Article for sharing on "Improving your memory" [Part 2]

Ways to improve your memory

• As your brain gets older so your ability to remember things that you have looked at briefly will get worse. When you were young you could probably look at a list of words and remember quite a lot of them. You can't do that as easily when you are older. You need to concentrate more. You will need to make a conscious effort to remember where you parked the car. Look at your car and its surroundings to imprint the view on your memory. Pretend that you are taking a photograph of it -- blink your eye lids as though your eyes were cameras -- and you'll remember it better.

• Normally we remember around 20 per cent of what we read. But if you really concentrate you can remember up to 70 per cent. After reading something that you want to remember, spend 60 seconds thinking about it. Make a mental comment to yourself about what you have read. Rephrase it in your mind. You will find that if you do this, your memory will improve considerably.

• As we get older, we all do things without really thinking about them. We put ourselves onto 'automatic pilot' and fall into a routine. Concentrate really hard and spot the things you do without thinking. And then ask yourself whether or not you could do things better if you thought about them more.

• Try to understand things that you have to remember. You will find things easier to remember if you understand them. And try to remember key facts and words which will help bring into your mind whole sequences of thoughts and facts.

• Clear your brain of trivial information. Use notebooks and diaries to record these. Albert Einstein once said: "Why should I waste brain space remembering my own telephone number? I can look it up if I want to know what it is."

• When you are talking about something you know that you will want to remember, try to concentrate hard on everything around you. Concentrate on the people you are with and the place you are at onto your mental blackboard. When you want to recall the name, simply recreate your blackboard.

• When you are trying to remember something, do your best to recreate the conditions under which you learnt it. Football teams do best when playing at home (even if there isn't a crowd of home supporters) because they find it easier to remember what they've learned while training. Students do better in examinations if they take their tests in the room where they did their learning. So, if you are trying to remember the name of someone you met at a party, then try to remember where you were, what you were doing, what you were wearing, what other people were wearing and what you said to the people you met. Things that you learn are bound together in your mind in time and place. If you can recreate the conditions in which you learned something, then your ability to recall the facts will increase dramatically.

• If you are struggling to remember something, work your way through the alphabet. The first letter of a name or place can often 'trigger' a lost memory.

• If you want to remember something that you have seen or read, try closing your eyes immediately afterwards. This keeps the 'image' on your retina for a little longer, and will make the image easier to recall in the future.

• To make it easier to remember names, try to make up pictures in your mind. For example, to remember the name 'Coleman' think of a main carrying a bag of coal. If you are trying to remember a name like 'Vernon' which doesn't lend itself to a picture, then visualize an imaginary blackboard and then write them in. Try to be aware of smells, sights and sounds. The more information you record, the easier you will find it to remember the event.