse in advance.
Or you can create Impromptu Memory Palaces anywhere, at any time, completely on the fly.
The trick is to know how to create them.
And know how to create them well.
If you haven’t taken the Magnetic Memory Method free video course, it’ll walk you through everything you need to know.
(Hint: Just click that big subway image above or subscribe above and I’ll send you this course for FREE.)
And then, Bang Presto!
You’ll be a Master of the first memory system you need to succeed! Just make sure you ground it on a memory method.
#2: You Need An Encoding System
Once you’ve got a reliable way of creating the Memory Palaces you need, you next need a systematic way to encode the information you want to learn.
It helps if you’ve got that information organized. That way you can quickly “map” it onto any Memory Palace.
Luckily, a lot of information comes pre-organized for us, so you can easily use the How to Memorize A Textbook training to tap into that raw power.
And have a goal. An outcome. A realistic target that you actually want to hit.
From there, you just need to be able to look at a piece of information and associate it with something else.
Ideally that “something else” should hit a number of characteristics.
It should be:
Deeply familiar
Colorful
Big
Bright
Dynamic
Capable of interaction
And don’t worry if you’re not a visual person (#noexcuses). Here’s the final word on that strange objection to using memory techniques:
Example of an image that fits all the characteristics defined above?
Well, let’s take Homer Simpson.
Are you deeply familiar with him?
I sure am. He’s got the world’s worst memory, after all:
But if you’re not familiar with Homer, you can probably name some other cartoon character. Bugs Bunny, Fantastic Mr. Fox, Fred Flinstone …
The options are endless.
And if that character, actor, politician, musician or even your least favorite aunt can move around in space (such as within a Memory Palace) …
You can create a system for pumping out oodles of characters like these to help you encode information you don’t know with information you already do.
You see, it’s association that makes things more memorable.
And you can develop a system for making associations very fast.
You’ve just get to set aside any fear that you can’t do it and get started doing it.
That’s the secret of success.
#3: A Decoding System
You know, there are people out there willing to argue about whether students who use memory techniques spend too little time on encoding or decoding.
The argument is a waste of time!
What matters is how much time YOU spend on it relative to the results YOU want to experience.
And so once you’ve started using the encoding system I’d love to teach you to create for yourself, you can then create a decoding system.
As you work with these two systems, you’ll soon learn about your precise needs.
You’ll discover where our strengths lie and what you can do to “bulk up” any memory muscles that might need a bit more grit.
And that comes from just showing up mentally in one of your Memory Palaces.
Looking around at the images you encoded there and then decoding them.
In other words, if Homer Simpson is pounding the snot out of Bugs Bunny …
Why on earth did you choose those images to associate with what information?
Ask the right questions like Sherlock Holmes and you’ll become so good at decoding the little mysteries you’ve left in your own head …
You’ll soon be in danger of never forgetting any information again!
There’s no such thing and because you created these memory systems, YOU will always be in control.
Unless, of course, you don’t have …
#4: A System For Maintaining A Healthy Brain
Far too many people abuse their brains.
Sugar.
Dehydration.
Inadequate sleep.
Couch potato lifestyle.
Ironically, even with all that negative abuse of your brain and body going on … mnemonics will still help.
But you know, the beauty of memory techniques working under adverse conditions aside …
The real glory comes from how great it feels to live in an optimized brain and body.
The kind of place that the human being truly can grow and thrive.
And so the success of the other three systems truly does rest on what you do to take care of your brain.
Because those other systems you create?
They LIVE in your brain.
And you have the choice to create them on shaky ground or steadfast bedrock.
If you want to get started helping your brain right away, here’s my go-to list of Foods That Improve Memory.
They’re all super-tasty.
Inexpensive.
And your brain will love you for eating them.
No Use Hoping, Wishing And Praying
I sometimes hear from people who say they “hope” these memory techniques I teach will work for them.
Sorry.
No.
That’s not the way this game works.
That’s like buying a piano and saying, “I hope one day this piano will play me.”
The way memory techniques work is that you learn how to create your own memory systems.
Then you fuel those systems with information you want to remember.
Along the way, you learn to become a great master of those systems.
And because you’re the one who built them, you own them.
That means all the profit of knowledge, fluency in languages and time-saved because you know all your passwords and bank account numbers goes directly to you.
The Boss. Of Your Own Head.
What do you think?
Could you possibly learn to create and maintain 4 simple systems?
To put it another way … If I were the Morpheus of Memory …
What would you give if you could have the world’s best mentor accessible at any time?
I’m talking about catering to your every need …
So you can accomplish a specific goal
… and in a way that fits that mentor inside your pocket?
To be honest with you, at first I didn’t believe it was possible.
But guess what?
I’ve got …
Good News For Students & Educators!
In this episode of the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast, let me introduce you to the incredible thought leader and digital innovator, Edan Kertis.
But first … here’s a limited time opportunity:
If you’d like to shape the creation of the first Magnetic Memory Method memory coaching app (it will be in the form of a MyQuest!), please fill out this MMM App Survey (the link will open in a new tab).
Edan and I thank you for taking the time to letting us know how we can help you and your memory further by guiding the creation of this memory improvement app.
Now then, you might be asking yourself …
Hold up, there! What is a “MyQuest?”
As the co-founder and CEO of MyQuest, Edan is helping educators create “Quests” for learners.
That means no more boring video courses that forget about you after you register.
No more books that don’t even know you exist.
No more teachers who can’t provide you the accountability you need to succeed.
When it comes to MyQuest’s powerful platform, Edan and his team have made it possible for mentors to create educational journeys that help students learn through gamified, step-by-step missions and levels.
The best part?
MyQuest allows educators to lead a community towards a common goal while still addressing the needs of the individual learner.
How On Earth Is This Possible?
As a software engineer, Edan has helped surgeons plan surgeries better. It’s clear how his experiences with Brainlab have paved the way for even bigger accomplishments when it comes to learning how to learn.
And in this exclusive interview (scroll up and hit ‘play’ to listen), you’ll learn all about how Edan came up with the idea for MyQuest, including:
⇒ Edan’s personal “Quest for Enlightenment” to expand his mind and experience self-development.
⇒ The “butterfly effect” and how small actions can influence others all around the world.
⇒ Why happiness is really all about what you remember.
⇒ Why everything with MyQuest is action-based with missions instead of lessons
⇒ Why you need to manage the level of challenge so that you’re always stretching, but never overextended so far that frustration holds you back.
⇒ Why how we frame our educational experiences with story and metaphor matters.
⇒ Why you need to spend time enjoying random thoughts and “doing nothing” in order to increase your productivity.
⇒ The power of “digital fasting” for completing any learning goal.
⇒ The importance of reporting on your progress with peers for accountability.
⇒ The dual role of push notifications in order to ensure your teachers don’t forget about you and you don’t forget about them.
⇒ How you can easily create your own app as a mentor and help thousands of people achieve their goals.
⇒ Why traveling is like meditation.
⇒ How to find what feels right inside – despite anything society might be telling you about what counts as “normal.”
… and much, much more!
What’s Your Quest?
As a Magnetic Memory Method Podcast listener, please let me know what you’d like to learn the most. What skill would make the biggest difference in your life? What habits do you think you’ll need to master in order to achieve the outcomes you seek?
Let’s face it:
Like is like a game. And the best way to play the game is to play the kind of games that you want to be invited to play again.
But There Will Be Obstacles!
What would a game be if there weren’t obstacles to overcome and puzzles to solve?
I’m excited that Edan and MyQuest are doing so much to create learning innovations that help educators create structured, yet responsive learning experiences that help learners accomplish their goals.
Let’s all help MyQuest accomplish their quest by sharing this post and engaging in the discussion. Look forward to hearing from you!
For more information about MyQuest, creating your own app using their educational technology and Edan Kertis, please visit:
What if I told you that turning your brain into a passwords manager is the easiest thing on the planet?
Yes, even massively complex and (seemingly) meaningless passwords like …
HHTDFY66^&dd766g^^%7*d
… can be memorized without breaking a sweat.
And you’ll even have some fun!
To get this done …
So that you can easily learn and remember so much garbled and meaningless data quickly …
1) All you need is a strategy.
2) You need a bit of practice with the strategy.
3) You need a solid reason why.
Why Memorizing Your Passwords Is The Ultimate Only Path To Cyber-Security
To discuss the reasons why you need to learn, memorize and develop the ability to recall your passwords without storing them anywhere other than your memory, I’m delighted to be joined by memory expert, record setter and incredible memory educator, Brad Zupp.
If you haven’t already, scroll up and click the “play” button to listen in on our discussion.
In it, you’ll learn:
* The shocking truth behind why Brad decided it was time to create a system for memorizing his passwords and the horrifying realities behind why he’s sharing that system with the world.
* Brad’s method of dividing Memory Palaces so they’re easy to review and use to memorize and organize thousands of rooms and thousands of digits.
* Why Brad uses Memory Palaces based on real locations and varies between rooms and outdoor memory journeys.
* How to understand the differences in your mind and the mind of other mnemonists so that you can get better results faster.
* Brad’s incredible experiences with face memory and how it factors in with remembering names.
* Brad’s take on what to do if you have aphantasia or otherwise are in need of developing your mind’s eye.
Would You Like The Ability To Make Your Memory A Passwords Manager That Works Safer Than Any Computer?
Let me recommend Brad’s brand new book, The Hack-Proof Password System. (Note: The link will take you to the Amazon store nearest you. )
I’ve read this book cover-to-cover and highly recommend you do the same. You’ll learn everything you need to know about protecting yourself online by developing an amazing memory skill.
It’s easy, fast, effective and fun.
And the best part is that making your memory the ultimate passwords manager is great brain exercise too.
For More Of Brad Zupp’s World Class Memory Expertise …
You may recall my “book report” of Brad’s excellent book, Unlock Your Amazing Memory: The Fun Guide That Shows Grades 5 To 8 How To Remember Better And Make School Easier.
If not, you can read all about it and listen to the podcast review here:
And if that wasn’t enough, if you want to pop your questions, experiences and comments in the discussion area below, I’ll make sure Brad sees your contributions to the Mnemonics Renaissance a.s.a.p.
In the meantime …
Thanks as ever for helping us help you and talk soon!
Do you know how often earth-shattering revelations about how to use your memory better come along?
Two words:
Not often.
But when Lynne Kelly’s The Memory Code was announced, I knew we were in for something special.
I got even more excited when The Memory Code finally arrived (notice that’s an Aboriginal art bookmark too for the detail-oriented amongst you.)
And now I’m excited to present the first Magnetic Memory Method interview with Lynne Kelly.
The Most Profound Memory Resource On The Planet Got An Early Start
Scroll up to the podcast play button and listen in as Lynne and I discuss her book, The Memory Code. You’ll want to listen to this episode a few times so you can discover and remember:
* How a skeptical science writer came to embrace the art of memory by replicating ancient memory techniques.
* How the human mind once regularly memorized 1600 hundred plants (while eating less than a third).
* The role of rituals and Songlines in memory associations and how Lynne uses them herself.
* Why Lynne’s associations with her Memory Palace Songlines have become so strong, she cannot relocate from her environment. This point will help you avoid Memory Palace Agoraphobia.
* The potential relationship between social inertia and a cure for Dementia (or at least a serious reduction in the number of cases and their severity).
* Why your brain is a set of “chemical locations” and how these can integrate with other locations in the world to help you remember. Jesse figured this out in a big way as you’ll learn in his Magnetic Memory Method Review and Testimonial.
* What we’ve lost in schools and what Lynne is doing to bring formal memory education back into the curriculum.
* What Nobel prize winners have shown us about how and why the brain associates information with locations naturally.
* Why the continuous culture of Australia is so beneficial to the study of memory.
* The economic history of memory training and why the going rate for one memory song could be exchanged at a very high rate.
* Why knowledge is so essential to human survival.
* Why vivid imagery in stories and dancing is far more memorable than straight, unencoded information.
* The 3 kinds of “Memory Spaces” anyone can use to remember information and get it right – very important in every day education and matters of life and death.
* Why some information was restricted in early societies to avoid the so-called “Chinese Whispers Effect.”
* Why ancient groups of people were not naive or living in clouds of ignorance. Learn how science is helping us discover their incredibly sophisticated ways of knowledge – far from primitive!
* The power of multi-sensory mnemonic methods for helping you make fast mnemonic associations.
* The importance of playing with the stories and images you create in order to faciliate rapid encoding and long term recall.
* The secret skill all children have (one of the barriers that far too many adults unnecessarily let themselves get in their way).
* The possible role writing might have in decreasing our visual imagination abilities.
* Why you need to memorize based on a firm foundation upon which layers can be built.
* Examples of how kids are using mnemonics to memorize physics equations using location-based mnemonics.
* How children are learning about art using Memory Palaces that enable the teachers to develop
Memory Techniques For People Of All Ages
Children are one thing, but Lynne talks about how all the same techniques apply across the board to people of every age. No matter how time crushed you may be. As you continue listening, you’ll learn:
* Why memory techniques will save you time, not consume it.
* Why memory techniques should be taught within the curriculum of schools, not as a separate subject.
* Why memory techniques have inspired students to BEG for testing, not run shrieking from their exams.
* The role of cold in creativity and memory with respect to cold showers and the vagus nerve.
Have you ever sat down to learn something and thrown your hands up in the air?
Not to catch a balloon or give a salute.
But because you were furious and frustrated?
And have you felt that a learning task was so hard that you just wanted to give up?
I hear you!
After all, I’ve put some of the toughest learning challenges in front of myself all the time.
Languages like Biblical Hebrew, German, Chinese.
Musical instruments like sitar and bass.
Hands-on mechanical tasks like figuring out how to spread the good news about memory techniques with a videos, blogs and podcasts.
And in all cases, it takes grit.
It takes tenacity.
It takes these…
4 Secret Ways To Make It So Easy You Can Run Circles Around Everyone Else!
If you’re interested, I’d like to share these 4 secrets with you, plus another 4 in this video:
All I ask is that you read them carefully and give at least ONE of them a serious try (minus the last one in the video above).
But let’s be clear:
Trying just one would be good. But …
50% would be great.
100%? …
Why that would be downright Magnetic!
1. The Most Powerful Question Any Learner Can Ask
One of the reasons some people find learning so painful is that they don’t ask a simple question.
It’s a question that, when applied often, can unlock the nuclear power needed to drive you through some of the hardest missions in life.
It’s a question almost no learner asks.
Probably because it’s a bit tough for most people to wrap their heads around.
It sounds kind of selfish, after all.
The question is:
“What’s in it for me?”
But even if it has a selfish angle to it, this question is so important.
Why?
Because So Many Learners Are Trying To Accomplish Outcomes For Everyone But Themselves!
Think about it:
You go to school and learn things to please the machine …
You get a medical degree to appease your family …
You study a language because it’s part of a degree …
Nothing wrong with any of that, unless …
None Of It Has To Do With What You Authentically Want In Life!
And so it’s little wonder learning feels hard. If you’re the last person who gets a kick-back for all that effort, it’s always going to feel like you’re trying to chew through a brick wall.
Make it easier on yourself by learning things that have a definite payoff for the number one person that matters: You.
Because here’s the plain truth:
You’re a good person.
You want to serve others.
And you can change the world.
But it will never happen if you secretly hate the learning process because it just doesn’t serve your needs first.
Want a fast and easy way live authentically? Practice gratitude:
2. Why Comatose Zombies Can Outlearn The Flash Any Day
Okay, that sub-headline might be a bit misleading.
What I mean to say is that you need to relax to learn.
Because here’s a fundamental truth:
Information flees from tension. But it’s Magnetically attracted to relaxation.
And the more you know how to relax your brain, the more information will want to stick around. You’ll be able to slosh it around the mouth of your mind like fine wine and actually enjoy it for a change.
And what you enjoy … ?
Pleasure Is Instantly Easier To Remember!
The trick you need to understand when it comes to relaxing your mind is this:
Your mind is produced by your brain.
Your brain is a physical entity.
And that’s what makes the Memory Palace technique so powerful:
It’s something physical out in the world being used physically inside your material brain.
Don’t know how to make a Memory Palace? No problem. Register for this:
And to get the most of the training, relax your mind each time before you use your memory.
That said, never try to relax your mind without relaxing your body first.
In fact, it’s very likely that the only way to truly relax your mind is by relaxing the body first.
So the next time you sit down to study, stretch a little first.
Meditate.
Focus for awhile on your breathing.
Attention paid to breathing will lower most of your resistances to learning and make everything easier.
3. Understand That The Map Is Never The Territory – But Maps Sure Do Help!
When I created this Infographic and Podcast episode teaching you how to realistically memorize a textbook, I had no idea people would find it so practical and useful.
After all, everybody asks me for “tips and tricks” that will let them memorize entire books.
But the truth is that this feat is rarely necessary. In fact, it’s probably never necessary.
But if you use the techniques I teach in that podcast to get a global overview of the book you need to read, you’ll have a map. This map will set the stage for your experience of the territory.
And that will give you laser-targeted tools for remembering the parts that matter. Proof:
When you can do that, you do better than just learn and remember. You also create knowledge.
And when you create knowledge, the speed at which you can learn grows exponentially. It feels good, creates energy and encouragement and keeps you on the path of continual growth.
Nothing difficult or painful about that.
4. The Magnetic Magnifying Glass Method
Have you ever heard the phrase, “you don’t know what you don’t know”? Tony Buzan mentioned it during our conversation some time ago on the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast.
If you want to make learning faster and easier, make sure to get yourself in orbit with that concept.
Why?
Because when you hold a magnifying glass to your own ignorance, you get real clear on what it is you need to learn. Without that clarity, it’s nearly impossible to make progress!
In other words, learning truly is hard and slow when you’re stumbling around blind in a cloud of unknowing. But when you ask questions about what you know and don’t know about a topic, suddenly a lot of that fog is whisked away.
Want a simple exercise you can use for each and every learning project you ever undertake?
It’s easy, fun and speeds up everything.
It’s called:
Writing summaries.
Every time you take a class, attend a lecture, read a chapter, watch a video or even use an app, take a quick second to jot down everything you can remember.
Then beneath that, start asking questions about what it is you think was covered … but mysteriously can’t remember.
Then make two plans:
One plan for how you’re going to continue to remember what you remembered.
Another plan for what you’re going to do to fill in the gaps so that you can remember the information you think flew over your head.
Simple. Elegant. Easy and effective.
Why Most People Prefer A Life Based On Excuses
A lot of people will go through a post like this, nod yes to each and every point and then carry on with their lives of learning desperation.
The reason why this happens is simple:
It’s all contained in point number one.
If you missed it and care about the life of your memory and your mind, go over it again.
And if you feel like you’re resistant to any of the wisdom contained in this post, review the second point I’ve made. If anything on the planet raises your hackles, a few simple exercises that take just a few minutes of your time could be a game changer for you.
And if you’d like a realistic way to remember everything of importance in any book or posts like these you encounter in the world, there’s a link there just waiting to help you out.
For the true Magnetic Knight, point four will be the most precious of all. There’s a little comment section below where you can complete this part of the exercise. I’ll be around to help you fill in any gaps I may have missed.
I look forward to hearing from you, and until next time, keep learning and keep yourself Magnetic!
Don’t you love a teacher who can tell a good joke?
You know the kind:
Each class begins on a funny note.
You hang on every word, no matter how difficult.
In fact … it pains you when the lectures end.
You can hardly believe it, but as tough as the information flowing from your teacher might get, you simply cannot get enough.
When that happens …
Don’t Despair!
And understand this:
According to Barbara Oakley in her new book, Mindshift: Break Through Obstacles And Discover Your Hidden Potential, successful teachers have a strange ability …
… the ability to wrap candy around the crusted salt of difficult ideas.
In other words, great teachers make challenging concepts easier for your brain to absorb and remember.
How On Earth Do They Accomplish That?
To accomplish this difficult feat, many great teachers use humor.
Humor? Is that all it takes?
Well …
In many cases, yes.
Humor, it turns out, (which can be verbal or situational as Zizek makes clear in the video above) is a core ingredient in the magic spells these soothing muses of hardcore information use to slide information into your mind without you noticing.
That’s right. You really can learn almost on autopilot.
An Aspirin For The Aches And Pains Of Education?
Humor, and those humorous teachers who deploy it, use their special talent with jokes to manipulate your brain’s “opioid reward system.”
Rest assured:
This painkiller for information is super-important for the future of humanity.
Why am I being so dramatic?
I’m glad you asked.
As Oakley explains, merely thinking about learning something difficult activates one of the pain centers in your brain.
Nothing like Christian Bök’s pleasant flurry of “motorized razors” (another professor who uses humor to great effect):
But you get the idea.
Your brain anticipates the pain and tries to run away shrieking.
That part of the brain so opposed to learning?
It’s called the insular cortex. Even this biological term itself sounds scary, doesn’t it?
Well …
This Term Should Sound Scary!
But here’s the thing:
Oakley has good news for you and your insular cortex on every page of Mindshift. And the best part is that you don’t need every teacher to be a comic to learn even the most difficult topics without fear and suffering.
Mindshift is designed to help you figure out what you want to learn and how to get yourself take the steps needed to succeed. Using stories, activities and factual data about how your brain works, you’ll walk away from reading Mindshift equipped to anticipate and remove all obstacles you could possibly face on your way.
All you need to do is understand a few key “time travel” secrets …
Time Travel Secret #1: Your Past Is A Treasure Trove Of Transformation
One of the most exciting aspects of Mindshift is the lesson that nothing in your past is a waste.
In fact, much of your potential for future success as a learner and eventual leader in a field of your choosing lies in what you’ve already done. You need only know how to tap into it.
As Oakley demonstrates throughout the book, traditional ideas about expertise are outmoded. But here’s the beautiful news:
We are all unusually equipped for the requirements of the 21st century where several areas of “deep knowledge” separate the cream from the crop.
And if you’re a scholar, a lot of what you know can help you escape the Ivory Tower and have an impacting career beyond the university. Here’s Barbara helping you make that mindshift:
You Can Be The Cream Floating Gracefully Up To The Top
The trick in getting there lies in understanding your passions and being able to identify your current skills (more on “current” affairs in your time traveling in a second).
But this is important:
Don’t get caught up on this word “skills.”
It has a lot of meanings and if you’re reading this page, you’ve got a done of them. Without a doubt, you’re already beaming brightly from within the paradise of your multiple intelligences.
But There’s A Catch!
If you haven’t sat down with some paper to make your skills and mental assets visible to yourself, so many vibrant resources in your life could be entirely lost to you like some kind of undetected natural gas resource waiting to be tapped.
And that means you might find yourself living a life lost to digital amnesia.
In addition to making your past resources discoverable, Mindshift shows you how to install the needed desire for lifelong learning if you haven’t already got it.
Time Travel Secret#2: The Power Of Now For Your Learning
That’s right. You really can “time travel” the present moment.
As one learner interviewed in Mindshift puts it, you accomplish this feat by shifting your thinking about where you are now. Instead of worrying about having a safety net, use everything you’ve got and your circumstances as a springboard. You need only learn how to see the opportunities.
Two of the most useful concepts from Mindshift are also the most understated. The first is balancing modesty vs. hubris and the power of solving other people’s problems.
Just as we have brain chemicals that send out pain signals into our consciousness when learning something hard appears before us, we also have the hard truth that learning makes us better people.
And that means having more power.
The Comic Book Reality Of Life Long Learning
Of course, life is rarely as simple as a comic book, but the old line couldn’t be truer when it comes to learning:
Great power demands responsibility for you as much as it does for Spider-Man!
Sadly, not everyone uses their power wisely or accepts the responsibility power brings.
In so many of the stories in Mindshift …
… we read about abuses of power from teachers and other community leaders.
These are people who should have known better.
Yet, as lacking in fun and humor as this genre of story in Mindshift is, the lesson and the reasons why the author includes them is clear:
Each “Mindshifter” in Dr. Oakley’s case studies clearly wanted to learn in a way that de-toxified earlier educational experiences and ensured they never happened again.
Now if that isn’t taking control over the present moment and accepting responsibility for the power that action itself brings, I don’t know what is.
Time Travel Secret #3: The Best Tense For Directing Your Focus
Not just in any wild direction, mind you.
The key seems to be focusing outward.
Kind of like how Benny Lewis teaches how you need to speak the new language from day one. Out into the world, and out into the future.
So it’s never the question, “What do I want to learn?” that puts such extraordinary wind into the sails of the successful learners featured in Mindshift.
It’s the question of “What am I going to do with what I learn?” Having at least an initial answer to that question in a way that directs energy towards the future seems to make the hugest difference.
After all, it’s by asking and answering questions – high quality questions – that we can best shape the future we want to experience.
And in almost every case, those who take the beloved MOOCs that Oakley describes in perhaps the funniest portrait I’ve yet to read, future planning for the application of the knowledge you discover is a huge driver of success.
(Note: If you don’t know about Dr. Oakley’s own ultra-popular MOOC, Learning How to Learn, click that link three words back for an interview she gave the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast with her diving deep into everything about it and how it can help you.)
The Power Of Personal Change Relies On Chronologies You Control
Whether you’re a learner with no aspirations to teach or a teacher looking to expand, Mindshift is the book for you.
But you don’t have to take my word for it. Listen to what the author has to say for herself in this engaging discussion:
Above all, Mindshift is one of those rarest things all learners love to find:
A vessel that takes you on a journey and comes packed with the tools for maintenance and repair as you travel. You also get the resources for adding an entire fleet of ships to bay of your learning life as you go. With stories, interactive exercises, science and inspiration offered in Mindshift, you’ll know what to do and how to do it as you learn your way into the unknown.
And that’s no joke.
As Oakley promises, things are just getting started for students and instructors alike as video technology gets easier to use, metrics reveal more about what works and online classroom experiences get “stickier, funnier, and overall ‘learnier.'”
Learnier? Okay, now you can laugh. All the way to whatever future you’ve always wanted after you read Mindshift.
The key factors that make memory competition more exciting to participate in and watch as a spectator …
The number one need every student of memory techniques must fulfill to experience their true capabilities …
The connection between using your memory and motivation. Master this and you’ll create a state of excitement that helps you overcome all kinds of learning obstacles and barriers!
Why you shouldn’t waste any more time on boring and frustrating learning techniques …
Why everything we do with memory techniques always builds on the work of others …
How to use forms and shapes to help you memorize keywords and the names of cells, golf statistics or anything you want to memorize …
How to use chain stories, image clusters and other ideas locked up in Esel’s Welt …
How to create a second or even thirdMajor Method/Major System list to create multiple memory advantages and more variety in your mnemonic tool box …
The “annoying” truth about reusing your mnemonic images and Memory Palaces …
Why these techniques are never just about having a “code system”
Florian’s PAO 1000 people and 1000 objects system and how specifically he works with them in sets of 100 in order to generate a workable memory system. Understand the thinking behind his strategy and you’ll be well-equipped to evolving your own approach for achieving any learning goal.
How to open your image sets for any purpose without getting bogged down by dogmatic rules.
The limits of the Major System and why Florian decided to expand and create his own.
Why some people FEAR the Major System and how to overcome this hurdle so that you can feel the fun while experiencing its many benefits …
Why Florian likes movement and even abstract images, as opposed to stationary objects like street lamps in his memory practice …
Why boredom should be avoided at all costs when learning to use memory techniques …
Why Florian created ThinkKniht and developed an alternative to the Major System …
How to find your “feeling” for the Major System associations so that you’re happy with it and using it to maximum effect from the beginning …
The difference between a “native society” and a “civilized society” and the role of apps for the future of your memory …
The difference between learning, training and coaching software yet to come. Understanding how all these softwares can be relevant for your learning will blow your mind with all the possibilities …
Why trial and error might eventually be eliminated from the learning process. The only question is … will that be a good thing or bad?
Why you should never be intimidated by the lingo and “systems” of memory techniques and how to quickly get yourself into the practice of using your memory … even if you initially doubt the efficiency of the initial training period …
… and much, much more!
(Note for puzzle-fans: Can you see the special mnemonic I’ve hidden in the special-characters?)
I’m grateful for this discussion with Florian and look forward to hearing your response. Be sure to follow Florian on Twitter and support his mission in bringing mnemonics and the real magic of memory to everyone around the world.
Resources Mentioned In The Podcast & Other Great Links To Explore
Have you ever said out loud or in your mind, “I can’t learn a language!”
Well … guess what?
You’re fooling yourself!
And it’s the worse kind of lie.
Why?
Because every minute you’re not fluent in at least one other language, you’re keeping yourself locked in a monolingual prison …
The same prison that deeply dissatisfies billions of people around the world!
And instead of doing something to improve their lot in life and memory, they simper and whimper in the unnecessary depression and suffering that the following lies, illusions and problems created by people perfectly capable of success.
Avoid the following traps and you will grasp success and suckle from its nourishment for life – guaranteed!
#1: The Lie That You’re Too Busy To Learn A Language
That’s how most people see themselves:
Busy.
REALLY busy.
In some cases, this is true.
But for most of us, being “time poor” has a core root. And that root is rotten.
These days its lots and lots of time WASTED on social media.
Don’t blame yourself, though. As I talked about last time when I gave you my Ultimate Concentration Exercise Combo, a lot of the problem isn’t your fault.
But you can do something about the problem. And to ignore it means just three things:
And you know that learning a language is good for your brain.
The secret?
Stop Splitting Your Attention
As I shared in my post about morning rituals for language learning, you can use Magnetic Habit-Chaining to get more results in 15-30 minutes per day than most language learners will accomplish in a month.
It’s fun, easy to do and you’ll like yourself better.
Why?
Because you’re moving towards your language goal, not cheating yourself out of it by wasting time on unnecessary social media.
In each case, I’m using Memory Palaces in combination with The Big Five of Language Learning.
This multi-step process is important because it moves the language through multiple representation centers of the brain: audio, visual and kinesthetic.
And if you get in some language learning practice in restaurants that feature the language you’re studying, you can squeeze in your gustatory and olfactory rep centers too.
3. The Lie That You Must Learn Lackluster Vocabulary & Phrases So Boring You Wanna Tear Your Hair Out
Although you occasionally do have to buckle down and learn some boring words like he, she, if, then, but and … AND …
… most language learners struggle because they stick too closely to the boring stuff.
Let’s face it:
We need a textbook, audio and video program.
But we also need more. We need to learn vocabulary and phrases that connect with our interests.
For me, it’s movies.
And books.
And the topic of memory.
Knowing what I like makes the pursuit of vocabulary and phrases easier. Knowing what you like will make it easier for you too.
Plus, regularly meeting with native speakers who share similar interests means those interesting and exciting terms will keep popping up.
Case in point: I’m still sad about leaving Berlin, but delighted that there’s a German book club here in Brisbane.
And so that means I get to hang with literature enthusiasts who use really cool words and phrases – all while reading and discussing books that include amazing vocab and linguistic flair that excited me page after page.
Bonus: Focusing on words and phrases connected to your interests creates energy.
As language learners, we need all we can get for the long haul, so make sure you’re feeding yourself plenty of relevant things to say and understand. That’s how you create a powerfully consistent engine that builds and fuels itself for a lifetime of voyages on the highways of fluency.
4. The Lie That Language Learners Don’t Need A Positive Mindset & Welcoming Attitude
I’ve learned a lot over the years about why some people learning languages don’t have much success.
A lot comes down to the fact that they don’t make new words and phrases feel welcome. They don’t make their mood and memory like a warm living room. They don’t come out with freshly baked cookies and they certainly don’t serve milk.
And that’s sad.
Look at it this way:
New vocabulary and phrases are the backbone of your language learning progress. Without acquiring them, you’re left bored, frustrated and alone in a boat without a paddle. Those delightful islands of fluency become less and less reachable without a constant flow of the new entering and remaining in your brain.
But so many people prefer negative attitudes and the conviction that their language is the most difficult in the world.
How about a different tact? How about a positive and welcoming attitude that says:
My language is the best and easiest language in the world!
I love it and I’m going to do everything in my power to welcome its parts in so that they want to stay forever.
Well, of course it does, but you’ve got to do more than just think welcoming thoughts. You need to prepare your mind to actually be welcoming.
And that’s as simple as creating and using Memory Palaces. It’s no more difficult than dreaming up pictures you associate with sounds so you can place them strategically in your Memory Palaces for recall later.
What you’re doing is so much simpler than people who insist on calling memory techniques for language learning difficult fail to understand:
You’re simply having a conversation with sound and meaning in your mind. But if your mind is an unwelcoming dungeon filled with torturous tools of negativity …
… Of course all the vocabulary and phrases you want to remember runs away fearful and screaming!
Instead, show the language you want to learn love and appreciation. Create an environment it actually wants to stick around and enjoy living in.
Bonus: One of the best ways to make new words and phrases feel welcome in your mind is to use them promptly.
Seriously. A huge secret of memory success is just to get the words and phrases you use into operation immediately.
Oh, and drink water. Dehydrated brains shrink. The smaller your brain, the less room for vocabulary and phrases.
5. The Lie That Leads To Lack Of Gratitude
This next point might sound a bit crazy, but I believe it to be 100% true:
People privileged enough to even think about learning a language are rarely thankful about the privileges they have.
Seriously.
All the whining and crying out there about the difficulties of learning a language makes me want to puke. Most of us should be on our hands and knees thanking our lucky stars that we even have the opportunity to learn anything.
And please do not waste any time feeling offended if you think I’m pointing my finger at you. Believe me, I sometimes get whiny myself about the difficulties in life. We all do.
But the difference between those who make progress and those who get stuck in a rut comes down to the simple ability to recognize when you’re feeling sorry for yourself.
And then pick up your chin and move on.
But the question remains:
How so you show that you’re grateful for learning a language?
One way is to write about it every day in your gratitude journal.
That’s what I do.
Every morning, I acknowledge at least 10 things I’m grateful for, sometimes more. And everyday, I acknowledge that I’m grateful for my progress with Chinese and the maintenance of my German.
When I get a chance to speak any other language I’ve learned something from – or even just remember a language learning experience – I jot that down too.
Showing gratitude is simple, easy and fast. And if you don’t think it will make a difference …
Go ahead and try to prove me wrong. I admire your skepticism and can’t wait to hear what happens when you apply sincere gratitude practice to your language learning activities.
Bonus: You can easily complete your daily gratitude exercise when you use The Freedom Journal for language learning. It’s an exceptional tool for breaking everything down into 10-day sprints, so make sure you’ve got one on your side in support of your language learning goals.
Magnetic Conclusion
Be bold and outrageous when learning a language. So many failures come down to the simple fact that people bore themselves to death.
Worse, they hypnotize themselves with negative messages and don’t prepare their minds for success.
Sadly, that’s the status quo. That’s what passes as “normal.”
But this sad portrait of normalcy and language learning destitution doesn’t have to be you!
Instead of being busy, make time …
Instead of feeling helpless and piling on more useless tools, recognize that you already have more than you need …
Instead of choosing lackluster phrases and vocabulary …
Sex Things Up!
Instead of forcing the language into a hostile jungle of negativity, welcome the language into a well-rested and well-cared for brain …
Instead of griping and moaning about how tough everything is,be grateful that you have the opportunity to learn in the first place.
And above all, recognize that you’re on a journey. You’re playing the long game. You’re in it to experience amazing returns on your investments and wonderful adventures.
But nothing’s going to happen if you let these 5 barriers hold you back.
So what do you say? Are you ready to drop the dark chains holding you down and release the language learning force within you?
I hope so, because time sure is ticking. And none of us know how much we’ve got left, so it’s important to seek the fulfillment of fluency with all engines blazing.
I’ve gone through periods where my concentration was so poor I couldn’t finish a single sentence in a book.
And this lack of concentration and the ongoing need to improve focus caused me a lot of pain.
For one thing, I almost dropped out of my Ph.D. program.
Imagine that!
Spending all those years of your life and thousands upon thousands in tuition …
… only to find yourself in a concentration rut.
Well, there’s a way out.
And the first step on that journey to freedom from poor concentration starts with saying Yes! to the alternative. And that involves nothing more than getting your ego out of the picture.
Laser Sharp Concentration Begins With A Little Death
Do I have your attention yet?
I hope so, because death is no laughing matter.
But here’s the thing:
If you’re willing to sit and meditate, you’ll be engaging in the most profound activity invented by humanity (next to memory techniques):
You’ll Be Murdering Your Ego!
And that, my Magnetic friend, is a wonderful thing.
Because every goal and desire you haven’t achieved is likely being held hostage by your ego.
It sounds crazy, but true.
So much of the focus and concentration we need to get things done flees from us due to simple biology.
You see, your brain conserves energy as much as possible.
Sure, some people are lazy and unmotivated.
But most of us struggle to focus and get things done because we have a brain telling us that it’s okay to be lazy and slothful.
And the worse thing is …
Your Lazy Brain Isn’t Necessarily Wrong!
Because here’s the thing:
Way back when we lived on the savanna, our brains learned to conserve energy. At least, that’s one historical interpretation of the anthropological data.
Seriously.
Whereas some people prefer to fantasize about early humans as big bulky caveman conquering the world …
… it’s more likely that we were weaklings hiding in the shade of trees most of the time.
What were we doing there?
Two things:
1) Conserving energy
2) Waiting for better predators to kill animals and leave their carcasses behind so we could scavenge the remains.
Sounds like a bleak interpretation of history, doesn’t it?
Not If You Let This Simple Fact Of Nature Empower You!
When you realize that it’s very likely humans evolved to conserve energy. That means to also limit spending it. And when you realize this, all that laziness suddenly makes sense.
When things make sense, you can start to engineer change on the basis of some solid understanding.
That’s important because for many of us, we simply can’t learn without knowing why we are the way we are and having some context around it.
So there you have it: You’re forgiven for being lazy. It’s in your genes.
No Ego, No Enemy
But what does all this have to do with the ego?
This is important:
As human psychology developed, language and stories arrived on the scene.
And that meant chatter.
A lot of which takes place in your mind.
Self-talk about the past, mostly inaccurate descriptions and alternative versions of the present, memories of the past …
It just goes on and on.
And it’s the constant talk that makes focus and concentration difficult to achieve.
Because now instead of conserving energy …
You’re Spending The Lifeblood Of Your Brain On Nothing!
But when you meditate, you create an escape hatch.
And you can make it bigger and bigger in a relatively short period of time.
Not only that, but you can approach higher levels of “awakening.” These are really cool because you understand …
Oh Wow! I’m Free From All That Floating Junk!
And that leads to something extraordinary:
You realize that you’re concentrating at a higher level.
Your focus is sharper. You’re on fire for the present moment and letting it burn you up in all its glory.
How An Unusual Way Of Counting From 1 – 10 Will Increase Your Focus 100x … Or More!
Listen:
You don’t have to take my word for the bold claims I’m making. There is so much scientific research backing this up that you could build a new planet from it.
But like a lot of science, all the evidence in the world sometimes fails to make people budge in the right direction. Take the struggle to stop smoking, for example.
In any case, when you meditate at least 4 days a week as recommended here (daily is better), you’ll find that your memory improves automatically. And it’s directly correlated with improvements in your focus and concentration.
Then try this:
As you sit and meditate, count from one to ten.
But instead of doing a straight-up count from one to ten …
Skip the even numbers. Repress them in your mind.
The Incontestable Truth About Red Cats
Have you ever heard of that question they teach new hypnotists?
It goes like this:
Don’t think of a red cat.
And, of course, it’s nearly impossible to hear that phrase without negating the word “don’t” and thinking of the thing you’re not supposed to think about.
Well, that’s what’s so odd about meditating and counting from one to ten but repressing the even numbers.
You’ll find at first that it’s very difficult to complete this simple exercise.
And that’s because it’s not so simple.
Just as it’s difficult not to think of a red cat when someone commands you not to do so, it’s really hard not to think of the numbers two, four, six and eight when you’re counting to ten.
This simple exercise, when practiced over time into the double and even triple digits, will improve your concentration significantly.
Why?
Cross-Fit Training For Your Mind Never Felt So Good
Because you’re basically giving your brain a few kinds of exercise at the same time.
First, you’re focusing on the present activity in a state of stillness. You’re practicing the concentration of governing the body.
Then, in counting, you’re practicing concentrating on tracking a behavior and accurately completing a task.
Finally, in doing all these things, you’re also monitoring your ability to repress things that you don’t want to think about.
And so you’re developing the ability to shut distractions out of your mind.
Best part:
You Can Use Your Newfound Focus And Concentration To Use Memory Techniques Better
Seriously.
We’re living in an age where people are so worried about the future.
Unemployment runs rampant and an entire generation raised solely on the Internet is running around with brains destroyed by Digital Amnesia.
And I was real bad with remembering the names of authors and information like historical dates.
And I remember one of my professors hated when said, “back then” or “in the past.”
And she was right to hate that.
So I determined to be more specific when speaking about yesteryear in my seminar contributions.
All These Improvements Make Life Instantly Better!
And I don’t use the word “lifeblood” loosely.
It make my heart pump with pride, accomplishment and inspiration to learn even more.
Because it’s no longer about half-remembered facts clouded by opinions and beliefs.
It’s absolute historically scientific certainty that I knew what the hell I was talking about.
And it’s so great to know the dates of philosophers and when their books appeared. Your brain makes more connections.
Even without the memory techniques, these mental and Magnetic links help fortify memories further.
And the more you learn, the more you can learn.
And the coolest thing of all is that the brain feels so much clearer. The fog dissipates. A laser intensity emerges.
Magnetic Memory Method Lifeblood (TM) = 100% Pure & Concentrated Focus
For you, it might not be any of these things.
Your life might improve by appearing at work by knowing more about SQL for an IT certification.
Or you’re a medical student who needs to know both specific terms about the body, information about side effects and number-based data. You have to be able to look at a person and cross-reference their age, height and weight against dosage guidelines.
Wouldn’t it be great to process and …
Remember And Access Information Faster Than The Speed Of Light!
Or you might just want to cultivate greater awareness of the world around you by improving your memory.
Maybe you’d like to give presentations better or you’re a salesperson dying to remember those smooth patterns of persuasion your competition knows so well.
You might be a Mason or an actor looking to remember and recall long lines of text.
Or you’re a perpetual student, tired of forgetting. You want to decipher the information you’re studying, but you can’t process the logic of it all.
Why?
Because you haven’t got enough information in memory to contemplate the topic.
And that’s, frankly, what most of us need.
Contemplation.
The contemplation of connections.
The deep connections.
Because when you look at a genius like Elon Musk or Einstein or Frank Zappa or Da Vinci, you see balance.
The balance of the tiny details with the bigger picture.
You need the ability to process both and that level of processing only happens if you’ve got your memory abilities intact.
Take some time and think this through.
Your Most Sincere Desire To Improve Will Guide You
If you really want to accomplish your life’s most important goals, the facts and figures matter.
But so does remembering the things you do for fun. It’s not all professional reading. There’s remembering the details of stories that you read or watch on a series.
Whatever you do, you need to find the Lifeblood.
It will drive everything.
The only reason why people ever find anything challenging is because they’re not tapped into their true passion and desire.
But get that sweet fuel at the front of your mind, and it will help you sail past any and all challenges.
How To Make Your Lifeblood Impossible To Forget
Here’s a friendly tip:
Don’t just think about your lifeblood.
Write it down.
Get it in front of your eyes.
Then talk about it.
Ask for feedback from the right friends (i.e. be careful that you don’t share your Lifeblood with negative people).
Process it through all the representation channels your body and mind have at your disposal.
That will make it more real.
And what’s real gets done.
Is This The Secret That Will Launch Your Memory Improvement Success?
In Christopher Marlowe’s excellent The Tragical History of the Life and Death of Doctor Faustus, we hear the famous line:
“Was this the face that launch’d a thousand ships, / And burnt the topless towers of Ilium.” (Act V, Scene I.)
I’ll leave reading this play up to you, but give you the quote because Helen of Troy’s beauty inspired some of the clearest battle tactics of legend the Western world has ever known.
Faustus is referring here to the war that involved the Trojan Horse. And in many ways, that strategy is a great metaphor for what we’ll use to slip any information you want into your long term memory.
But You’ve Got To Have The Desire To Win!
And the fuel comes from knowing what you’re losing each and every minute you delay on taking action.
Poor Faustus sold his soul for access to knowledge and paid a terrible price.
But you have only the work of knowing what you want and using the tools of memory like a Trojan horse to slip beyond all objections. Straight into the center of your core desire.
To all due respect to my fellow memory trainers, that’s not likely to happen often by memorizing a shopping list.
But information for college?
For enjoying the ins and outs of wine?
For recovering from brain damage so you can have a medical career?
For passing the LSAT, MCAT, SATs or other qualifying exam?
For mastering complex topics and remembering the key contents of 100s of books so you can comprehend them like a pro?
Follow your gut and link learning the memory techniques with the information that matters most.
And always complete this simple recovered memory Memory Palace exercise to make sure you never run out of tools for using the method of loci.
The Information That Matters Now
The information that will launch all the passion and energy you need to thrive so your hopes and dreams finally become a reality.
And I don’t just mean “now.”
I mean RIGHT NOW!
Can you dig what I’m saying?
Sincerely,
Anthony
P.S. If you’re looking for my best memory improvement recommendation, it’s this:
The book you actually sit down, read from cover to cover and use (inserting info that matters in place of the shopping list/random items stuff, etc.)
Seriously. That’s the only memory improvement book that matters. The one you use.
P.P.S. And this one reading suggestion could be the most important one you make in your memory improvement life:
Have you ever heard the phrase, “writing is re-writing”?
It’s an important principle for people learning to write.
Why?
Because there’s a destructive fantasy going around:
The fantasy that the first draft is good enough.
The truth:
The First Draft Usually Stinks!
It needs revision. Often lots of it.
Believe it or not, it’s the same thing with reading books.
Yes, you can use the Magnetic Memory Method to memorize a textbook. It’s an incredible skill to have.
But often enough … one read just doesn’t cut it.
And there are reasons why. Here are 11 of them.
#1: Context Is King
Get this:
Once upon a time, I could only afford to take one course at university. I had to work three jobs just to afford the tuition!
Looked at ironically, I was lucky I could afford to takejust one course.
Why?
Because all those jobs left me with time enough to complete the reading requirements of only the one course!
All joking aside, I read Plato’s Republic that year while walking up and down the hill to the university. It was all the time I had.
But it was fitting because many of the dialogues that make up The Republic take place outdoors. And although it’s Aristotle who belongs more closely to the Peripatetic School of philosophy, walking around is … walking around.
And because I’m a diligent reader who enjoys the slower process of MMM Bibliomancy as taught in the Magnetic Memory Method Masterplan or briefly here, I let the books I need to read absorb me based on the context of reading.
The second time I read The Republic was as a professor living in Saarbrücken, Germany. This time I read The Republic as an audiobook, also while walking up and down a hill.
But even though the mechanical operation of walking from place to place was the same, I was reading The Republic this time as an educator, not a student.
And instead of reading The Republic in the context of other philosophers (like St. Augustine and Hobbes), I was re-reading it during a period when I was dialed deep into Eckhart Tolle and Wayne Dyer.
Context changes everything and that means the same book was actually very different.
The result?
Context unlocked thoughts about its contents and “unhid” more interesting details to remember.
Alethia for unhiding is a fancy ancient Greek word you’re going to want to add to your collection, by the way. Keep it and context in mind as your go-to rereading strategy. You’ll be delighted by what happens!
#2: The Organic Source Of New Ideas Re-generates Itself
You know that many of your cells regenerate, right?
Not all of them, but enough that you can make the claim that we have a chronological age and a cellular age.
And if you wait long enough to re-read a book, you’re technically not the same the person as the first time you read the book. Sure, your heart, brain and bones are pretty much the same, but the rest?
A whole new you.
And that means completely new arms, hands and eyes that deliver the book to your brain.
Isn’t that exciting to think about?
#3: Why Something Most People Dread Is Really The Icing On The Cake
Most people regret getting older.
I’ve never understood why, but I guess it’s because they don’t value the power of re-reading books.
Think about it:
As you age, you collect more Memory Palaces to help you remember information.
Plus, your pool of imagery and associations to use within a Memory Palace gets larger year after year.
And as you work with your memory, you discover so many resources set in stone that you never discover unless you’re re-reading books.
Put simply, age is a currency. It is traded on the strength of connections. The older you are, the more connections you make on autopilot and can engineer deliberately.
Better be doing some brain exercises, though. You’re always in danger of losing what you’re not using, after all …
#4: How Location, Location, Location Will Save The Life Of Your Memory
Think about this:
When you re-read a book, you can enter a multi-dimensional time-zone portal.
For example, I’m about the re-read The Republic for the third time.
This upcoming re-read is inspired by a conversation I had on the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast with Brad Zupp. We got deep into the weeds on matters of memory and philosophy in that one!
And as I re-read it, I can use Memory Palaces related to the university where I studied when I read The Republic for the first time.
Likewise, I can use Memory Palaces related to the university where I taught when I read it the second time with this rereading strategy. That will save me a ton of memory loss from stress.
And oh yes, you’d better believe I’ll be using Memory Palaces right here on the campus of QUT in Brisbane where I live to lock and load details I want to remember from my third read.
But without re-reading this monumental book from my past, all that Location, Location, Location juice goes untapped.
That would be tragic, sad and a complete waste of the constantly renewing cellular matter throughout my body.
What are you doing with your past, present and future untapped Memory Palace potential?
#5: Why You’re A Rookie If You Don’t Have Reason Itself Working In Your Favor
I’m talking not just the force of reason as used by skeptics of memory, but also multiple reasons. Clearly defined reasons.
Back when I first read The Republic, the reason was simple:
I’d ponied up for a course in Political Science. In order to pass the course, I needed to read the book.
More than that, I wanted a degree. And I wanted knowledge and all the power and accomplishment it brings.
The second time around, I wanted a few more things.
First, I wanted the initial buzz of pleasure back.
I also needed confirmation that the book said the things I remembered it saying.
Plus, I had placed The Matrix on the syllabus of one of my Film Studies courses. I needed to at least re-read The Allegory of the Cave … so why not check in with the whole book?
And now, I want to revisit that earlier conversation with Brad Zupp and think more deeply about how The Republic relates to memory. After all my research and teaching in the field, I’m excited to see the book from a whole new perspective.
Plus, there’s the whole notion of Virtual Memory Palaces and making Memory Palaces based on movie locations and series. And it occurs to me that the Allegory of the Cave might be one of the best fantasy Memory Palaces one could borrow.
So I’ve got my reasons for re-reading intact. As I teach in the Masterplan, strategy is everything when it comes to improving your memory.
What could you re-read that revives old reasons and harnesses the power of new ones?
#7: What Wikipedia Can’t Tell You About Sequels, Second Editions And New Translations
Yes, yes, I know you can blitz your way through books you’ve read before by checking out the summaries on Wikipedia.
And you know what?
There’s a place for that. I do it too and it’s a great enhancement of information.
In fact, I’ve already make my own little Wiki-adventure through and around a lot of The Republic and its many topics to set the stage for my re-reading.
But Wikipedia is not the territory. It’s not reading a new translations with a new introduction by a scholar with a different perspective.
And it’s not re-reading the book with all the benefits of new context, a new body and new reasons.
Only re-reading the book itself counts as re-reading the book. Until you dive in, you’ll never know the value. And if you’re satisfied with skimming … well, you’ll just have to see if you enjoy paying the price of not re-reading important books. Only time can tell.
#8: Old Books Often Have Better Answers Than The New
James Clear made the point a good while ago in his newsletter that new books don’t have the benefit of hindsight. Worse:
We simply don’t know which of those books hitting the shelves this week will stand the test of time.
Sadly though … we can make some solid predictions that most will be forgotten within a fortnight or sooner.
That’s why it’s worth not only reading the classics, but also re-reading them. There are reasons why some books just won’t go away and one read often isn’t enough to squeeze out all the value.
Plus, without romanticizing the past, we can say with certainty that life throughout history often offered challenges far harder than what most of us face.
Can we learn about how to better thrive in the face of our “First World Problems” by looking at how people dealt with war, plague and famine in the past?
You bet.
And a lot of those survivors were great literary stylists too. Many are worth re-reading just to dip back into the soul of their wit.
#9: How To Experience A Gold Rush Of OMG! Moments Every Day Using A Rereading Strategy
Well, re-reading books that you’re familiar with in the language you’re studying is a brilliant experience.
First, re-reading a book you already know in a foreign language helps reduce some cognitive load. You can settle back a bit more because you know in advance where things are going.
Second, you can zero in on features like dialog, descriptions and whatever area of the language you’d like to improve. And you can do it with some feeling of familiarity to guide how you focus your lens.
Finally, you get to “spy” on the thinking of that culture. Ezra Pound called this feature of a language its logopoeia. It’s the logical element of processing the world that is different than sound and imagery.
And in re-reading you get to experience the logopoeia of your mother tongue and the language you’re studying at the same time.
What an incredible treat to give your exercise-starved brain!
#10: Defeat The Shocking Ways That Digital Amnesia Is Destroying Your Brain
A lot of people just accept it. Google and the other Kings and Queens of the Internet are slowly eroding your brain.
And if you make that book a re-read of a book from the past, you’re defeating Digital Amnesia because you’re giving your brain the opportunity to revisit information from the past offline.
And if you’ve read a book on your Kindle device or some other digital reader and feel like you forgot more than you’d like, then re-reading a physical copy is the perfect cure for that problem.
#11: How Simple Memory Improvement Helps You Invent The Perfect Future
The last reason that re-reading books is so good for you is simple:
Since you first stumbled across this blog and the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast, your memory is already better.
As a result, every book you re-read enters your head blessed with greater potential for being remembered.
All you have to do is use the techniques.
Good thing they’re so fun and easy.
And because you know how to connect information with locations and things you’re already familiar with, each and every day of life has the potential to improve your memory even more.
And re-reading books fuels the engine of memory by accessing the familiar in a new way and from a new angle.
You get to actively direct the future by harnessing the power of the past.
Best part:
It’s never too late to get started re-reading books that you enjoyed in the past!
So Let Me Ask You Something Personal …
What book are you most excited about re-reading next?
You’re skeptical that memory techniques will work for you.
You might even be skeptical that memory techniques work at all.
I mean … those memory champions could be using mirrors or some kind of technology, right?
They’re absolutely not, but … who hasn’t given it a thought when you hear the incredible results of memory improvement training.
Hundreds of words!
Thousands of digits!
Countless decks of playing cards!
All under the pressure of time, cameras and competition.
Here’s the thing:
As scientifically proven as the memory techniques are …
Your Skepticism Is Good!
In fact …
It turns out that the more skeptical you are about memory techniques, the better they work!
And over the years, I’ve discovered 3 reasons why skeptics succeed with memory techniques better than anyone else.
Buckle in because if you’ve been sitting on the fence when it comes to using memory techniques …
… or if you’ve been suffering less than stellar results every time you give them a try …
The problem could be that you’re just not skeptical enough.
#1 Skeptics Are Ethical
Kind of a weird place to start, right?
But it’s true.
Because skeptics tend to follow, in one way or another, the laws of a universal rule:
The responsibility for demonstrating the validity of a claim falls on the person making the claim.
In other words:
If YOU say something outlandish like, “Memory techniques won’t work for me” …
… AND you’re an ethical person …
YOU Will Do Something To Prove That You’re Right!
And that’s where the fun begins.
Why?
Because it’s almost impossible NOT to succeed with memory techniques if you’re ethical. And you have to be seriously getting in your own way to make failure even a remote possibility.
#2 Skepticism Comes Packed With Determination
People anxious to prove that they can’t use memory techniques bring truckloads of determination.
So much so that they’re able to quickly overcome the objections that people with only a passing interest in training their memory allow to disrupt them.
What are these objections?
I’m not creative …
I’m not visual …
I don’t have the energy …
It’s too hard …
… and a slew of other negative self-talkisms that no true skeptic would ever let stand in their way.
No, skeptics want badly to get at the truth. So they tackle the training with all the due diligence it deserves.
Aren’t you starting to wish that you were a skeptic too?
#3 Skepticism Creates Multiple Levels Of Energy
Think about it this way:
The fact that the skeptic motors in with all guns blazing to prove that they can’t do it is one level of energy.
But then when they begin to see that they’re absolutely wrong …
A new energy appears.
The energy of total surprise and excitement from getting results! Because lo and behold, these skeptics discover … the memory techniques do perform with ease after all!
And when that second level of energy doubles back to the memory of their skepticism … it grows even bigger!
Why?
Because they’ve returned to their ethical core and accomplished something profound.
They didn’t sit around whining and crying about their doubt.
They went out and investigated.
They picked the purportedly miraculous skill apart and learned it in the process.
And, of course, to really learn memory techniques, you’ve got to also use them.
And when that happens …
You’re Hooked For Life!
Isn’t that exciting?
You bet it is.
Just like it was for Tom, who attended one of the live Magnetic Memory Method trainings I give around the world.
On this particular occasion … Guilin, China.
At the end of the second session, Tom came to me and exclaimed, “You changed my life!”
To be honest, that bold claim made me a bit skeptical!
So we chatted a bit and I understood he was sincere.
But it wasn’t until the third day that he told me just how skeptical he’d been.
Listening to me talk …
… even before he took action …
… the clarity that the Magnetic Memory Method brings to authentic memory improvement wasn’t opening his mind or melting his heart …
It was creating a plan of attack!
And even in the planning, Tom could see that …
He Would Fail To Prove That Memory Techniques Don’t Work!
Although … here’s the ugly truth.
It’s easy to repeat the good news that “memory techniques work.”
But that’s semantics.
The truth is that memory techniques don’t work.
Oh no.
Not at all.
It’s YOU who work the techniques. Never the other way around.
You don’t ask a skipping rope to fly in circles in the air, do you?
No! You pick it up and twirl it around your body as you jump up and down.
It’s not magic – it’s exercise!
And the benefits of doing so?
Immense!
But for some reason, many people expect to buy a memory improvement book or course and have some kind of otherworldly, spellbinding transformation.
Well … that’s not so far off the mark. If you work the memory techniques, you absolutely can experience an entrancing metamorphosis of memory ability most people only dream of!
But you’ve got to understand that all memory improvement begins and ends with picking up the tool and using it.
And That’s Why Tom Couldn’t Prove That Memory Techniques Don’t Work!
He was too determined to pick up the tool and use it to prove that the memory techniques don’t work.
But to do that …
He had to work the techniques!
And so the third day he returned to me and said again, “You changed my life!”
But this time it wasn’t just with the claim that I’d changed his life.
It was with a Magnetic Memory Method Memory Journal in tow.
All the instructions followed to the letter.
And let me tell you …
His first Memory Palace Looked Beautiful!
And on the page beside it, two columns of Chinese idioms.
Not simple vocabulary, but small, complex phrases.
And What Happened Next Didn’t Surprise Me In The Least!
You see, I’ve encountered many times before.
Not that it doesn’t give me a thrill each and every time.
Quite the opposite. As I listened to Tom recite 20 Chinese idioms off the top of his head, my heart exploded with pride, excitement and the absolute edification that comes with seeing yet another skeptic move over to the Magnetic side of the Force.
I’ve felt the same edification when using the Magnetic Memory Method to memorize Chinese poems.
But oh how Tom doubted!
And oh how he let his skepticism be his prime motivator.
Which leaves us now with possibly …
The Most Important Memory Improvement Question In The Known And Unknown Universe!
If you’re not already a skeptic, but you’d like to have the energy of a skeptic so that you can finally get some results, how do you bring the power of positive skepticism into your life?
I’m so glad you asked because I’m unusually equipped to help you answer the question.
After all, back during my professor days, I taught a fourth year course in Critical Thinking for a couple semesters.
And now you can enjoy the broad strokes of that course in just a few minutes.
But be cautious:
What You’re About To Learn Will Improve Your Entire Life
Skepticism begins simply.
It begins by inspecting information more closely than before.
Instead of glossing over everything all the time, peer between the lines.
Ask questions.
And think.
And ask you think and ask questions …
Ask more questions.
And go in with a particular attitude when you do:
Expect Specific Answers That Make Sense And Must Be True
So in the case of memory improvement, if a claim doesn’t seem quite right (which is often the case in information about memory supplements), go to the source and ask pointed questions.
Expect real answers and don’t be satisfied until you get them.
But please understand that when it comes to memory improvement training, it’s something you learn by doing. So you need to know the difference between inbound questions and outbound questions.
And it’s usually more appropriate in this case questions like:
Have I learned to create a well-formed Memory Palace?
Have I used a Memory Palace that I created according to the best guidance I can find?
Have I used information that will make my life instantly better (like 20 Chinese idioms) instead of practicing with a useless shopping list?
Questions like these cut to the core of the matter and what you’ll find is that the most powerful skepticism for our purposes today are skepticism not of the techniques. We’re talking about skepticism of what you’re doing with the techniques.
And when you get to this point, test the facts against your own experience.
Frequently.
And keep track of the results.
A Memory Journal is one of the best ways to do this and you will deserve massive congratulations.
Why?
Not merely because you’re now using memory techniques.
But because you’ve finally accomplished something truly special.
You’re now living a science-based life.
Because here’s what a skeptic really is (courtesy one of my favorite blogs, Science Based Life):
A skeptic is a person who withholds judgment on beliefs, claims, and topics, until the relevant evidence is examined, regardless of previous beliefs etc. Only under a verification of said evidence will a claim etc. be considered valid.
And notice that it is “withholding” judgment, not refusing to examine evidence.
And in this case, all the evidence you need is in the scientific journals.
It’s in the anecdotal descriptions and historical records going back thousands of years.
It’s in the annals of the World Memory Championships which recently celebrated 25 years. And there are many, many more competitions out there who also verify incredible feats under test conditions and track everything.
But there’s no place you need evidence more than inside your own head.
And the only way to get it there is to simple create a Memory Palace and use it.
You’ll need nothing more.
Except more skepticism.
Because every hurdle …
Every learning challenge you’ll ever face …
Benefits from the force and energy of skepticism.
And so all you need to do is ask the right questions and take responsibility for creating the evidence that will answer those questions.
So Now Let Me Ask You A Question:
Are you ready to start being a skeptic?
For the sake of your memory and the improvement of mental literacy around the world, I certainly hope so.
And it applies directly to the biggest mistake that even the best memory champions make.
They don’t practice as well as they could.
Now, you don’t have to aspire to memory competition to enjoy benefits from these techniques.
In fact, as much as I love all the memory competitions out there …
I sometimes worry that they discourage people who stand to gain the most from memory techniques.
After all, if you’re struggling with passing math exams in school …
What’s More Likely To Help Both Memory Champions And… Anyone?
Images of a kid just like you rapidly memorizing complicated formulas …
… or someone wrangling long lists of numbers from the depths of a Memory Palace.
Same skills – same diplomacy – but it can be hard for some people to see the connection.
But there is a connection.
And if you buckle down and practice with real information you might actually use in the world, your memory will transform into the most powerful asset in the world.
Of course, having great power leads to great responsibility.
And there’s no question that this can make you nervous.
After all …
Once you’ve spent a bit of time learning and practicing memory techniques …
You Actually Have To Use Them!
Seriously.
There are lots of parallels between memory improvement and martial arts.
But unlike a lot of martial arts where you learn “fight to the death” techniques you never want to ever use in real life …
When it comes to memory improvement …
Not a day will pass without an opportunity to win!
And that can lead to the third big mistake:
Lack of Faith In Your Memory As The Most Perfect And Beautiful Possession You Must Honor With All Your Love And Attention
Some will say I’m being dramatic.
But those who have lived a life of memory, even if only for a short while, know exactly what I mean.
Yes, we can talk about levels of accuracy and the black and white certainties of getting it right or wrong.
And yes, we know from the descriptions of even the best memory champions that they experience doubt even when they’re at the top of their game.
And as former World Memory Champion Ben Pridmore has said, his number one tip for anyone using memory techniques is to simply get out of your own way and trust your memory.
Let memory techniques Do The Heavy Lifting For You
And never forget the wisdom of Bruce Lee:
No ego. No enemy.
Because memory techniques aren’t working, it’s not about the techniques.
It’s about you.
Remember, this is a black and white art.
There’s no one who can’t use them and there are no excuses.
And if you get past your limiting beliefs, there’s so much more that living a life in tune with memory can bring.
Because when you learn to use memory techniques and carry them with you throughout life, you begin to experience a depth of conversation with yourself and the world that eliminates all fear.
Every problem, every pain, ever doubt you’ve ever had melts away.
And all because you experience a complete and utter shift in thinking about the nature of your mind. You experience that thing called “you” in a new way.
A diplomatic way.
A way that governs the discussions between spatial, episodic, semantic and other “countries’ of your memory.
You rise above it all.
You are the Magnetic King or the Queen of all things that pass in the realm of your memory and your mind.
And all you have to do is surrender yourself to a simple process.
Judging by my inbox and all the pains and frustrations with memory I hear …
Maybe not.
I mean, think about it:
You pour all that hard-earned money into rent or your mortgage, and yet …
You’re Living In A Memory-Toxic Dump!
It really doesn’t matter how much you like your home. If you don’t set it up for memory success and sufficient memory care home solutions, you’re leading yourself down a path of mental destruction.
And yes, there are things worse than Alzheimer’s.
Such as letting another moment slip by without the extraordinary powers available to you now for improving your memory based on Memory Palace Science.
In addition to all the memory techniques you can learn here on the site, here are 15 more ways that your home is crushing your memory. Avoid these issues and your memory abilities will soar.
1. Your Fridge Is Filled With Memory Destroying Foods
Here’s a rule of thumb you must not forget:
If it comes with a list of ingredients, it’s probably wrecking your brain.
I know it’s hard these days. Almost everything comes wrapped in plastic and there are additives in everything.
Heck, you can’t even trust your local farmer’s market.
But sticking with foods that improve memory isn’t hard. In fact, it’s one of the easiest things you can do.
And yes, it’s the one time Magnetic Memory Method fans know I think it’s okay to memorize your shopping list.
So drop the sauces and start eating well. Your brain and memory will thank you for it.
2. No Mat, No Enlightenment, No Memory Improvement
Getting sick of hearing about meditation?
Don’t.
In study after study, scientists keeps piling on all the benefits of meditation for your memory. And the good news is that memory is good for all kinds of other life areas too.
Don’t believe me? Just listen:
https://youtu.be/zP20eBfp2oM
3. No Dedicated Study And Memory Location
People say they want to get smarter, but do they act like it?
Just take a look around your own home and point to all the places you go to FOCUS.
If you can’t even come up with one, then you and your memory are in trouble.
Don’t you think it’s time to fix it?
4. How Scribbling Can Save The Life Of Your Memory
Once you have a place to focus in, it’s good to have rituals. My morning rituals for Mandarin have changed a bit since I first shared them, but the basics are the same.
And a huge part of getting my language learning done involves having an if-this-then-that chain of events.
To help, I’m currently using The Mastery Journal, which is John Lee Dumas’ follow-up to the excellent Freedom Journal.
Why not just use an app?
Digital amnesia, for one thing. It’s killing your memory and your brain.
Kind of like reading from screens is sucking your brain dry of the life it used to have.
5. Not Enough Dead Weight
Two words.
More books.
Real books.
It’s true:
People can’t remember nearly as much of what they read from a digital device as they can from physical books.
Why?
I have a lot of pet theories, but the important thing is that you make sure you’ve got physical books in your home. Even if it’s just a couple, so long as you actually read them, you’ll be doing your memory and brain a favor.
6. Not Enough Playful Romance (And Yes, Sex)
If you want to keep your brain and memory healthy, you’ve got to do it.
Often.
But more than just get physical with your partner, you’ve got to be romantic and make love in memorable ways.
How?
Ask questions.
Tease.
Remind your lover of the things you remember and prove that the past of your relationship matters.
Because it does matter, doesn’t it?
And if you can’t imagine it mattering, maybe you need to get checked out for aphantasia.
7. Too Much Idiot Box
Okay, everybody knows the truth here:
TV has gotten better. And you can improve your memory by watching long form series and making a network of Memory Palaces from them.
But here’s the thing:
No matter how good TV gets, it’s still twitchy.
Instead of helping you extend your attention span, it’s constantly shrinking it.
Not only that, you’re continually being exposed to bad news that create the perception of a negative world.
Well, guess what?
That world doesn’t actually exist.
And if you don’t believe me, just read The Better Angels Of Our Nature by Stephen Pinker.
‘nuff said.
8. Too Many Interruptions From Mobile Devices
If the TV isn’t interrupting your attention, instant notifications from a dozen or more less than useful apps are probably yapping at you.
Seriously, does the latest post on Facebook really matter that much to you? Wouldn’t you rather be experiencing the benefits of learning a new language instead?
Listen, I use social media too, but there’s a time and place for it and the home isn’t one of them. Try digital fasting and use social media only when you’re out at a cafe or some other place.
My prediction:
You’ll enjoy where you live more than you ever imagined possible.
9. No Wheels, No Memory Skills
Crazy, but true. I know all kinds of people who prefer driving to work when they could ride.
A bike. They’re not only great exercise, but you can use bikes as Memory Palaces too.
And driving instead of cycling means a few things:
You’re robbing yourself of exercise while polluting the environment.
You’re also robbing yourself of experiencing the world at a deeply infinite level.
You see more when you go slower and that means you have more interesting thoughts to think.
Plus, you’ll discover you have more Memory Palace options in your environment than you ever realized before. These will come in handy when you know how to improve memory for studying.
10. Only One Language Spoken At Home
This one’s a kicker.
Far too many people live monolingual lives.
Worse, they’ve hypnotized themselves into thinking that learning another language is hard.
It costs time, energy and maybe a bit of money. No doubt about it.
Whether it’s learning history, the multiplication table, or just the simple ability to memorize the names of new people, your kids will be much more delightful to be around if you give them the gift of memory.
And let’s be clear:
Introducing your kids to memory techniques shouldn’t be done on a whim. It’s kind of like a Martial Art, especially if you do it the Magnetic Memory Method way.
They don’t call me the Bruce Lee of Memory for nothing, after all.
One of the key reasons for this honor stems from the MMM’s concentration on making meditation part of the memory process.
And meditation, provided it’s free from dogma and mythology, is very likely good for your kids and their memory too.
15. Not Using Your Home As A Memory Palace
Of all the ways your home is crushing your memory, the quickest thing you can do to break the trend is the easiest:
Turn your home into a Memory Palace!
Not only is Memory Palace creation one of the best brain exercises on the planet, but it does something remarkable:
It instantly quadruples the value of your home!
Why?
Because now instead of just living in the place, you can use it to learn, remember and recall anything.
And that’s more valuable than anything else in the world.
Bonus: 16. You’re Not Using The Solution!
But then again …
… if you haven’t given memory techniques a try, you wouldn’t know.
That makes me sad, so let me extend this simple invitation.
Grab my FREE Memory Improvement Kit now and start the process immediately. You’ll learn how to create a Memory Palace in 4 simple steps.
After that, you’ll be amazed by all the wonderful things you can do with the simple power of your natural imagination.
But there’s a difference between mild forgetfulness and more serious memory problems like memory loss.
And mild forgetfulness is particularly vicious because it can creep up on you. In fact, it could be biting up parts of your brain as we speak.
But it’s not the same as memory loss, which is what we really need to focus on curing.
And to help you out, here are five signs of serious memory loss problems you need to take seriously:
1. Asking The Same Questions Over And Over Again
This is a big warning sign that you have memory loss problems. You might even be suffering from one of the big memory loss diseases like Alzheimer’s or Dementia.
It’s not just that you’ve forgotten the answers to the questions.
You’ve even forgotten that you asked the question before.
If this happens to you or someone points out that you’ve been asking the same question multiple times, please get it checked out.
No shame in having the problem. Just something that needs attention.
2. Getting Lost In Well-Known Places
This problem can occur at any age. It’s not necessarily a sign of Alzheimer’s or dementia, either. It could be a sign of fatigue, dietary problems or thyroid issues.
But if you find yourself getting lost in places you’ve been in many times before (including your home), you know that it’s more than well-warranted to get yourself to the doctor.
3. Inability To Follow Directions
No, I’m not talking about rebellion.
I’m talking about literally not being able to understand and execute.
We all have this from time to time. Sometimes, the instructions are to blame.
But other times, it’s a sign of serious memory loss.
4. Experiencing Confusion About Time
It’s normal to forget the day of the week every once in awhile.
But if it becomes a common occurrence, you need to do something about it.
Not only that, but you can use a Memory Palace to help ensure that you always know what day of the week it is. Here’s how:
Look at the wall nearest your bed.
Imagine it has seven quadrants.
In each quadrant, place an image. For example:
Monday = the moon
Tuesday = a can of Tuna
Wednesday = a weathervane
Etc …
Having a mnemonic calendar like this will make the days of the week more memorable for you as such. But to know for sure, you can imagine crossing out a huge X over the can of tuna before going to bed on a Tuesday.
Or you can do something even more imaginative, like seeing it smashed by the weathervane that represents Wednesday.
In this way, when you wake up, you can think of what happened before you went to sleep on your mnemonic calendar. That will instantly remind you of the current day. And this works just as well for young people as it does for people coping with age related memory loss.
Having a mnemonic calendar is also one of many great brain exercises that will help you keep sharp.
5. Not Taking Care Of Yourself
Seriously. Some people forget to eat, bathe and otherwise take care of themselves.
I know this problem well from the periods when depression has crushed my memory so heavily my hygiene went down the drain.
It sucks and if it happens to you, get it checked out.
8 Simple Cures For Memory Loss And Forgetfulness
The good news is that people are winning the battle against memory loss and forgetfulness. Here are 8 things you can do starting today that will give you the upper edge in the battle against these critical memory problems.
1. Learn A New Skill
Seriously.
Juggling, piano, simple sketching. Anything you can find will help. I’m currently learning more about video production and photography while learning Chinese. The improvements to my memory are noticeable on a daily basis.
2. Volunteer
It could be at a school, community service office or church. It really doesn’t matter what, so long as it’s with other people and you genuinely feel happy about helping others. These kinds of experiences create powerful new memories that will last a lifetime while exercising your brain.
3. Spend More Time With Friends & Family
Be honest. You’re not getting enough face time with the people that matter. And it’s killing your memory.
Get out your calendar and cell phone now. Make the call. Book a time. Your memory will thank you for it.
4. Put Your Wallet, Keys & Glasses In The Same Place Every Time
Look, I can teach you how to remember where you put objects in the house. But sometimes it’s good to give your memory some relief.
That’s why instead of imagining explosions every time you set your keys down, you can take the pressure off your memory by dedicating a spot for these easily lost items.
I like to spend about 5 minutes wandering a Memory Palace and sometimes exposing myself to something new before turning out the lights.
However, I read a study recently that older people get less memory consolidation than younger people during sleep. Nonetheless, the additional exposure to information can’t hurt – AND those studies are still relatively new.
Point being:
Get off the computer and get more sleep. It’s good for your brain and memory.
6. Exercise, Hydrate & Eat Well
There’s nothing that helps improve memory better than having a healthy brain sitting in a healthy body. There’s no doubt that walking, pushups and other forms of fitness provide great memory benefits.
And it’s a no-brainer that eating foods that improve memory like salmon, blueberries and walnuts are far better for your memory than pizza, chocolate bars and foods bursting with bizarre preservatives. Get rid of the junk and enjoy memory friendly foods.
Drink tons of water too. Studies show that just a touch of dehydration shrinks your brain and harms your memory.
Who wants that?
7. Ditch The Booze
I haven’t touched alcohol for over a year now (except for a bit that touched my tongue by accident at a party).
I used to drink a fair amount, but in the last year, the benefits for my memory are really just the beginning.
Not drinking has contributed to losing a lot of weight and feeling better all around.
8. Get Help If You Feel Depressed
Not a lot of people know this, but even a mild depression can cause memory problems.
For that reason, don’t be shy or embarrassed to reach out for some help.
In fact, doing all of the above almost guarantees that you’ll never get depressed.
But wait! There are more cures for memory loss and forgetfulness. Introducing …
Why Do Memory Loss Problems Take Place To Begin With
Now, before we get started, you might be asking yourself …
Why do these memory loss problems take place in the first place?
Lots of reasons. It could be that you’re reacting to a new medicine – or an old one that has started compounding elements in your body.
Seasonal or contextual depression might be in play.
You might be lacking certain vitamins and minerals in your diet.
Perhaps you’ve had too much alcohol.
Blood clots or tumors might be growing in your brain from a health issue or injury.
Or other parts of your body might be affected.
The Ultimate Cure For Memory Loss & Forgetfulness
For most of us, we’re fit enough that we don’t have to worry that our health is affecting our memory.
We don’t suffer from Alzheimer’s.
There are no vascular issues causing dementia.
We’re not boozing or vitamin deficient.
So why then do we struggle with our memory abilities?
The Answer Is Simple
Lack of memory exercise.
Yes, it is a must to see a doctor if you have any of the memory problems I’ve listed above.
But if it’s just general lack of memory ability we’re talking about, then I’ve got just what the doctor ordered.
The Magnetic Memory Method doctor, that is.
I do hold a Ph.D., after all. Although I am making no medical recommendations of any kind, I can tell you this:
Nothing has boosted my mood more than using memory techniques and experiencing the raw power of recall.
Seriously.
This morning my wife woke me up with a simple request:
To sing a Chinese poem she’d taught me.
Which one? I asked.
Yes, I’ve memorized more than one.
Quickly.
Efficiently.
In ways that make me happy. Boost my confidence. Are ridiculously fun.
In fact …
It’s Impossible To Be Depressed When Using Your Memory!
So if you’d like to experience the cure for memory loss and forgetfulness yourself, I urge you to scroll up and enroll in my free memory improvement course.
You’ll learn the best way to use create and use a Memory Palace. Having one of these easy to make memory tools will let you learn, remember and recall anything.
And it’s the ultimate memory improvement exercise, especially since I teach you exactly how to make sure that you’re memorizing the information that matters in your life.
Then again, you probably already know exactly what would make a huge difference if you could remember it now, don’t you?
Ever hear that crazy phrase, “knowledge is power”?
Sounds kind of cool, right? But have you ever asked yourself …
What The Heck Does That Silly Cliche Mean?
Well, “power,” it turns out, is an interesting concept. Especially when it comes to memory and memory improvement.
To begin, understand this:
People have defined it thousands of different ways throughout history.
Ever since I discovered it in university, I’ve always liked Michel Foucault’s definition. He’s a philosopher who you should check out sometime.
Don’t worry if you think philosophy is boring. Foucault didn’t dally around. He gets right down to defining it in many books. For Foucault, power amounts to “the ability to conduct the conduct of others.”
Now, let’s be honest:
Who In Their Right Mind Wouldn’t Want A Taste Of That?
And let’s be clear:
When it comes to memory improvement and using memory techniques as a way of life, that’s what we going for:
Power. Exactly as Michel Foucault defined.
Why?
Because if you’re using memory techniques to help you learn a language, guess what?
Speaking a language “controls” what others think. Just like my words are controlling what you think now.
Controlling what you’re thinking, feeling, deciding to do next.
And more than that …
Power Is Productive
It produces the next action in line.
When it comes to the power that using memory techniques creates, think of it this way:
If you’re using memory techniques for numbers so that you can quote SKU numbers at work or cite aspects of the law, you’re instantly better at controlling how your colleagues work with you.
Pretty neat, huh?
Well, hold on now, because it gets even better.
Because there are a lot of things about memory you probably don’t know.
And all of them will give you more power.
Which equals more control.
Particularly over the most important person in your life you need better control over.
You.
So with all that in mind, let’s get started:
1. Memory Loss Starts At A Much Younger Age Than Most People Think
Sad, but true.
We have this image that memory loss starts when you’re forty or older. Worse, we project the idea that struggles with memory belong to the elderly or people with Alzheimer’s.
But that couldn’t be further from the truth.
Long before the age of digital amnesia, scientists knew that memory struggles begin already in our mid-20s, if not earlier.
And the more people relegate their memory activities to smartphones and computers, the more younger people start experiencing memory problems.
We’re exposing young people to information they don’t care about.
Want to help the young person in your life learn how to discover exactly what they care about to help guide their studies? Make sure you listen to the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast for the link to the listener only audiobook, The Ultimate Memory Improvement Secret.
I promise. That book will help.
And then giddy up on improving your memory. No matter how young and spry you think you are now, memory loss is always around the corner.
2. You Change Your Memories Every Time You Remember Them
I love that scene from Lost Highway.
For two reasons:
A) It exposes a fundamental truth about human behavior.
B) The whole movie is about how memories change merely by recalling them.
And it’s true.
Every time you remember something, you’re engaging in an exchange of chemicals.
You know this, right? Your mind is produced by your brain: soft, squishy material made up of all kinds of nutrients and acids.
The kind of stuff that aliens probably love to eat.
And in that pool of chemical substances, sit your memories. Your memories are part of that stuff, not different from it.
Every time you access one of them, it’s like putting bread into a toaster.
Chemical change.
And, as you know, bread that has been toasted ain’t never going back to being bread again. It’s different now, and different it shall remain.
3. Your Memory Is More Like A Neighborhood Than A Computer
Not only are your memories made of physical material, they are also dispersed like multiple spheres in a pinball machine.
Think of it the way Gary Small suggested when I interviewed him on the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast.
He explains that the computer metaphor for the human brain and memory is false.
Instead, your brain is like a series of neighborhoods, bigger and more complex than the biggest cities of the world.
And every time new information enters your “memory city,” it doesn’t book a room in a hotel someplace and wait patiently to be called for a business meeting when you need it.
Instead, the information is broken up and sent into many different homes in many different neighborhoods.
The Businessmen Your Memory Slices And Dices Everyday
Think of it like this:
Say that you learn a German phrase like, “Ich möchte mir etwas kaufen, aber ich weiß nicht was.” (I want to buy myself something, but I don’t know what.)
If that phrase was a businessman, your memory wouldn’t store him altogether in the same place.
Instead, it would take his hat and put it in one home in one neighborhood of your memory.
Then, in an entirely different neighborhood, your memory would deposit his briefcase. And that neighborhood might be just around the bend, or it might be hundreds of thousands of miles away.
And the division keeps going, taking each arm of the businessman to a unique location. It might even be the case that each individual toe goes to its own home in a variety of different neighborhoods.
Sounds Complex, Doesn’t It?
Well, that’s the miracle and challenge of memory. Next time you struggle to recall something because you’re missing a part (like a last name when you have the first name), understand that this is why:
Your memory stored the first and last name, just not necessarily in the same neighborhood of your “memory city.”
When you use a Memory Palace, and particularly the Magnetic Memory Method, you’re rigging the game in your favor.
You are literally requesting that your mind store the information in a more compact way. You are creating connections that put you in control of information storage in ways that no computer can beat.
4. You Cash In On Your Memories Overnight
I know, I know, you’re tired of hearing about how important SLEEP DEFICIT page is for your memory.
I’m sorry. Get used to it. Nothing could be more important for your memory.
I’ve experienced a lot of sleep deficit over the past few years due to traveling the world in search of new Memory Palaces. I can tell you one thing:
Nothing hurts your memory more than exhaustion.
Why?
Because even with the most powerful memory techniques in the world, memory “consolidates” during sleep.
It seems to be related to the same way that we experience muscle growth during sleep. Work out all you want in the gym, but if you’re not putting in the snooze time, you’ll never see anything like the results you want.
Does Memory Consolidation Work If You’re Old?
Recent research shows that sleep consolidation might not be nearly as important for memory as an adult as it is for a younger person.
But in my own experiences as someone now in his forties, I can tell you that I still feel a huge difference. I’ve also done experiments with changing when I memorize Chinese vocabulary, and I do seem to have much stronger recall when I use the Magnetic Memory Method at night, rather than the morning.
Here’s the real kicker, though:
Practicing your memory first thing and before you go to bed.
WINNING!
5. Technology Can Augment Human Memory, But Also Harm It
Some of my friends think I’m a Luddite.
After all, I didn’t update my iPhone 4s until 2017. And even then I never used it as a phone anyway. It’s a computer for reading and writing.
All things told, all my devices are good for memory in certain contexts and I appreciate having them.
But we’re killing our memory abilities in so many ways. I talk about this a lot on my post about digital amnesia, so I’ll step off my soapbox for now.
Just please understand that we need balance in our life and that’s why vinyl records are so popular, not to mention physical journals (I recommend The Freedom Journal).
6. Repetition Can Be Fun
Most people don’t know this, but rote learning does have a fun button written into its code.
No, that’s a lie. Rote learning is always a crime against humanity.
If you have to repeat anything a zillion times or you’re bombing through flash cards without at least the assistance of some mnemonics, you’re doing it wrong.
No exposure to information should be without excitement. And every memory activity you engage in should CREATE energy, not CONSUME it.
Think of that the next time you repeat something mindlessly with the hope and the wish and the prayer that it will stick in your memory.
Remember: power is productive.
If rote learning and spaced-repetition software give you your jollies, rock on.
But if you’re sick of hammering your brain with same information and having it drain you of enthusiasm, get out into the real world and use a Memory Palace and the rest of the Magnetic Memory Method instead.
7. Human Memory (Probably) Has No Limits
People often think that their memory is like a sponge. If they bring in new information, they ask, won’t it squeeze the old stuff out?
The answer is no.
Memory is nothing like a sponge and there is no metaphor of “storage” or “absorption” that fits the bill.
It’s also important to understand that when we use the word “memory” we are mushing together all kinds of different memory?
There’s no way we can use them all up. And if you have a good Memory Palace technique by your side, here’s the thing:
You can ALWAYS find a building you’ve never been in before.
Get out your Memory Journal, make a quick sketch. Chart out your Magnetic Stations. And then use them to memorize some information.
Bang Presto.
It’s easy, fun and you don’t have to be a world traveler to do it. I’ll bet there are at least ten cafes and restaurants you haven’t been to in your city or town that would make glorious Memory Palaces.
You don’t even have to spend money in them to create your Memory Palaces. You could just go during off hours and tell them what you’re doing. Most will be okay with that.
If Not, Just Move On …
And if you don’t like restaurants or cafes, go to movie theaters. Go to libraries. Museums. Churches. Even well-structured parks can serve if you’re into outdoor Memory Palaces.
The point is to not trick yourself into thinking that you’re running out of Memory Palaces.
That can’t and won’t happen.
That’s called “Memory Palace Scarcity, ” and sadly it stops many people cold in their tracks.
Don’t let it happen to you.
8. You Probably Remember Less From Ebooks Than Physical Books
Why is this? Well, you can check out the research for yourself, but I have a pet theory.
And the theory is more than the obvious points that information is “located” inside of books in a way that it cannot be inside a computer.
In other words, it is probably useful to your memory that you know on a conscious or subconscious level that a piece of information was 1/4 or 3/4 of the way into a book. The location of the information within the physical space of the book is a kind of memory hook.
You don’t get that feeling in an Ebook, even though devices like Kindle will show you a percentage to give you a sense of progress.
I also don’t think it’s just about the physical differences between holding a book and holding a digital reader. Those elements are important too, but far more critical it seems to me is this:
Your Brain Is Chemical
Your brain is chemical. Books are chemical. And computers are chemical too …
And yet somehow … I don’t know how to explain it. And I’m happy to be dead wrong, but I just think we are at a strange remove from “digital ink” that doesn’t exist when you’ve got a book in your hand.
It may have to do with presence. The best way I can think of to explain it is to relate books to vinyl records. Check out this cool video from Vinyl Eyezz to expand your thinking on the matter. Then go buy something physical.
9. Memories Can Be Manufactured
Just as each memory transforms ever time you recall it, you can be compelled to create memories that never happened.
There are a lot of angles to this problem, some of which fall under the title of false memory syndrome.
But I think it’s more complex than that – and quite possibly sinister. For example, look at this seemingly innocent manufacturing of memory regarding a hot air balloon experience:
Then imagine that the cops have accused you of committing a murder.
Scary stuff, right?
Well, now that you know about this problem, you can fend off any threats that might emerge around it in your life.
And the best thing for it is to train your memory so that you’re starting off strong in the first place if trouble ever arises.
10. The First Memory Palace Probably Comes From The Buddha, Not Ancient Greece
I love the story of Simonides of Ceos. It not only demonstrates just how easy it is to remember stories, but the story itself contains all the traits of what makes a story memorable.
But here’s the thing:
The idea of “location-based mnemonics,” (the sexier, but more accurate term for the Memory Palace technique) predates Simonides by a long time.
For example, many yogic and Buddhist rituals involved using parts of temples to recall passages of rituals. You might imagine a bridge in one corner of the temple, for example, and a black dog in another.
Then, during your meditation, you would mentally “visit” these Magnetic stations in the temple Memory Palace and decode them as part of completing the meditation.
Sure, they didn’t call it a Memory Palace and probably didn’t think of it as a memory technique.
But that’s what’s going on beyond a doubt. And the best part is that when you understand this relationship between space and memory, the role of churches of all stripes throughout history becomes much clearer.
Stations of the Cross, anyone?
11. Stories Filled With Emotion Are The Easiest Information To Remember
Yesterday I ate a sandwich. It was good.
… not very memorable, is it?
Of course not.
But what if I told you that yesterday at 11:49 p.m., I was so ravenously hungry that a furious rage overtook me.
I hopped into a tank I stole from the local military and drove it through the wall of the nearest McDonald’s.
Then, with a wave of my magic wand, I made my mouth so big that I could fit all the food in the restaurant into my mouth.
I’m talking EVERYTHING. I vacuumed it in like I was the Hoover Vacuum King of Fast Food.
Then I burped a strawberry vanilla-scented wind that put the police in a relaxed state so that they turned around and went to the nearest Buddhist temple to meditate about bridges and dogs.
Stupid story, I know, but it’s a heck of a lot more memorable.
Why? Because it’s got emotions in it:
The NEED of hunger.
The ANGER of irrational aggression.
The EXCITEMENT of magic.
The WEIRDNESS of dream logic.
And all those elements mixed together make bland information much more memorable.
Go ahead and try it.
Pump a reminder into your phone for later today: What was Anthony’s story at the end of the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast?
Take a moment to jot it down.
Then come back and compare notes.
I’ll bet your 85-99% accurate in your recall.
Here’s What’s Even Better:
You can apply that same, emotion-based zaniness to even the most deadly boring information in the world.
And so long as you know how to create a Memory Palace and use Magnetic Imagery to encode and decode the information through the Recall Rehearsal process …
Power! Sheer power!
And power in the positive senses we’ve been talking about.
So listen …
There’s no need to struggle with bad memory anymore. In fact, no one has a bad memory. People who suffer from forgetfulness just don’t know enough about the miracle of memory.
But now you do and the future is wide open and bright for more discovery about your memory and your mind.
Get out there and have fun and until next time … Keep yourself Magnetic!
Guest post and podcast narration by Lukas Van Vyve.
Have you ever wished you had the ability to memorize information in real time?
Believe it or not, you can. Interpreters do it all the time. They listen, understand, memorize, translate and speak – all at the same time.
Impressive, right?
Conference interpreting is certainly not for the faint-hearted.
In fact, research shows that conference interpreting is one of the most stressful jobs in the world. One study put the stress levels experienced during interpreting on about the same level as those of an air traffic controller! Go figure.
How To Succeed In Conference Interpreting Without All The Stress
However, people who wind up with great conference interpreting jobs were not born with these skills: they developed their abilities by learning and practicing specific techniques. If you’d like to do the same, pay attention because I’m about to show you exactly how it works.
1. How One Simple Test Will Strengthen Your Memory And Boost Your Fluency
Here’s the single most important thing you can learn from conference interpreters:
They focus a lot on flexibility.
You see, no matter how good your memory is or how many words you know, sometimes you’re going to forget something or wind up stuck looking for words. It even happens in your mother tongue!
Interpreters know that if you want to boost your fluency, you need the flexibility to retrieve at least something to say from your memory in every situation.
The good news: this ability to remember is something that can be trained! Even better, if you’re already a conference interpreter, you can continue learning and potential boost your conference interpreting salary!
How To Hear The Future As A Conference Interpreter Before It Happens
One way interpreters go about this is by making it a habit to guess what a speaker is going to say next. That buys them time to think of a good translation. Now you know why your interpreter friends are always finishing your sentences!
As annoying as that habit might be, exercises in which you anticipate words might be the key to increasing your flexibility.
The most important exercise used by interpreters to train this skill is the cloze test. This exercise is fantastic, and I use it all the time.
How To Close In On The Cloze Test For Maximum Memory Results
So how does the cloze test work? You get a sentence with certain words blanked out. It’s your job to fill in the blanks with an appropriate word (or word group). That word can be anything, as long as the sentence makes sense and is grammatically correct. An example:
David wants to ____ a table for 5 tonight.
Answers:
David wants to book a table for 5 tonight.
David wants to reserve a table for 5 tonight.
David wants to make a reservation for a table for 5 tonight.
David wants to make a call to the restaurant for a table for 5 tonight.
David wants to ask if you’ve booked a table for 5 tonight.
… and so on …
You get the point.
Try to come up with as many appropriate answers as possible. The more you can find, the more flexible you are in speaking a language!
The Truth About What Really Improves Your Fluency
Here’s another reason I really like this exercise:
It builds flexibility by teaching you how to take advantage of context. In this regard, it relies a lot on your association powers. The better certain language patterns and structures are ingrained in your brain, the easier words to fill in will come to mind. That translates to improved fluency.
However, there’s more. What really makes the cloze test stand out for me is that it shows how context can be a mnemonic for learning words or expressions!
Context: The Ultimate Conference Interpreting Equipment That Sits In Your Awareness (Priceless!)
To give you a basic example: whenever someone says “Thank you” to me, I’ll immediately, without even thinking about it, respond “You’re welcome!” Just hearing these words triggers my memory and gives me the appropriate response.
The association between those two phrases became so strong that they act as a mnemonic for each other.
If you’d like to take advantage of the cloze test to memorize vocabulary and use context as a mnemonic, I found that the easiest way to do that is by making flashcards (physically, or use an app like Anki (link)). Here are the steps:
1. Make a flashcard with sentences in the language you’re learning. 2. Blank out the words you want to memorize and add them at the back of the flashcard. 3. Review your flashcards and try to guess which word would fit in the sentence. Try to experience the situation described in the sentence as vividly as possible! Read it out loud, visualize it, feel it. 4. Every time you review the flashcard, the connection between the context and the word you’re learning will become stronger!
My experience is that learning vocabulary this way works wonders. Incorporate this in your language learning routine, and you’ll start seeing the benefits in no time.
2. Flexibility 2.0: How These 4 Improvisation Techniques Help Conference Interpreters Remember Translations
Ever started a sentence in a language you’re learning and gotten completely stuck because you couldn’t think of a certain word? You go blank, start stuttering. Maybe you even decide it’d be better to just shut up until you become more fluent.
Interpreters feel your pain. They’ll often hear words in a speech that they understand, but for which they don’t have a translation readily available. Shutting up because of a cognitive overload is no option, though: your audience is counting on you for an accurate translation!
Experienced interpreters have learned how to work around this and always remember a suitable translation. How? You guessed it: by working on their flexibility.
In this case, to increase flexibility, interpreters rely on improvisation. Let’s go through some of the tricks they use, that might come in handy for you as well!
• First of all, if you don’t know a word, just try to find a description with words you do know. For example, a ‘civil servant’ could be described as ‘someone who works for a state’s administration’.
• Second, you could also just use something opposite. Instead of a ‘civil servant’, you could say ‘someone who doesn’t work in the private sector’. Most of the time people will understand what you mean soon enough.
• Third, use a more general or more specific word. For example, if you can’t think of the word ‘car’ you could say ‘means of transport’ or ‘vehicle’. Or you could go more specific and say the brand of the car (‘Ferrari’).
• If nothing else works, assess how important the word really is to your story. If you want to say: ‘Yesterday, I went to the cinema by car. It was a great movie’, is ‘by car’ really important? If not, leave it out so you can continue the conversation.
There you go: 4 techniques to make sure you always remember an appropriate translation. Use them to never get stuck while speaking a foreign language!
Interpreter Memory Booster Bonus:
These techniques are extremely useful while learning vocabulary as well. Whenever you see a word, apply the techniques mentioned above. You’ll instantly make associations with synonyms, opposite words and examples which will make the words stick so much faster!
3. How Interpreters Use Their Memory to Understand Words They’ve Never Even Heard Of Before
The previous point showed you how you could use improvisation if you understand the meaning a word but can’t remember the translation. Sometimes, though, you won’t even understand the word and have absolutely no clue about what it could mean.
So how do you react when you don’t understand a word during a conversation in a foreign language? Do you panic? Do you start looking so hard for the right translation that the rest of the conversation becomes background noise?
This isn’t an option when you’re interpreting. Your audience expects you to understand everything, and make them understand as well!
So what do you do? A good interpreter will stay calm, keep listening and try to make sense of the word. How? By using two things: context, and their memory.
But wait, that doesn’t make sense, right? How can your memory help you understand a word you’ve never even heard before?
It’s possible, if you’ve already built a strong memory connection in your mother tongue between the meaning of this word and some other words in the sentence.
Tap The Mind Of A Panic-Free Conference Interpreter
Let me explain by telling a story.
I once had to interpret a German speech that dealt with the salt concentration in the Adriatic Sea. The speaker kept talking about the cycle of ‘kondensieren’ and ‘verdunsten’. Now, kondensieren (condensate) is self-explanatory, but I’d never heard from ‘verdunsten’ before. The pressure was high: after a few minutes I had to interpret the speech and I had never heard from one of the keywords of the speech!
However, I stayed calm and relied on the memory connections I’d already made with the word ‘condensation’. In high school, I’d learned (in my mother tongue) about the cycle of condensation and … evaporation, of course! That was indeed the meaning of the word verdunsten. I was saved!
What’s the moral of the story here? Your brain is smart and capable of making connections, if you don’t panic, keep listening and try to understand the context.
Rely on the memory connections you’ve already made in your mother tongue. Don’t get frustrated if you don’t understand every single word in a speech or conversation. Just dive in and try to understand the bigger picture. More often than not, the meaning of that one word you don’t understand will become clear automatically!
4. Why Conference Interpreters Memorize Everything They Read or Hear, And How That Makes Them More Fluent
First of all, a word of warning: students of interpretation are usually rather skeptical about this in the beginning. I was, and you might be too.
Please hear me out! It’s more logical than you think!
Ask any professor of interpretation what makes a good interpreter, and most of them will give you the same answer. I know what you’re thinking, but it’s not amazing memory skills!
It’s not even perfect fluency in a foreign language.
The Most Important Thing About Conference Interpreting In The World
There’s something more important: a broad general knowledge.
A good interpreter needs to be an excellent public speaker, in his mother tongue. Granted, he or she needs to understand a foreign language, but most of all he has to be able to explain things in his mother tongue in a coherent way, without making mistakes. For that, you need to have general knowledge and know a lot of words.
There are hundreds of thousands of words in the English language, and you can’t know them all. You don’t need to, either. Yet, working on your mother tongue and on your general knowledge will bring you so many benefits, not in the least when learning foreign languages.
We’re coming back to context here: the more knowledge of the world you have, the more you’ll understand in other languages as well. If you know a thing or two about a topic, you’ll only need to understand a couple of words from a conversation in a foreign language to know what it’s about.
I’ll give you an example: I’m in Italy right now and the country has just held a referendum on a constitutional change. It’s quite a big thing: everyone seems to be talking about it. I’m not a lawyer, but I read some articles on the referendum (in my mother tongue; my Italian isn’t that good yet) and memorized the basic facts.
Now, every time I hear an Italian say the word ‘referendum,’ I know what he’s talking about. There will be many words I don’t understand, but everything will make much more sense because I can rely on the information I’ve memorized before.
Interpreters are masters at this. They need to be versatile and ‘know a little about a lot’ because you’ll never know what the people you’re interpreting for will talk about. That’s why interpreters always keep learning to improve comprehension in any language. You should do so, too.
Oh, and if you feel like your general knowledge is lacking and you can’t remember basic facts, I’m sure Anthony has a cure for that
5. How Conference Interpreters Mimic Others to Improve Their Memory And Get An Amazing Accent
Interpretation puts enormous stress on the brain’s working capacity. After all, you’re listening to what a speaker has to say in a foreign language, trying to understand, translating and speaking in your mother tongue – all at the same time. Most new interpreting students – and most people in general – are not trained to do so many things simultaneously. The obvious result is a cognitive overload, and, quite often, miserable failure.
So how do you cope with that? Interpreters use a technique to learn how to listen and speak at the same time. If you’re into geeky language learning techniques, you might have heard of it already. It’s called shadowing.
What’s this all about? You listen to someone speaking and you immediately – with a couple of seconds of delay, that is – repeat what’s been said in the same language.
Doesn’t seem too difficult, does it? Well, give it a try: it’ll surprise you how even such an easy task can confuse you. Once you get the hang of it, though, you can start reaping the benefits.
How To Use Shadowing To Become A Better Conference Interpreter
First of all, you’re improving your memory and focus. Shadowing will train you to listen and speak at the same time, and it will improve your short-term memory. That’s some excellent brain training you’re doing there.
Second, you can also use shadowing to familiarize yourself with a foreign language. In fact, this is the first exercise I use myself when I start learning a language. It gives me a huge advantage when it comes to pronunciation and listening skills.
If you want to try this exercise yourself, here are the steps:
1. Find a speech, podcast or other media in the language you’re learning. Take a slow one if you’re not that proficient yet! You could also slow down the video a bit with an app like Audacity.
2. Use headphones, but only in one ear: you want to hear yourself talk!
3. Play the audio and repeat immediately what’s being said. If you want to focus on pronunciation, stay as close to the speaker as possible. If you want to train your memory, you increase the delay to a couple of seconds.
4. That’s it! You’re listening and speaking at the same time. Now marvel at your brain’s capacities and see your memory and pronunciation improve.
Start with slow conversations or speeches (find language learning podcasts for example, or Youtube videos), and slowly work up your way toward materials at normal speed.
Then amaze native speakers with your flawless accent and listening comprehension.
One last piece of advice: do the exercise with audio only, so without reading a transcript at the same time. Using a transcript might be temping, but you really want to focus on memory and sounds only.
6. How Interpreters Use Memory Palaces And Mnemonics to Memorize Speeches on The Spot
Nowadays, conferences mainly use simultaneous interpretation (with the interpreters sitting in a booth and instantly translating), and even consecutive interpretation (with the interpreter standing next to the speaker, translating after the speaker has finished) is usually only done in 5-10 minute chunks.
Back in the early days of the profession, though, the world’s best interpreters were interpreting speeches of 30-60 minutes long in one go.
Yes! Conference interpreters memorised speeches of more than 30 minutes, in one listening. Now those are some impressive memory skills!
Of course, these geniuses were no stranger to nifty memory techniques, including our beloved Memory Palace.
One of the founding fathers of conference interpreting, Kaminker, reportedly said the following about his memorization strategies:
Kaminker assigned each speech to a district of Antwerp that he could recall, in his mind’s eye, in all its topographical detail. He assigned each idea of the speech to a shop and thus by walking down the streets of his childhood he was able to recreate the speech. Check out the book ‘Naissance d’une profession’ for more info.
Using Memory Palaces to learn a speech by heart is nothing new, of course. Even the famous Roman orator Cicero did it. Anthony and many others have talked about it as well.
Still, for, me, how interpreters do it is an inspiring showcase of the power of the Memory Palace. Mind you, these interpreters heard a speech only once, and that was enough to place it firmly in a Memory Palace and reproduce the full speech in another language immediately.
What About The Crazy Names Of People And Conference Interpreting?
The same goes for remembering names, numbers and dates. If you struggle with those, imagine how much worse it would be in a foreign language, when instead of a John Johnson, a German name like Gerhard Düsediekerbäumer might show up. Or you interpret for a speaker that mentions a date in every other sentence.
Impossible? Of course not. Interpreters usually try to jot names, numbers and dates down during a speech, but you don’t always have the time. Moreover, many interpreter students seem to have difficulties with writing down figures, dates or percentages. And it’s not only forgetting: I even noticed that, even though I remembered the figures, I often remembered (and even wrote down) wrong ones!
One of the ways interpreters deal with this is just leaving out unimportant numbers. But hey, that’s not really professional, is it? A much better way to deal with this is using some basic memory techniques. After I started using mnemonics and the Major Method, I noticed a dramatic improvement in how well I remembered dates and figures.
I’ve connected each number to an image, and whenever I hear a number or date I just instantly connect the images. That way, when I’m interpreting after the speech, I will have the images in mind and will always remember the correct numbers!
The same goes for names: by using imagery (read and listen to Anthony’s teaching on remembering names at events here). it became much easier to remember difficult names.
7. How Interpreters Achieve Laser-Like Focus & Instant Memorization by Listening The Right Way
I’ve saved this one for last, as it’s a bit more abstract than the other tips. Let me explain.
In the previous points, I’ve shown you how interpreters take advantage of improvisation, context, shadowing techniques, Memory Palaces and mnemnoicsThese skills will improve your concentration, but to achieve laser-like focus, you need more.
I, for one, often have difficulties paying full attention when someone speaks for longer than 5 minutes. I’m sure I’m not alone. When I’m interpreting, though, something changes. I think athletes would call it being ‘in the zone’. The beautiful thing? It’s actually possible to achieve this state, just by changing the way you listen.
The Core Secrets Of Analytic Listening For Raw Conference Interpreting Power
First of all, you’ll need to learn to listen for ideas and for structure. In every sentence or paragraph, grasp the main idea (sometimes just one word) and you’ll be fine. Then go after the structure.
One of the first things you learn as an interpreter is to pay extreme attention to conjunctions (like AND, BUT, ALTHOUGH, HOWEVER,…). These mark events and twists in a text and are important for structure and for following the story.
Interpreters call this ‘analytic listening’. Write these structure words down along with one keyword per idea, and you’ll be amazed how much you remember after listening.
The Secrets Of Using Strong Imagery To Make Even The Dullest Information Impossible To Forget
Second, you must make an extreme effort to imagine the speech you hear as vividly as possible. For me that includes mainly visualisation, others swear by auditory experiences or feelings. The more senses you use the better.
Anthony and other memory experts have been saying it for years:
To make ideas more memorable, exaggerate them to make them so absurd that you just can’t un-see them anymore.
Now, for interpreting, I find this a bit dangerous. After all, no matter the improvisation tricks you used to translate everything, you still need to convey the right message as the original speaker. When you start exaggerating or changing things in your mind, chances are you’re going to screw up and say things that are just wrong.
There’s another way, though. When I’m going to interpret a speech, I try to wonder all the time what’s going to happen, and I try to be genuinely surprised by the important facts. Yes, also if they’re super boring. Belgium’s GDP has increased by 0.2% last year?
Incredible! There was a local chess tournament yesterday, with 6 participants? What, chess, and 6 participants? I can’t believe it!
This works because you’re artificially adding emotion to what you’re hearing.
Good stories often use suspense and surprise to suck you in, right? And because you were so curious about what was going to happen next, you’re super focused and your brain absorbs everything you hear.
That’s why almost everyone can recount a fairytale like little red riding hood after hearing it only once.
This emotional connection is what you’re trying to emulate here. Getting in this state of curiosity makes your mind much more receptive and completely sucks you into a speech. When you’re in this state, you’ll get laser-like focus and memory so even the most boring facts will stick.
So there you have it. 7 techniques that will give you conference interpreter superpowers and are all very applicable in everyday situations. Just try to incorporate some of the tips while learning languages, memorizing a speech or whenever you hear something you want to remember. You’ll never want to go back to a forgetful life again. Good luck, and let me know in the comments if these techniques were helpful to you!
Oh, and no matter where you’re at with your language learning journey, grab my Back to Basics guide now and learn how to set up or improve your language learning routine. You’ll also discover how to track your progress based on a clear overview of your goal language learning goals.
How are memory techniques already used in schools?
How about the song we teach children to help them remember the alphabet? Its melody is a memory technique, loud and clear.
Every Good Boy Deserves Fudge for music is a memory technique.
We have simple mnemonics for astronomy, art, math, biology, geography and chemistry.
Heck, just search Wikipedia for “list of mnemonics” and you’ll find more than you can shake a stick at.
But Are Simple Mnemonics Enough?
That’s the real question at hand.
Because the problem is that a lot of the images and word play you’ll find on that Wikipedia page are useless.
Worse than useless, they create a ton of overwhelm.
Why?
Because they don’t come with any understanding. They’re not loaded with strategy …
They Have No Method …
And that’s why the Magnetic Memory Method is such a roaring success.
No, not for everyone. Not everyone wants to learn how to think about memory. Many people want formulas, gimmicks and “systems.”
I’m sorry, but that’s not reality.
And it’s not what we do in the Magnetic Memory Method Family.
Far from it. Instead of pretending that there’s some kind of fix all system that will magically improve your memory for all things forever and ever amen …
We Break Memory Techniques Down To The Basics
And once that’s done, we understand the how, the why and the what.
So that it doesn’t hurt so much to learn. Here’s why you feel pain with learning, by the way (thanks to Miklós in the SuperLearner community for bringing it to our attention):
It’s even easier to stop the pain than the video suggests.
How so?
By making sure that you understand how to really get results from the techniques by aligning them with your real reasons for learning, remembering and recalling information.
It’s often not what it seems.
Because here’s the deal …
At the Magnetic Memory Method Headquarters, I strive to achieve just one thing:
Mastery.
Mastery over your memory.
Mastery over your concentration.
Mastery over the rate at which you learn.
Mastery over the pain of forgetfulness.
So That You Never Have To Feel That Pain Again!
But it’s not going to happen without study.
It’s not going to happen without effort.
It’s not going to happen without creating and using Memory Palaces.
Above all, it’s not going to happen without consistency of effort.
And that’s what’s so cool about the Magnetic Memory Method.
If you’ve been following the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast, you’ve heard the stories of success. Just one for today:
These success stories with learning and memory techniques all boil down to one thing:
Learning the techniques.
Using the techniques.
Analyzing your results and then improving your abilities using them.
The best part?
I’ve had the chance to teach the Magnetic Memory Method to some of the finest students on the planet.
And guess what?
Success Leaves Clues
All of the most successful students share one thing in common.
They don’t wait around waiting for success to happen!
They invest in themselves.
They study the material they’ve invested in.
They take action.
They experiment, explore and when they’re done, they experiment and explore some more!
Having The Humility To Learn Is A Skill
What I’ve learned from all of the Magnetic Memory Method success stories is that everything begins with a decision.
It’s a decision to set aside time to learn.
To really learn.
I’ve done it myself. After years of success with my own memory and as a memory trainer, I went to learn from one of the best on the planet.
Not just to collect data and “spy” on the competition.
To Truly Learn
As a result, I’m better for it. In fact, I still buy books and courses from people. Some are from authors who help only a fraction of the audience the Magnetic Memory Method has gathered. Some are from towering figures who practically rule the memory world.
I’m talking about taking some courses that cost 4x the amount of the Magnetic Memory Method Masterclass and Mastermind combined.
Yes! Memory improvement courses that expensive really do exist!
The Best Always Invest In Themselves
Here’s the thing:
Even when you get to the top – which is incredibly rare – you still have to keep learning. And let’s not beat around the bush:
The ones who sail past the obstacles in life are the ones who are in motion to begin with.
Wouldn’t you like to be in motion?
Of course you would. You just need to get started with learning and memory techniques.
And the best part about them is that learning can be fun.
Seriously.
Learning how to learn doesn’t have to be the horrid and depressing playground of the school system where everyone winds up asking, “Why don’t they teach the most important skills in the world in school?”
Again, that isn’t the real question.
Let’s Ask The Really Important Questions About Learning And Memory
The really important questions have to do with the quality of the memory techniques you study and the quality of the action YOU take.
And let’s face it:
The quality of your action comes down to the quality of the philosophy behind the education.
And my philosophy of learning and memory is that you need someone to teach you how to fish, not someone to do the fishing for you.
Given all the amazing information I found myself learning on my own without interference of schools, boring teachers and their rules …
Why On Earth Go Back To School?
It’s a simple story, really.
I went back to graduate with my friends … even though I wasn’t graduating.
Actually, as cool as all my friends in high school were …
There was a girl named Kelly. I had a huge crush on her!
I don’t remember all the circumstances, but somehow I wound up taking her to a prom to celebrate a graduation I wasn’t completing!
Everyone but Kelly thought it was awkward and weird.
I mean … just imagine:
One of the most popular girls in school was going to attend high school graduation with a dropout.
It Was A Year Of Living Dangerously!
In reality, I was the obvious choice. After all, I’d gone through an entire encyclopedia during my time off and listened to educational radio programming every morning.
Whereas most others had sat in desks and tapped their pencils against textbooks they found exhausting, I’d left disgusted by what I saw as an epic waste of time.
But as smart as that move may have been, I was still a Heavy Metal Moron with barely two nuts rolling around in my head. No one in their right mind drops out of high school.
Even so, I’m glad I did. And because I did, I could make my return as a Heavy Metal Renaissance Man armored in everything but the Magnetic Memory Method.
But I’m getting ahead of myself.
Oh, my … Kelly … I remember her so well.
Kelly wore a tight blue dress.
The Kind Of Dress That Should Be Illegal …
Then again, it’s the illegal character of her dress that made it so memorable!
For my part, I dressed like James Bond.
My white Tuxedo jacket made me stick out like a sore thumb, but it was fun.
Different.
Totally my style.
Together, Kelly and I looked like we were trying to be undercover spies in a high school espionage movie.
Only Sheep Need A Leader
But at some point during the evening, Kelly squirmed away from my protective grip and I found myself hanging out with Sophie.
Background: Sophie and I became fast friends in Grade 10 and worked on a Western Civilization project together. It was called Only Sheep Need A Leader and involved an alternative history of Ancient Egypt.
I won’t get into it the entire assignment, but just imagine Moses battling aliens after discovering that the pyramids were actually interstellar space ships.
Somehow we got an A on that project, even if we completely rejected factual history in our reports.
Whatever. We had weird teachers …
The thing is this:
I wound up spending a lot of time with Sophie and often went with her on trips to her mom’s place near Vancouver.
Her mom was a professor and made a HUGE impression on me.
After all, she was an author of a book you actually came across in bookstores in Canada and always seemed to be writing or traveling somewhere to give a speech.
But that kind of future as an author and professor was beyond my imagination …
Especially As A High School Dropout!
That’s why it must have been an act of fate when Sophie’s mom found out on graduation night that I was attending only to celebrate, not walk away with a Dogwood like everyone else (Dogwood = fancy talk for “high school diploma” out in B.C.).
I wasn’t using memory techniques back then, so can’t rattle the exact discussion off the top of my head.
But it started with dismay …
Then shifted to refusal …
And ended with persuasion.
Persuasion so strong I did exactly what Sophie’s mom told me!
You must finish your high school degree, Sophie’s mom told me. You’re exactly the kind of guy who should become a professor.
Even though I wound up experiencing a long series of mysterious twists and turns …
And even though I don’t teach at a traditional university outside of the Magnetic Memory Method Online University these days …
Memory Techniques Helped Me Get Every Degree You Can Get (And They Will Help You Too!)
And don’t think for a second that it wasn’t painful. I had to go back and sit with a group of kids younger than myself for an entire semester to get that Dogwood.
But here’s the thing:
Even though I was embarrassed and felt totally out of place when I went back to high school …
I was never bored. Not anymore.
You see, Sophie’s mom had installed within me a picture of hope and triumph during an uncertain time.
A time during which, no matter how smart a kid I may have been, without a degree I probably would have wound up cleaning toilets or flipping burgers.
Having done both … I know just what a nasty fate that can be.
That’s Not The Fate I Want For You!
Wherever you are, whatever your current state of education, no matter how you feel about your memory …
My feeling is that people need memory training on an ongoing basis. Someone to help them along on a monthly basis
Even though I’m quite good with memory techniques, I still continue studying and practicing on a daily basis.
I don’t have to. I could just continue talking about memory. Lots of people on the Internet talk and talk about memory techniques without actually using them.
You, like me, can instantly see through them.
But here’s the thing:
Even with all the ruffians, lurkers, haters and trolls …
Memory Improvement Never Ends
But back when Sophie’s mom challenged me to return to school … it was a difficult choice to make.
Not just because of the shame involved in going back to high school.
But because school wasn’t that much fun.
Far from it!
And it was a long time yet to go before I would find the memory techniques that made it a blast.
Learned them to the bone.
Fashioned them into something I could own.
Used them every day.
Set up elaborate online teaching systems so I can offer them to the world.
For you:
No need to take such a long journey through educational hell.
School never has to be tough for anyone again.
Never.
Just learn and use memory techniques. You’ll be more than fine.
You’re a bright student well on your way to completing your high school diploma, but also …
You’re a child of chaos. Yes, you love your parents, but …
It’s been a rocky road. You live an all too interesting life.
And most days, school is the last thing on your mind.
Plus … when you do go …
School Is Utterly Boring!
At least, that was almost always the case for me.
I mean … seriously?
What the heck is a high school diploma to a guy who just wants to play bass, write lyrics and hang out with his friends?
And the teachers?
Not exactly friendship material. And yet …
Why You Should Never Forget Any Of Your Teachers
Sure, I had some real characters for teachers.
For example, there was the guy who had a fishing boat on his truck. We always saw him leaning against it and smoking a pipe before wandering off to his classroom during the breaks.
Another teacher was a champion curler. He could make the trash bin stop on a dime right beside the desk of anyone chewing gum.
And then there was the math teacher who always used beer in his examples because it was the only thing he could do to get anyone’s attention.
And you know what? Even though I forget 99.99% of everything they taught me …
They still teach me because I use them as Bridging Figures in my Memory Palaces.
But more importantly, focus on their classrooms. What they looked like. How they moved.
Then keep these details in mind for the next time you need to remember something. If you’ve got the Magnetic Memory Method under your belt, those teachers will serve you very well as mnemonic tools for the rest of your life.
You just have to finesse them a little by doing the simple memory exercise of “excavating” them from your past.
Anyhow …
… As amusing as those teachers were … I still thought grinding out the hours toward this abstract thing called a “high school diploma” was …
A Complete Waste Of Time!
It really felt that way.
Besides, almost every teacher I spent time with obviously had other things they would rather have been doing with their time.
Fishing …
Curling …
Drinking beer …
No Wonder I Became A High School Dropout!
But here’s the thing …
Just because I dropped out of high school doesn’t mean I stopped learning.
Far from it!
When I took my leave from the hallowed halls of high school education …
I did it in a very sneaky way. (Hi Mom, if you’re reading this!)
Every morning, I’d head out to the bus like usual. But instead of standing and waiting for that rusted bucket along with the other kids …
I’d leave for school a little bit earlier.
No one ever saw me.
This was rural Canada, after all.
Frosty mornings …
Turkey farms …
Lots and lots of trees.
The True Story Of My Real High School Diploma
And back then, I carried one of razzmatazz yellow Walkman cassette-radio players.
You know the kind:
Chunky plastic that you bolted down.
Grey plastic nozzles to protect the headphone jacks from getting wet.
(Oh yes, multiple headphone jacks. You just never knew when there was going to be need for a spontenous listening share. We didn’t have Facebook for sharing music videos on YouTube, after all …)
But instead of my fave Metallica and Megadeth or Slayer cassettes those frosty schoolday mornings …
I would listen to CBC Radio.
Peter Gzowski’s Morningside, to be exact. I could get lost in his voice so easily.
Oh! and he always had great guests.
Amazing guests …
People who taught the listeners about themselves …
About the world …
And how to think about it from a myriad of exciting angles.
To hell with school!
I Learned Everything I Needed To Know About My Country And Science And Literature And World Political History During Those 6 Months Just By Walking Up Into The Hills With My Walkman!
To this day, I can’t quite understand why they even bothered having schools!
Seriously?
Why bother back when Gzowksi was so good at asking important authors, musicians and politicians the right questions. And my-oh-my, the stories they would tell!
Anyhow, about 10 minutes along the road, there was a path up into the mountains.
Like some kind of solace-seeking samurai of the mind, I would enter the forest.
And yes, it was dangerous. More than once I nearly got my head kicked off by a startled deer. I can only thank my Magnetic stars that I never encountered a bear.
Not Even That Tank Of A Walkman Could Have Defended Me …
Listening away, I would begin my hike.
Up, up, up.
And once I’d climbed to one of my favorite crests …
I would stand stoic over Silver Creek and watch the road.
I could monitor my mom’s place from that vantage point and even see a Lego-sized version of her scraping ice from the windshield of her car.
Then she’d unplug the engine from the wall, wrap up the orange cable and then motor her way up to the road.
I would half-chuckle, half recoil in horror as I watched her car wind its way towards town. I was getting away with educational-murder, after all, and couldn’t help but question when it was all going to catch up with me.
And here’s the thing:
Dropping Out Of School Always Catches Up With You!
So I would stand there awhile. A good long while.
And listen and listen and listen.
And remember some of the books that were mentioned on Morningside.
And then walk back down the mountain.
Once home, most kids probably would have switched on the TV and Nintendo.
I did neither.
None Of That Brain-Rotting Material Would Do!
Instead, I opened up the encyclopedia.
The same encyclopedia my mother had purchased for me piece by piece when I was a kid. (I’m so grateful for them – they’ve help me know how to live an interesting life!)
I remember her clipping coupons and all the excitement around getting a new edition month after month. I was too young to appreciate it at the time, but I understand now that she was investing in my future.
And if I hadn’t dropped out of high school …
The Opportunity To Soak Up All That Knowledge Would Have Been Lost!
Back then, I hadn’t heard of memory techniques.
But in my own way (just as you should develop your own way), I was still using them.
Like a sponge …
Connecting data …
Linking pieces of an ever-expanding puzzle …
Referring backward and forwards.
Long before “hypertext,” I was making the volumes and pages of the encyclopedia connect.
No Tap. No Click. No Swipe.
For example, when an encyclopedia entry on an author like James Joyce would say “See Modernism,” I would obey.
I would have to down Collier’s Encyclopedia Book of J and haul out the Collier’s Encylopedia Book of M.
And those books I remembered from Morningside?
A lot of them were available at the public library!
And the odd time I would hitch a ride into town on the bus and go hang out there so I could read them.
I would even hang out in Bookingham Palace (where I would later work) to check out some of the books I heard mentioned.
And what exactly what I was doing in all this?
Exactly what we should all do in life.
Don’t Rely On Schools! Make Your Own Textbooks!
I don’t know exactly how I knew to do this. I was just following my instincts, I guess.
And my technique for reading encyclopedias and books would evolve into something I call Magnetic Bibliomancy. It’s not too different than what my good friend Jonathan Levi calls “Brute Force Learning.”
And it is delightful. You should learn it. Jonathan has a free trial just for Magnetic Memory Method fans and students so grab it now.
Looking back … there’s only one thing I would change.
I’d hop into a time machine and teach myself memory techniques so that my present self could …
Remember More Of Everything!
With mnemonics, that would have been more than possible.
It would be insanely possible.
In fact, if I’d only known what I know now …
I could have set a number (as I do now with learning projects) and simply reached it.
This ability is important, and it’s what the Magnetic Memory Method is all about.
But as a young person, you mostly likely have a distinct advantage:
The time and energy to pursue your interests.
Mine was learning. And I didn’t let school get in my way.
And so if you’re a parent listening to this and you have any opportunity to give your son or daughter a “sabbatical” from school so they can pursue a passion or interest …
Just Do It!
I’ll bet your most precious family member has more self-direction than you imagine …
… if you just let them find their way to it.
Anyhow, that’s all I did during my months as a high school dropout.
Learning. Learning. And more learning.
Audio. Text.
Want to know what dragged me back into those hallowed halls so that I finally finished my high school diploma?
Make sure you’re subscribed and tune in for next week’s episode of the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast and full text version on the only memory improvement website devoted to making school easy, fun and downright Magnetic.
Stop wasting your time on memory improvement apps.
Mind you …
I have discovered one that I think is worth your time and I’ll be talking about it later this year after I gather some more experience with it.
But for now – and even if you take up the app I’m using now in the future – you never need memory improvement apps in order to complete the best memory improvement exercises in the world.
Let’s dive in to my Top 5 faves.
5. The Gary Small Memory Improvement Exercise
It’s been awhile since I interviewed Dr. Gary Small, author ofthe excellent book, 2 Weeks To A Younger Brain.
My favorite exercise from the book involves a simple exercise that will amaze you. You not only feel your memory improving over time, but you get a clarity boost too.
All you have to do is pay attention to people in the world.
Pick one of them.
Notice four details.
Then, later in the day, recall that person and the four details you noticed.
For example, the other day I chose a man I saw on the way to the gym. He wore a red scarf, black jacket, held his key in his hands and had scuffed brown shoes.
Don’t Try To Memorize!
This is important: I didn’t try to memorize these details.
Instead, I just noticed them and asked my brain to pay attention.
Then, on my way home from the gym and once again later in the day, I recalled those four details.
It’s such a simple exercise. Better than all the memory improvement vitamins in the world.
And it feels so good.
I’ve played a lot of memory improvement games and not a single one of them created nearly as much pleasure.
Best part:
You don’t have to stop with just one person. You can do this memory exercise all day long and really stretch yourself.
For example, when I got to the gym, I made it a point to notice four things about the woman at the desk who took my card and gave me my wristband.
I noticed the grooming of her eyebrows and the colors of her sweater, jogging pants and shoes.
And that made me more present.
Something we all need to be practicing. We know that meditation is good for the brain, and this exercise, although not a form of meditation, relates to the practice because of how it keeps you aware of your surroundings. Instead of being lost in thought, you’re actively paying attention to the world and the things you encounter in it.
4. Memorize Information From A Book
But not just any information.
Information that matters. Information that enhances the experience or even helps you make the world a better place.
For example, some of us are sloppy readers. Because character names are repeated so often, we never bother to memorize them. That, or the authors focus our attention on the meaning of names in order to ensure that we instantly remember them.
But what if we made it our goal to actively practice our memory by making some memory improvement exercises from the characters?
For example, you can modify the Gary Small memory improvement game. Even if the author doesn’t provide visual details for you to practice remembering …
You Can Simply Make Them Up!
I do this all the time when reading. For example, the novel I’m reading now has a character named Stone Luckman. For obvious reasons, that name is instantly memorizable, especially since you can see the character getting stones thrown at him.
(Congrats to the novelist Matt Eaton of Blank for building an amazing mnemonic into this character’s name!)
But I add details. Like that he’s bald, has a scar on his cheek, wears a vest and knee-high military boots.
Disrespectful to the author?
Perhaps, but as Stephen King points out in On Writing, he tends to scrimp on physical details in his writing because he knows readers go ahead and paint their own portraits of the characters anyway.
The only question is …
Do Readers Remember Those Details?
Probably most don’t. But you most certainly can.
To let this exercise show you how to improve concentration and memory, give yourself a simple test with the next character you encounter in the novel you’re reading.
You are reading a novel, aren’t you? If not, no worries – the same exercise applies to non-fiction as well.
For example, I just finished reading No Limit: The Rise And Fall Of Bob Stupak And Las Vegas’ Stratosphere by John L. Smith. (Nothing like a book about buildings that can be used as Memory Palaces, right? )
In this case, I looked up pictures of the people mentioned in the book and commanded my mind to remember details about them. Then, I ask my mind later in the day to recall those details.
This is one of those memory improvement exercises that simply can’t be beat.
And You Can Do It Too!
You improve your imagination and knowledge of the world through reading and by adding one simple feature, improve your memory too.
Oh, and discipline helps too. Here’s how to get some:
If you want to take things to the next level, you can also check out How To Memorize A Textbook. Go ahead and download that episode of the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast and the infographic. I know you want to!
3. Create More Than One Memory Palace On A Single Day
If you’ve been following the Magnetic Memory Method for any length of time now, you now the phrase:
“One is the most dangerous number in memory improvement.”
People want just one book.
Just one memory technique.
Just one memory improvement guru.
Just one Memory Palace.
And no fantasies, like the belief that binaural beats can improve your memory.
Sure, some people can get away with that. Memory competition history holds some legendary tales about people who scanned through a single book and went on to win in a short period of time.
But Those Cases Are Rare!
And the truth is that one is never enough, especially when it comes to the power and the glory of the Memory Palace.
If you have only created and used one Memory Palace, that’s like enjoying pizza at just one restaurant.
Sure, you’ve had pizza. But do you really know what pizza’s all about?
Didn’t think so.
The reality is that the full experience of pizza is always yet to come. You can always learn more about what defines a truly great pizza by eating another one.
(Pizza’s a really bad example, by the way, but like the Memory Palace, it has stronger originary ties in Ancient Greece – and even then, that’s still not the beginning of the story. Eat these foods that improve memory instead.)
Creating a Memory Palace the right way is really simple. Make sure you have the Magnetic Memory Method Worksheets and free video series so that you’re good to go.
And then make it one of your favorite memory improvement exercises to simply sit down and create at least one new Memory Palace each week. It’s easy-peasy, lemon-squeezy.
2. Use A Memory Palace Every Day
You knew this one was coming, right?
Well, the truth is that I’ve gotten a lot of people to make Memory Palaces. I’ve got folders on my computer full of pics and scans from people all around the world.
And making them is great memory exercise. It’s great memory activity for kids and one of the most powerful memory exercises for seniors.
But there’s a difference between creating a Memory Palace and using one.
And you can certainly benefit by creating Memory Palaces and not using them. I do this all the time.
But the real magic and the real way to blast far and beyond what the memory improvement apps can do for you is to actually use them.
What Are Memory Palaces Good For?
They’re good for encoding and decoding information you want to memorize. That’s a fancy way of saying that we use a Memory Palace to place information into long term memory so you can remember it any time you want.
Information like:
The Vocabulary Of Any Language
Professional Terminology From Any Field
Poetry, jokes, quotes, long speeches Any string of numbers or equations
The most important information from textbooks
Names and faces
Concepts
Oaths
Computer commands
Streets on a map
Facts from history, geography, science and all disciplines
Important points from lectures
Things said during conversations
… and much, much more, all with near or total accuracy!
I suggest that you pick whichever of these categories interest you the most and get good at just that area. You can learn more on the Magnetic Memory Method Masterclass product page if this training might suit you the best.
Then add another.
Before you know it, you’ll have skills that enable you to use a Memory Palace to learn and remember anything you want!
The point is that we should always use memory improvement exercises that involve Memory Palaces to remember information that improves our lives.
Which leads to …
1. Remember And Recall Information About The Ones You Love
You wanna know why families fall apart?
The following is a bit of speculation on my part, but I honestly think it’s true.
And I’ll bet a recent experience proves it.
Let me set the scene:
I got married recently. It was awesome. April and I went all over the map on our honeymoon.
And yes, I can tell you the name of the judge who married us.
How Memory Improvement Exercises Can Create The True Ties That Bind
I don’t say that to brag, but I see stuff like that as a kind of cement that binds two people together.
And when April and I finally got our butts to Beijing for the family party …
I went out of my way to ask for and memorize the name of every single person I met.
Why?
Because the old cliche is true (and I don’t care if people send hate mail after reading this):
A happy wife = a happy life.
And what could make a person happier than a spouse who cares?
A spouse who can talk about different family members by name?
Heck, a spouse who can actually look someone in the eye while shaking their hand and say, “Hey, Steve, thanks for coming. We appreciate it.”
And then do that again and again and again.
Now in my case, there really was a Steve at my wedding party. And because he’s Chinese, I had to do double-duty in some cases.
In others, I just went with one name.
The Curious Reason Memory Improvement Exercises Are The Most Powerful Investment You’ll Ever Make
But the point is that I was not just practicing my memory.
I was investing in my wife.
And my challenge to you is that you learn to be a good partner to your loved one too.
Even if you’re single, equip yourself with this skill.
I’m not just saying this because Valentine’s Day is just around the corner.
I’m saying it because it’s true:
Love = Happiness
At least … most of the time.
And one of the best ways to express love is to actually care about the names of the people in your family.
And what about your partner’s friends?
Their childhood pets?
And all the other names we all throw around in our day to day lives?
Why let that information pass you by when you can capture it all, pop it into a simple-to-create Memory Palace and remember it forever? Use it to help improve your episodic memory?
I’ll tell you why.
I’ll tell you the major objection.
Stop Leaving Your Success In Life To Chance
It’s because people leave their lives to chance.
They prefer it that way.
Rather than lifting a finger to make life awesome now and prepare for a great future, they open themselves up for that divorce request that comes out of the blue a years down the road.
Except that request ain’t out of the blue.
It was set into the wall of the life you’re building right now.
Because whether you like it or not, you are building your life.
And if you want to know what real love is all about, you’re going to want to make sure that memory improvement exercises are a part of your life.
It Really Is That Simple
So what do you say?
Are you ready to get out there and do some simple memory improvement exercises?
If the answer is yes, then you already have more than you need to get started here on the Magnetic Memory Method blog and podcast.
You’re an attentive person and you care about people.
But no matter what, the names you encounter completely slip your mind.
And it happens in a flash. In one ear and out the other. Zap!
It’s not just the names of people either.
We’re talking about the names of:
Pets
People
Places
Months
Days
Holidays
Historical periods
Wars
Books
Vehicles
Events
Institutions
… and even adjectives derived from proper names.
The List Goes On And On!
The question is …
Why is information like this so darned difficult to remember?
Well, you’re in luck. Although some of the reasons may shock you, today you’re going to learn everything you need to know about exactly why proper names of all kinds of thing challenge your memory.
And as we go along, we’ll solve the problem so that names become much easier for you to remember.
Why The Meaning Of Names Fuels The Fire In Your Brain
At the most basic level, some names are easier to remember simply because they mean something as opposed to meaning nothing.
For example, The Great Wall of China and the Berlin Wall are less challenging to remember than Ostkreuz and Shun Yi for most people because the names themselves come soaked in meaning.
But if you hit a name cold with no base line of familiarity … It slides out of your grip like sand.
Certain names also enter your memory at a younger age than others. Bugs Bunny, Marvin the Martian and Donald Duck all hold special favor in my memory because I’ve been encountering them for years.
But in the John Grisham novel I’m reading right now, I needed to deliberately go out of my way to remember the names of the characters. Names like Troy and Nate are so bland, there’s little for the mind to grab onto. Mnemonics to the rescue.
How Authors Trick Your Brain Into Remembering Characters
Other novelists are good at making remember character names easy, however. I’m also reading Blank at the moment.
Author Matt Eaton uses names like Luckman. This naming strategy deliberately attaches meaning to the hero by reducing abstraction to a concrete signal that says this man has a relationship to luck. It tells your brain to look out for signs that confirm or disprove this, making the name instantly more memorable.
On the other hand, the meaning of names spikes in value when Maxine is subtly shifted to Max. This technique asks the reader to think about her name as an object and wonder if she abbreviates it because she’s fun and funky or to give her a masculine edge.
The Name-Letter Effect And Your Brain’s Endless Name Meaning Search
The truth is that names usually have no meaning. And in the real world, there is no author in the sky using literary tricks to help you remember names or find meaning in them.
But that doesn’t stop your brain from seeking the meaning of names when you encounter them.
For example, Jozef Nuttin has demonstrated your brain finds the alphabet letters in your name more attractive than others. Now called the Name-Letter Effect, Nuttin’s discovery sheds light on why some people do better in school, gravitate towards certain cities and remember some names better than others.
In the main study, Nuttin presented students ranging from elementary school to university with letter pairs. Some were given random letters. Other subjects were given lists that more closely matched the letters in their names.
In either case, when asked to select the letters they preferred, all subjects showed a preference for letters that were in their own names. Although memory studies don’t all agree, it is possible that the Name-Letter Effect also explains why we remember some names better than others.
And It Seems To Appear In Just About Any Language!
Note that this effect does not appear to be language-specific. It has been tested in Dutch, English, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Polish, Portuguese and Spanish. Other experimenters have tried it with other alphabets like cyrillic and done experiments to see if the effect persists into adulthood when people learn a foreign language that uses a different alphabet or character-set.
Also note that the Name Letter Effect might apply to numbers as well. Although I use the Major Method, I tend to find 2 and 7 easier than other numbers, and that advantage may reflect the fact that my birthday is overloaded with both of them.
Sound Has Its Own Sex And Success Appeal
There’s no doubt about it. Some names sound nicer than others.
And that appears to have a psychological effect. For example, if your name “sounds” like it belongs to a successful person, you may be motivated to fulfill the prophecy.
So one cool trick for remembering names a lot better you can explore is to always associate new information with successful people. This is why the Magnetic Memory Method teaches you to create lists of celebrities.
When you do this, you’re not just equipped with a “crib” of associations ready to go. You also have the success effect working in your favor.
How To Cut Through The Noise And Remember Names Properly
One huge barrier to remembering names is noise. Sound can be crippling when it comes to remembering names. If you can’t hear it, you can’t guess how it’s spelled or properly pronounce it. And that means your brain can’t create proper pathways in the brain for remembering it.
In order to hear names better, you need to practice listening. You also need to monitor yourself for laziness and shyness.
For example, I have often made the fatal mistake of remembering names I didn’t hear correctly and then using memory techniques.
In combination with the Recency Effect, the Magnetic Memory Method is so powerful that the mistake can be impossible to shake. You wind up calling that person by the wrong name for the rest of the night.
The solution?
Ask people if you’ve got the pronunciation right. And then use your correct pronunciation to remember the name.
There’s no shame in asking and it buys you time to overcome some of the other things that make remembering names difficult.
But the ultimate barrier we all face is the lack of inherent meaning in most names.
Why Your Brain Always Drops The Ball Like A Bad Juggler
When you meet a new person, you’re not just meeting a name. You have the room around you, a face and all kinds body language and unconscious communication.
Plus, names rarely tell you what a person does. Someone being named “Baker,” for example, does not mean that they work as a baker. And if someone says they are named “Glirkzifal Mershkevork” and work as an architect, your brain is going to seize upon what it understands and skip over the information it has never encountered before.
Plus, your brain needs to store the name in a different area than it does the information about the Glirkzifal being an architect. The filtering happens due to something called “plausible phonology.” Even though you likely have never heard the name Mershkevork, your brain accomodates the idea that such a name exists.
(On the other hand, if someone says that they’re a mershkeverker, your brain will do a backflip trying to figure out if such an occupation exists.)
Given the split-processes and the fact that most names have no meaning, you’re in trouble. Unless you’re using memory techniques, you’re bound to drop the ball on the harder to remember information.
3 Language Features That Make Names Easier To Remember
Luckily, there are some features and conventions of names and naming that make the meaning of names irrelevant. Understanding these will make a huge difference for your success.
1. Names are both acoustic and physiological.
In almost all cases, you have the opportunity to experience names both in your ears and using the muscles of your mouth. You can also see many names represented in writing on paper.
By simply taking time to notice the different perceptions you go through when encountering names, you’ll improve how you remember them.
2. Some names have “logogens.”
For example, I might say the name Jon.
As a listener of the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast, you might immediately think that I’m talking about Jonathan Levi. (His SuperLearner Academy free trial is still running, if you’re interested.)
The reason his name would come to mind is because Jon is a logogen within a context you understand.
But I could have said “John” and meant “John Wayne.”
The point is that most names have some kind of logogen in them. To take our friend “Glirkzifal Mershkevork” again, “ifal” and “kevork” are deliberately implanted logogens for real names like Percival and Kevorkian.
No matter what names you encounter, and no matter how difficult they may seem, you can always look for the logogens within them to help you make memorable associations.
3. Phonetic Symbolism.
The meaning of names is often found in sound. For example, approximately half of words that begin with “gl” words are visual in nature: glance, glitter, gleam, glow, glower, glimpse.
Likewise, many “fl” words are associated with light, such as flash, flare and flicker.
In fact, a 1929 study by Edward Sapir showed that there is some relationship between vowels and the meaning of words related to size, speed, brightness, pleasantness and disgust.
For example, listen to how the vowel /u/ helps convey meaning in these words: dull, blunder, clumsy, mucky, muddled, bunged up and bungled.
Many authors have noted the relationship between meaning and sound in naming characters, particularly Charles Dickens and the marketing departments of many companies. And, of course, any time you meet a person, you can use memory techniques to inject your own meaning into any sound. You just need to pay attention to how names sound in the first place.
Never Be Satisfied With Your Memory
The takeaways from all this doom and gloom about your memory?
You have options, even if the meaning of names is never apparent to you.
One of the biggest option is to simply start paying more attention to language, both sound and physiology. Take time to expose yourself to interesting names and words.
Be disciplined about this practice and extend it to looking at visual representations of names. There are entire branches of art devoted to representing words. For example, check out the Visual Poetry section at Ubu. You’ll find amazing pieces like this by b.p. nichol:
But It’s Always Okay To Make Mistakes
Even though we should never be satisfied with our memory, it’s important to understand that you never make errors with your memory. You only learn lessons about how it works and how to make it better.
But you need to take risks. And when you forget things, simply explain to people that you’re working on your memory. And tell them that’s it’s not just about your memory.
It’s about the health of your brain.
And that means it’s also about the quality of your life.
Honestly, this condition called “Digital Amnesia” or “Google Amnesia” … stinks.
Not only do you have a fine brain humming along in your skull … There are also a gazillion good reasons why you should be using it properly.
Yes, properly. Even if you really can just look stuff up online.
Because here’s the VERY good news:
This year is the best year ever to use your memory at the highest possible level.
And this is the year you’re going to make it happen, even if battles with net neutrality are starting to make the Internet we’ve come to love look like an endangered species.
Here’s how:
You Can’t Annihilate A Problem You Haven’t Defined
It’s fun to throw around cool terms like “The Google Effect” and “Digital Dependence.”
But until you’ve spent some time defining the monster, you’ll have a hard time setting it on fire. Or at least using your Magnetic torches to herd it out of the village.
That said … what exactly is “Digital Amnesia”?
Back in 2015, the Internet security company Kaspersky Lab put out an interesting report on the matter. You really should read it.
To condense the report for you, Digital Amnesia occurs whenever your mind draws a blank on information you’ve stored on a device you trust.
And as the report suggests, this outcome isn’t always a bad thing. For example, do you really need to remember the thousands of website addresses you’ve bookedmarked (and never visited again)?
Heavens No!
But that doesn’t mean you’re off the hook. Also included is information like the phone numbers of family members and friends.
And the reality is that by not remembering them anymore, we’re endangering lives as we weaken our brains.
Seriously.
Without knowing the numbers of your loved ones, what would you do in an emergency if your phone wasn’t working? Ask a good Samaritan if he remembers your spouse’s number?
No way, Jose. That’s your job. And you’ve got all the tools you need to get all kinds of simple number strings done when you use the Major Method.
How To Suck The Life Out Of Half Your Brain
Ever heard of “deskilling”? It basically means that you become less capable over time because you’re no longer using certain skills.
And that can only lead to bad outcomes:
* A destroyed brain * Crappy employment * No employment * … and much, much worse, including linguistic deskilling.
But you’re probably asking:
How exactly does having Google and your devices remember everything for you destroy your brain?
Simple.
When you develop dependence on technology, the areas of your brain responsible for memory start to decay. Just like the muscles in your body would do if you stopped walking.
The Truth About Deskilling Your Brain
No, deskilling the muscles of your memory won’t necessarily happen to you overnight.
But one day you’ll wake up and …
Bam! You Can Barely Remember A Thing!
And it gets worse.
Because memory has a sibling.
Concentration.
And as long as you have the Internet at your fingertips, you don’t even bother using your concentration to try and access things you might actually have in your memory.
How To Put A Barrier Between Need And Action
Instead of instantly searching for information you already know, pause for a second.
Give your memory a bit of space. Ask and you might just receive.
But when you push it away and go straight to the search engines, you’re deskilling your memory every time.
And that means you’re also damaging your concentration.
Yes, I’m talking about destroying digital amnesia by going on an information diet.
But wait! you protest. I don’t want to miss out on –
Miss out on what? More fake news of the impending apocalypse?
Come close, my friend. I’ll show you exactly how to take a powerful, memory-boosting digital detox so you can seriously improve your entire life in the process.
Stop Letting The Internet Push You Around
Here’s a little secret for you:
I have never once “allowed push notifications.”
So far, I don’t think I’ve missed out on anything of any interest. I could be horribly wrong about that, but I recommend you never accept notifications of any kind in your life that you don’t control.
By being in control of when you’re disrupted, you automatically improve your ability to concentrate.
Fight Digital Amnesia Like A Magnetic Jedi
For a real Jedi Mind Trick memory exercise, try setting a notification with a positive message for 12:03 p.m. every day.
Then work on remembering and reminding yourself that the notification comes at that time. It’s tough, but doable. Your mind really can track time and remind itself to remember.
(For more cool Mind Tricks like these, check out my post on brain exercises.)
Put Your Devices In The Dog House
Virginia Woolf famously wrote that writers need their own rooms to create in without disruption.
Well, all humans need their own place to sleep without their machines. Problem is, so many people use their devices as alarm clocks. This sad fact means that they’re checking their notifications and messages before even stepping out of bed.
That’s no way to build a better brain.
Instead, put your laptops and smartphones out in a hallway closet, kitchen or completely other room.
If you need something to wake you up, use an old fashioned analog clock or one of those fancy lamps that slowly turns on over time. That gives you the effect of waking up with the sun and gives you a great dose of light that will contribute great things to your health.
Use Airplane Mode Without Fear
It’s no secret that I write almost every episode of the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast on my iPhone.
But people ask me all the time, How on earth do you do it?
There’s actually a long answer coming out in a new training I’m putting out, but the fast and dirty response is: Airplane mode.
I concentrate like there’s no tomorrow when writing because Airplane Mode prevents anything and everything from contacting my iPhone. And since all Push Notifications have been disabled, it’s just me, my words and the music.
Same things go for when I’m using The Big Five Of Language Learning in combination with my Pimsleur Memory Technique:
There’s nothing to interrupt me as I exercise my memory. And that means that my concentration muscles grow at the same time.
Remember this simple equation:
Exercising Your Memory = Improving Your Concentration
However, don’t make the mistake in thinking that it works the other way around. Concentration is a tool that helps you remember more based on paying better attention. But it’s not a sure-fire guarantee.
That’s why it pays to learn how to use the best possible memorization technique. (You are subscribed to this blog and have taken my free video course, right? If not, just scroll up and tell me where to send it.)
Cut The Umbilical Cord At Least Once A Week
Don’t worry, it’ll grow back.
I’m serious:
The ultimate way to help your brain is simple:
Take entire blocks of time away from the digital onslaughts to which we subject ourselves.
When you start, start small.
Vow to not check your device and stay off all computers for an hour.
Just one hour.
Doable, right?
You bet it is.
Then see if you can’t extend it to an entire 24 hours.
And listen, you’re not getting this advice from a wanker who doesn’t walk his talk.
Hard as it sometimes, week after week, I perform at least one digital fast.
What To Do During Your Digital Fast
Personally, I like to have options.
But if I were to boil things down to one portrait, here’s one of my fave “digital detox walkabouts.”
First, I pop a blank page notebook into my backpack along with a bunch of colored pens.
Then I pack in my Chinese character book and a deck of playing cards.
Next comes a bottle of water, usually my Soul Bottle.
No podcasts, no music, no communications technology.
And when you do this, it’ll be great because it’ll be …
Nothing But You And Your Memory!
If you’re still with me, let’s play do-as-I-do.
Picture yourself walking from your home to your favorite park or cafe.
Depending on the weather, you go outside some place where you can soak in the sun.
Heck, you might even do some of these exercises just standing on the side of the street:
Or, if you’re doing a coffee and memory experiment or it’s unpleasant outside, you head for your favorite cafe.
While walking, you think about all the buildings you’re passing. You enter the odd shop you’ve never been in and consume it into your memory for use as a Memory Palace.
You notice a street you’ve never walked down before and take it.
Then, when you’ve reached your destination, you get out your supplies.
Since you’re the author of the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast, you’ll start with a …
MMBD (Mind Map Brain Dump)
Or you’ll use your blank notebook to do something else memory-related you’re not telling anyone about … yet.
Next, you’ll pull out some cards, shuffle and memorize them. You’ll set the cards aside, let a few minutes pass and write out all the cards you remember on a piece of paper.
Optional method: Carry two decks. Once you’ve memorized the randomized cards in the first deck, you can reconstruct the order using the second deck. Then you can flip each of the cards over one by one, comparing them.
The reason I don’t use this method personally is because I feel that the writing process helps strengthen recall in many ways. I’ll be looking into the claims that “the hand builds the mind” in a more scientific way throughout 2017.
In the meantime, just test different options for yourself as you fend off digital amnesia.
Memorize Something Related To Your Computer-Free Memory Project
Finally, I crack open my Chinese Character book and draw a Memory Palace. Following the Magnetic Memory Method, I correspond everything with The Principle of Alphabetization and get busy.
All of this is done without computers of any kind, including the walk home.
Except this time instead of thinking about and gathering new Memory Palaces, you’re practicing Recall Rehearsal (this is a flexible memory method, not a memory system).
And the last thing you do before you switch the computers back on is test what you’ve memorized at the cafe. Either just the cards or Chinese or both (both is best).
And for bonus points, you never do turn the machines back on. You just hop into bed with a good book and your honey-bunny for some oxytocin-inducing love memories. (Yes, sex helps your memory too while you’re healing from digital amnesia!)
Recognize The Privilege Of Having Memory Abilities You Can Improve
Okay, I’ll admit it. This is a mindset thing.
But the reason I focus on mindset so much is the same reason it applies to dealing with digital amnesia. You’ve got to understand this one thing:
Heck, some people are born without ever having had the ability to use their memory at all.
But Not You!
If you’re reading this post or listening to the podcast version, you can completely skip the rise and impact of digital amnesia on brains around the world.
Why?
Because you have the opportunity to save your brain.
And you have clues and tools for exercising your memory and concentration.
The only thing you have to worry about next is what you’re going to do with all your super powers.
With Great Memory Power Comes Great Memory Responsibility
Yes, it’s time to dust off that old comic book line once again. (In case you don’t recognize the heading above, I’m trying to tap into your episodic memory of Spider-Man and a few other levels to remind you that you’re a superhero.)
But don’t worry. I’m not talking about responsibility for the entire world.
It’s the responsibility to keep using your mind and memory.
Your head isn’t just for hanging hair on. It yearns for brain exercise.
And your head demands that you take action.
Trust me. If you don’t use it, digital amnesia will take over. You will lose your memory and the overall health of your mind.
So step up to the plate and stop Google from ruining your memory.
Entrepreneurs need a ton of skills to achieve their goals.
And let’s face it:
The amount of material entrepreneurs need to learn can be downright discouraging. Just to stand a chance of “making it” requires so much know-how that a lot of people give up.
Here’s the good news:
You don’t have to give up on your entrepreneurial dreams.
You can learn and remember everything you need to know.
And you can recall it all with ease.
But as they say in the entrepreneurial world, a lot of success comes from first knowing your “why.” That’s why in this post I’m going to talk about the 5 biggest reasons entrepreneurs need memory techniques.
Don’t Discount Any Of These!
Each is important, and you’ll find that the Magnetic Memory Method covers each.
If you haven’t already taken the free course I’ve got for you, grab the memory kit by subscribing above and get ready for an amazing memory boost that will impressive the pants off you and everyone you know.
1. Not Being Able To Remember Numbers May Be Causing More Lost Revenue Than You Can Imagine
Numbers overload the average life lived in business:
Conversion rates
Tax percentages
Statistical formulas
Phone numbers
Identification codes
Dates and times
… and many, many more.
A huge part of the success of any entrepreneurial enterprise links directly with how well you can manage numbers like these. You can’t wring more profit out of numbers you haven’t remembered, after all. And you can’t even begin to understand math concepts you haven’t committed to memory.
To get better at memorizing numbers, it’s important that you learn the Major Method (sometimes called The Major System).
What Is The Major Method?
It’s a way of quickly memorizing numbers by turning them into images.
There are different ways of using the Major Method, but to get started, associate each number from 0-9 with a sound. Here’s what I use based on a standard approach popular around the world:
0 = soft c, s, z 1 = d or t 2 = n 3 = m 4 = r 5 = l 6 = ch, j, sh 7 = g, k 8 = f, v 9 = b, p
But right now, you’re probably wondering …
How On Earth Am I Supposed To Remember All Of That?!?
It’s pretty easy – if you’re willing to experiment. I won’t give you an example for each number, but to get you started:
For zero, you could see a giant snake hissing as it eats its own tail. The shape of a snake in a circle resembles the digit 0. The sound of hissing reminds you of the ’s’ and soft ‘c’ sound options.
For nine, look closely: From one perspective, it’s like a ‘b’ standing on its head. From another perspective, it’s a golf club facing the wrong direction and driven down into the ground.
Check out five. If you hold out your left hand and stick out your thumb, you’ll notice that you have five digits. The pointer finger and thumb make an L-shape.
Easy Peasy Lemon Squeezy!
Let’s put it all together.
If you wanted to remember a number like 905, the Major Method gives you several options with these letter-sounds. You’d just need to pop in a few vowels so you can make a word.
For example, 905 could be:
Basel (the herb) or Brazil (the country on a map or the Terry Gilliam movie).
509 could be an image of yourself speaking with a lisp.
590 could be Jennifer Lopez. Make her leaping to compound the 5 and 9 and it’ll be even easier to remember.
This Is Just The Beginning Of Remembering Numbers With Ease
Give this memory technique a try. You’ll find that it does wonders for your memory improvement.
And it’s fun to give your friends challenges, like Jonathan Levi and I have done. Even just a short run of numbers like the serial numbers on a dollar bill makes for great memory exercise in a restaurant.
Just make sure that you’re not totally exhausted – and even then the techniques can still work wonders. Here’s the full story:
I can’t stress how important the ability to remember numbers is for an entrepreneur so please get busy and let me know how you fare.
2. A Simple Way To Remember Names That Works Even In The Noisiest Convention Halls And Business Meetings
As an entrepreneur, you meet a lot of people.
And there’s nothing worse than forgetting someone’s name.
It’s embarrassing. It’s crude. It’s unnecessary.
To learn how to remember names, check out this Magnetic Memory Method Podcast and the accompanying illustrations. You’ll find it useful.
In brief, all you need for getting started with remembering names is the ability to make associations. You can create your Magnetic associations in advance or on the fly.
Let’s look at both options. I will ultimately suggest that you learn both … you’ll need them!
The Magnetic Memory Method Name Crib
Some people who use memory techniques create databanks of celebrities in their minds. That way, whenever they meet someone new, they can make instant associations.
For example, I have Tom Cruise as my instant go-to name when I meet a new person named Tom. When I meet someone named Lars, I whip out Lars Ulrich, the drummer from Metallica. New people I meet named Sarah are instantly paired with Linda Hamilton, who played Sarah Connor in The Terminator and Terminator 2: Judgment Day.
The great thing about having predetermined celebrities and fictional characters is that the associations require zero thought. You meet the new person and then – BAM! – you can instantly see your new pal Tom in a fistfight with Tom Cruise.
The Martial Art Of Remembering Names Method
But what happens when you meet someone with a name from another culture? It’s not that the name “Gangador Dianand” is unusual – it’s just not one you’d expect to come across every day.
Yet, it is a real name and if you’re serious about memory techniques, you’re going to want the ability to memorize it as quickly as you can memorize a name like Tom.
In this case, you need to be able to chop the name into pieces and use Magnetic Memory Method Word Division. This mnemonic tool helps with associating images to just the “gang” part of “Gangador” and another image with the “ador” part.
Also super-easy. All you need is to see something like a gang bursting through a door. If the gang “adores” the door they’re banging through, all the better. Just think about how you can make that “adoration” visual in your mind’s eye.
What about “Dianand”?
Also not a problem.
Remember Princess Diana? I sure do. And I also know what an ampersand is.
All that’s needed after that is a way of getting Diana and the ampersand interacting in a strange way.
And when you put it all together, you can make a little story:
A gang who adores a door bust through and catch Princess Diana smooching with an ampersand.
But Wait! I’m Not That Creative!
I hear this excuse often.
Here’s the thing:
You don’t have to be creative to get started.
As Benny Lewis points out in Fluent in 3 Months, using these techniques makes you more creative. And the more you practice creating associations, the easier and faster it gets.
Just give it a try. I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised by how practicing memory techniques rewires your mind and memory for entrepreneurial success at many levels.
3. Join The Elite Crew Of Entrepreneurs Who Can Quote The Facts Right Every Time
There’s nothing more impressive than an entrepreneur who has a handle on the facts.
Let’s face it. Consumers are more skeptical than ever. If you haven’t got your details in order and wind up stumbling all over the place to communicate your business knowledge, you have no reason to expect anyone will take you seriously.
The only question is … how do you remember facts?
You’ve got options, but the number one technique to learn is how to create and use a Memory Palace.
What’s A Memory Palace?
A Memory Palace is a mental construct based on a real building. It can also be an imaginary, “Virtual Memory Palace,” but for beginners, taking something simple like your childhood home works the best.
Remember how we were just talking about Jennifer Lopez and 590?
Well, the way a Memory Palace works is that you would place an image of her leaping all over the place on the desk in your study. Or you would have her leaping in the clothes washer.
You can place images like Jennifer Lopez anywhere you like, but it’s best to have a strategic way of creating your Memory Palace so that you’re not just placing her any old place and hoping and praying you’ll find your way back to her. Make sure you’ve taken my free course to ensure that you know the best ways to create a Memory Palace and avoid all problems.
You can model this approach for any facts that you’d like to memorize. It’s easy, fun and will rapidly increase your expertise.
4. The Ability To Remember Quotes That Will Get Everyone Talking About You
If there’s one thing that binds entrepreneurs together, it’s the love of quotes.
You’ve probably heard this famous line from Zig Ziglar, to take one example:
“People often say that motivation doesn’t last. Well, neither does bathing – that’s why we recommend it daily.”
As cool as Ziglar’s quote is, it really means nothing if you can’t remember and pull it out at the right time. Entrepreneurs equipped with memory techniques have no problems, however. They can simply use the tools of the Magnetic Memory Method and zip any motivational quote they want into memory and recall it with ease.
The Memory Palace is also the go-to technique in this case. Once you know how to use it, you just need to prepare and organize the quotes you want to memorize. When you hear a good one, you can also memorize it on the fly with ease so long as you have a solid understanding of how to use the ground beneath your feet as a Memory Palace.
Wisdom Is Just One Vertical (Or Horizontal) Pillar Away
When memorizing poetry using a Memory Palace, the temptation is to work horizontally.
Nothing wrong with that. It works gangbusters.
But for shorter pieces of information, like quotes, the entrepreneur can also try memorizing the words in vertical pillars.
I recommend starting from the top corner of a room and then working your way down.
For example, if you want to memorize the Ziglar quote, you can try seeing Pippi Longstocking in the ceiling corner attacking a jury with a vicious motive. “Pippi” basically sounds like “people” and her having a motive for the attack will help recall the notion of “motivation.”
Beneath that, you can see her bathing in a huge bathtub full of calendars. That will help you remember the core idea of bathing and the calendars will help you remembering that bathing, like motivation, is something entrepreneurs require daily.
Heck, everybody could use a dose of both daily hygiene and continually renewing impetus … don’t you think?
5. The Ability To Conceive Of And See Large Systems Full Of Moving Parts
At the meta-level, perhaps the most powerful reason entrepreneurs would do well to use memory techniques is how they get you working with macroscopic and microscopic pieces of information at the same time.
Think about it:
If you’re going to be an entrepreneur, you’ve got to have a handle on multiple processes all at the same time. And you’ve got to be able to see them in your mind at a glance.
What better way to prepare the mind for this need than working with a system of Memory Palaces and information that will make you a better entrepreneur?
Memory techniques not only help you with the skill of seeing the big picture and the granular details at the same time. Having a strong memory distinguishes you as a professional.
If you aren’t already using memory techniques, I strongly encourage you to get on board with them. They will not only change your life, but help you do much bigger things for the people you serve in your business.
That’s the desire that drives you every day and the next level is right around the corner. All you need to get started is a bit of training. Subscribe for my free Magnetic Memory Method training using the “Start Here” registration form above.
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Do you reserve your Saturday afternoons for the brain fitness promised by crossword puzzles?
Do you pop vitamins for memory improvement?
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Human anatomy isn’t exactly linear, is it?
Nothing is more valuable than the benefit of hindsight from someone with experience, especially if you want to become a mnemonics dictionary.
It happens. We all have verbal diarrhea from time to time.
Hate flying? I sure do, but with a solid walking meditation, all aspects of the flights I take go much smoother.
Even if astrology is complete nonsense, it’s a neat memory exercise to know the Zodiac inside and out.
Would you like to eliminate the ‘busy-work’ from your language learning activities?
Don’t you hate it when people spew nonsense about 
Don’t you hate that feeling of linguistic deskilling?
The experience of memory loss creates the kind of story you normally only see in the movies.
I’m a pretty calm and relaxed guy.
What would you give if you could have the world’s best mentor accessible at any time?
What if I told you that turning your brain into a passwords manager is the easiest thing on the planet?
Would you like to pick the mind of the greatest living Major System masters?
The key factors that make memory competition more exciting to participate in and watch as a spectator …
The number one need every student of memory techniques must fulfill to experience their true capabilities …
The connection between using your memory and motivation. Master this and you’ll create a state of excitement that helps you overcome all kinds of learning obstacles and barriers!
Why you shouldn’t waste any more time on boring and frustrating learning techniques …
Have you ever said out loud or in your mind, “I can’t learn a language!”
Do you ever go hunting for music you can use to increase your focus and concentration?
Don’t you hate that sinking feeling?
Ever feel frustrated by people with strong memory abilities?
Home is where the heart is, right?
Ever hear that crazy phrase, “knowledge is power”?
No question about learning and memory enters my inbox more often than than “why aren’t these memory techniques taught in schools?”
Did you ever fantasize about dropping out of high school?
Picture this:
Annoying, isn’t it?
Entrepreneurs need a ton of skills to achieve their goals.
