How to Memorize Anything (5 page)

But the reality is that most of us are unaware of the potential of the brain and its capacity to store information, and the right way to use that. Due to this we are not able to harness its real potential and with time and experience develop wrong beliefs about our own memory.

SOME MYTHS ABOUT MEMORY
Downloaded from GAPPAA.ORG - No.1 Desi Ebook Site, It's FREE.

MYTH: Our memory will be full if we try to remember more

FACT: There is no limit to the capacity of memory. Most people believe that trying to remember too much would be very confusing. Rather, researchers have shown that memory is like a muscle. Just like muscle needs to be exercised and developed in order to increase stamina, in the same way memory can be developed using special memory skills whereby you can use already remembered data as a tool to remember new data which further serves as a tool for some other new data thus increasing your memory exponentially. The fact is
the more you remember, the more you CAN remember
.

MYTH: My memory is failing due to age

FACT: As mentioned earlier, memory is like a muscle—
use it or lose it
. It is true neurons deplete with age. But recent studies show that we can actually develop new cells throughout our life provided we keep exercising our brain. Like our body can be kept fit in old age, similarly we can be mentally fit as well. Researchers suggest that new experiences and learning new information are key to memory improvement exercises. So, using memory skills, an elderly person can memorize better than a 20-year-old person who is not using any such skills.

MYTH: Pills can help me improve my memory

FACT: Pills and tonics can be effective but in a very limited way. These pills may help you to have a healthy brain by providing some necessary vitamins and minerals required by the brain to function efficiently, but a healthy brain does not guarantee a good memory. You might be having a healthy body but that does not assure that you are a good athlete; for that you need to be trained. Similarly, the easiest way to improve your memory is to learn memory techniques.

MYTH: Different people have different memory capacity

FACT: Each one of us has the same hardware, i.e.
Brain,
with almost the same mass, size, neurons, as far as built-up is concerned. So the difference in the working of memory of different people lies in the
utilization levels
and
not in the built-in capacities
.

W
E
A
RE
A
LL
E
QUAL
!

Think of a company, where there are 100 people with 1 computer each, having the same configuration. Yet each individual makes use of that computer according to his/her need and knowledge of using it.

Today, everybody is using a Smartphone with multiple functions and applications. But some people use it only to update their
Facebook
status or socialize on
WhatsApp
, while others only to make or receive a call. At the same time, there are many people who use all the features of the phone which help them in their day to day life like
checking e-mails, handling financial matters, making presentation while on the go, etc
, thus making the best use of their time and the gadget.

Some people might have better brain power than others because of heredity, lifestyle, and the nutrition they get in their growing years, etc. Yet, memory is not a finite entity, inherited genetically and fixed at birth.
It can be trained and developed
.

HOW ARE MEMORIES FORMED?
(3 Rs OF MEMORY)

After doing a lot of research on memory, scientists have suggested that the process of memorizing can be divided into 3 main stages:

1. Registration:
   taking in information
   
2. Retention
   : storing information
   
3. Recollection
   : retrieving information from our stores as and when required
   

It can be compared with a computer where the three steps are input, storage, and output of data.

How are the 3 Rs important?

1. REGISTRATION:
Input of information through five senses is the first step in the formation of any memory. The data is then filed in the short-term memory system, which is very limited. At this stage the sense organs have to be alert enough to be able to register the information clearly. Otherwise, the waste and negative thoughts coming from the subconscious mind might replace it soon. If the registration is good, the memory formed will also be stronger.

T
HE
M
YSTERIOUS
C
ASE OF THE
M
ISSING
K
EYS

Rohit turns the key in the doorknob to open the door of his house and switches on the lights, while simultaneously talking on his mobile. He closes the door behind him, reaches the kitchen, put the keys on the kitchen shelf, takes a glass of water from the refrigerator, comes to his bedroom, loosens his tie, and makes himself comfortable on the couch. After 2 more minutes of conversation, he ends the call and goes to the other room to unlock it. But he finds that the keys are missing. He keeps on searching for the keys in frustration for 10 minutes till he finds them in the kitchen. He is amazed how could he forget where he kept the keys just a few minutes back!

Don’t we all often find ourselves in a situation similar to Rohit? Now let’s try to comprehend what happened with him. When he entered the kitchen and kept the keys on the shelf, he was talking on the phone. That means though he was physically keeping the keys with his hand, his mind was occupied in the conversation on the phone. Due to this, he did not register the action of placing the keys on the shelf. So it’s wrong to say that Rohit has forgotten where he kept the keys 10 minutes before. How can you forget something which you have not registered in the first place?

It is just like searching the whole almirah, taking out everything from it, in an attempt to find a watch you never kept in that almirah. Can you find it? No. It’s not possible. So this cannot be called a case of forgetfulness, but a situation of
absentmindedness.

In order to have stronger memories, we need to involve all our five senses, i.e.
hearing, smell, taste, touch, and sight
as any input to the brain only goes through these five senses. Also, if at that time a strong
association
of the input can be made with some other information already present in our memory. We will discuss the association process in detail in the next chapter, ‘Train your memory’.

2. RETENTION:
The process of storing the received information for longer duration is called retention. Once the input is done, it should be followed by a system of proper storage so as to retrieve it as and when required. For example, if we go for shopping and buy some books, medicines, clothes, shoes, bread, vegetables etc. and keep them haphazardly all over the house, it would be difficult to find them after a week.

Contrary to this, if these things are stored in their respective places, i.e. books on the bookshelf, medicines in the medicine box, clothes in the wardrobe, shoes in the shoe rack, bread and vegetables in the refrigerator, then each of these things would be easily accessible on time.

L
EAKING
B
RAIN
. H
ELP
!

Sara needs to memorize vocabulary words for her SAT exams. She has to memorize nearly 1000 words. She keeps a target of memorizing 40 words per day. She successfully achieves her target on the first day as well as on the second, but as she starts memorizing on the third day, she feels as if she is forgetting the words memorized in the first two days. As the days pass, she finds herself memorizing new words daily but the problem is that she cannot retain the words for long. The more she memorizes, the more she starts getting confused about the earlier memorized words.

Like in the case of Sara, most students find it difficult to retain memorized information till the time of the examination. What good is spending time and effort on memorizing if one cannot retain it till the time it is required.

It’s just like a pitcher with a hole which is never going to be filled with water because of constant and continuous leakage.

To avoid this leakage and utilize the unlimited capacity of brain to store information, data needs to be processed and stored systematically.