If you have to remember lots of information to pass your subject and get a good grade then having a "great memory" is a must - and let's face it, what student wouldn't love to be able to recall facts and figures without any effort at all?
But how does our memory actually work? How come we can remember some information without any effort at all (often useless information like the names and theme songs of the cartoons we watched when we were children) yet often we when really want to remember certain things for tests or assignments we draw a blank?
The truth is, our memory works in precisely the manner that it is supposed to work. The real issue is that we have very little understanding (or no understanding at all) of the way it operates and how we can manipulate it to our advantage.
For some reason, we expect to be able to recall information at will (usually just by constantly repeating the word or re-reading the information we want to remember) without any understanding of how memory recall even works. As a result, the way we approach memory recall is usually quite dumb.
The smart approach to memory recall is to first take the time to learn how your memory works and then manipulate your memory (in a good way!) in order to recall exactly what you need to remember for that next test or exam.
There are many techniques you can use to improve your memory recall but today's lesson is about just one of them - the "What's in it for me" method. This method states that the more you can make something relate to you personally, the more about it you will be able to remember.
When it comes to memory, your brain always wants to know "How does this relate to me?" or put even more simply "Why should I even bother storing this as a memory?"
Therefore, when a bit of information or data is personally significant to you, your memory is far more likely to store that information for you (and the real kicker is that it will remember all the little details about it as well!)
Don't believe me? Think about it. What things do you remember? Those things that have some direct impact on your life (like what time you need to meet your friends at the movies this weekend) or those things that have zero impact on your life (like your mom's favorite ice cream flavor?) You remember those things, people, places, prices, products and details of anything that is going to impact your life in some way.
I'm not suggesting this happens because you want it to happen. It's just a natural part of being human - it's on autopilot. When something is significant to you, the memory of it sticks. But it's not enough to understand this rule. You also need to apply it to your studies don't you? So let's see how this can help you improve your recall.
If you are learning about something like economic trends (yawn!), imagine how those may impact on your ability to go and buy a new pair of jeans (i.e. your personal buying power as a consumer - yawn again!) Or perhaps think about how it may impact on your ability to get a high paying job after school.
If you are learning about other cultures (for example) you can simply compare their culture to your own. In what ways does the culture differ from your own? In what ways does it match? In what ways is it kind of similar but not really? Asking yourself these questions may seem silly but the more questions you can ask that are actually about you, the more you will remember.
How about names and dates and details? Well how do these names, dates and details impact you? Do you know anyone else by the same name that you can link them to? Are the dates significant to you personally, or your parents, or your friends, or your country? Why do the details matter to you? By the way, if you can't think of anything just make it up. You'll be surprised that even if you create false reasons you will still remember the reasons and thus the details!
There are many ways for you to improve your memory recall. The "What's in it for me" approach is just one. But it's one that is easy to use and it really works. Identify what you need to remember and then make it about it you. You will be very surprised at what happens next. Good luck!
But how does our memory actually work? How come we can remember some information without any effort at all (often useless information like the names and theme songs of the cartoons we watched when we were children) yet often we when really want to remember certain things for tests or assignments we draw a blank?
The truth is, our memory works in precisely the manner that it is supposed to work. The real issue is that we have very little understanding (or no understanding at all) of the way it operates and how we can manipulate it to our advantage.
For some reason, we expect to be able to recall information at will (usually just by constantly repeating the word or re-reading the information we want to remember) without any understanding of how memory recall even works. As a result, the way we approach memory recall is usually quite dumb.
The smart approach to memory recall is to first take the time to learn how your memory works and then manipulate your memory (in a good way!) in order to recall exactly what you need to remember for that next test or exam.
There are many techniques you can use to improve your memory recall but today's lesson is about just one of them - the "What's in it for me" method. This method states that the more you can make something relate to you personally, the more about it you will be able to remember.
When it comes to memory, your brain always wants to know "How does this relate to me?" or put even more simply "Why should I even bother storing this as a memory?"
Therefore, when a bit of information or data is personally significant to you, your memory is far more likely to store that information for you (and the real kicker is that it will remember all the little details about it as well!)
Don't believe me? Think about it. What things do you remember? Those things that have some direct impact on your life (like what time you need to meet your friends at the movies this weekend) or those things that have zero impact on your life (like your mom's favorite ice cream flavor?) You remember those things, people, places, prices, products and details of anything that is going to impact your life in some way.
I'm not suggesting this happens because you want it to happen. It's just a natural part of being human - it's on autopilot. When something is significant to you, the memory of it sticks. But it's not enough to understand this rule. You also need to apply it to your studies don't you? So let's see how this can help you improve your recall.
If you are learning about something like economic trends (yawn!), imagine how those may impact on your ability to go and buy a new pair of jeans (i.e. your personal buying power as a consumer - yawn again!) Or perhaps think about how it may impact on your ability to get a high paying job after school.
If you are learning about other cultures (for example) you can simply compare their culture to your own. In what ways does the culture differ from your own? In what ways does it match? In what ways is it kind of similar but not really? Asking yourself these questions may seem silly but the more questions you can ask that are actually about you, the more you will remember.
How about names and dates and details? Well how do these names, dates and details impact you? Do you know anyone else by the same name that you can link them to? Are the dates significant to you personally, or your parents, or your friends, or your country? Why do the details matter to you? By the way, if you can't think of anything just make it up. You'll be surprised that even if you create false reasons you will still remember the reasons and thus the details!
There are many ways for you to improve your memory recall. The "What's in it for me" approach is just one. But it's one that is easy to use and it really works. Identify what you need to remember and then make it about it you. You will be very surprised at what happens next. Good luck!
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