How to Improve Your Memory in Six Ways

The first step to improving your memory isn’t some fancy technique that will instantly boost your recall, but rather some valuable nutritional advice that is designed to feed your brain with the right stuff it needs to thrive. Using memory techniques will be of little value if your brain isn’t in prime condition to perform. For this very reason you must nourish your brain with brainy foods that contain the nutrients it needs for optimal performance. Awesome brainy foods include omega-3, vitamins B6, B12, C and E, beta-carotene, iron and thiamine. You will of course find these nutrients in vegetables, fruits, nuts and grains.

Optimizing the performance of your brain is a good start, however it’s not enough for excellent memory and recall. You also need to optimize your body. Your body and brain of course work in tandem. If your body is feeling great, then you naturally have better clarity-of-mind, which of course improves the memory and recall of the information you are learning. Physical exercise is of course the key here. You need to partake in regular physical activity, which will help enhance your mood, promote better sleep, and reduce stress and anxiety. These are all of course key factors that will help improve your memory.

Mnemonic devices are simple techniques you can use that can help you remember and recall information far more quickly and easily. They work because they allow you to organize and give structure to the information you are learning. There are of course various mnemonic devices you could use. For instance there is the Method of Loci, Acronyms, Rhymes and Chunking. The Method of Loci involves the process of creating associations between what you want to remember and something you already know. Acronyms on the other hand are abbreviations formed from the first letter of a group of words.

Did you know that your brain is actually hardwired to think visually? In fact, 75 percent of the neurons in your brain are assigned to the visual processing of information. Your brain therefore thrives when presented with visuals. In other words, it learns, remembers and recalls information far more quickly and easily. With this in mind, it’s therefore important to consistently visualize what you want to remember using doodles, pictures, mind maps, graphs, charts, diagrams, and other visual tools. The more time you spend visualizing what you’re learning, the better your photographic recall will become.

In order to thrive, your brain requires constant stimulation. You will for instance only improve your memory by keeping your brain interested and engaged. Now of course, engaging your brain takes a little work. It requires effort on your part. More specifically it requires some creativity and imagination. Your brain is like a curious child that constantly seeks to learn, grow and develop itself, however it also has a tendency to quickly lose focus and interest. To avoid this, you must add a touch of humor and play to your learning sessions. The more memorable you make something, the easier it will be to remember.

We learn most effectively when we engage our whole brain. One of the best ways to do this is to learn the information you are wanting to remember using all your senses. The three senses that are most helpful with improving your memory are sight, sound and touch. For instance, figure out ways to capture and organize information using visual methods of learning. Then do the same for sound and touch. You could for example listen to what you want to remember in various ways, or physically involve yourself in the learning experience. The more you engage these three senses the better your memory and recall will become.