Occasional memory loss in inevitable, but there are a couple of tricks that can help you start remembering things much more easily than you do now. Jumia Travel, the leading online travel agency, shares 6 easy tricks to remember things easily.
Try Visualizing Things
Converting words to pictures is one of the best ways to improve recall. This is because we naturally remember the things we’ve seen (that is, visual cues), better than we remember words. Also, the more senses you involve in trying to learn or remember something, the more likely you are to recall it. When you try to visualize something you want to remember, you increase your chance of remembering that thing. So the next time you’re traveling and want to remember important documents, you can try to commit your task to memory by visualizing the documents – maybe a stack of papers and with a passport on top – in the cupboard you keep them, and try to make the picture as vivid as possible. Do this as many times as you can throughout the day and see the results for yourself. The same also applies to students when reading or preparing for tests or exams. They should simply associate what they are trying to remember with a vivid enough picture, and it can help them remember even the most difficult things.
Use Mnemonic Devices
This is a popular technique to remember things used mainly by students when studying for tests or exams. Mnemonic devices are very good for remembering things in a particular order. It’s also great for remembering mathematical order of operations.
Associate What You Are Trying To Learn With What You Already Know
The more mental connections you are able to make with what you are trying to remember, the easier it will be for you to remember it successfully. This is especially helpful when you trying to remember names and dates. When you go out, especially when traveling or going for events, you are very likely to meet new people and it is typically perceived as rude or careless if you hardly remember the names of those you meet. To help with this, when someone tells you their name, you should immediately try to associate it with something or someone you know. This will help you remember it better. Same thing applies with dates.
Write Out The Things You Want To Remember
This is also a popular trick to remember things. Writing out the things you want to recall can really help to improve your recall because you will be forcing yourself to remember things actively, rather than passively. You will thus pay more attention to them as you write them down again and again, and as you do this, you are, in effect, actually teaching yourself what you want to remember; and as you know teaching yourself something is the best way to remember it. This trick can also help you discover the things that have made it to your long term memory, and those that haven’t, so you don’t waste time reinforcing the ones that have.
Leave Reminders Everywhere
Leave reminders on your cellphone, calendar, bathroom mirror, dressing table etc., and you can also ask friends and family to remind you of important things you need to remember. However, it is important to choose friends or family members that are good at remembering things.
Get Adequate Sleep
A lot of people don’t know that getting proper sleep actually helps people remember things. If you’re sleep deprived, it will be harder for you to remember things because sleep is necessary to consolidate a memory (that is, make a memory stick) so that it can be recalled later in the future.
