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EXPOSE | We Can Better Remember
"While it was once thought that the capacity of each individual’s working memory was something they were simply born with, research from the worlds of cognitive science and psychology are showing that we can actually train it to become stronger and faster." - Brett and Kate McKay
EXPLORE | The Role of Working Memory
Fortunately, we do use more than 10% of our brains, but it may not feel like it sometimes. I get stumped most Mondays at work by someone asking me what I did over the weekend. Sigh. And then there's the classic challenge of reading a book and not being able remember what you read!
In their article on improving our memory, the McKay's define Working Memory and it's importance this way:
"Whenever we perform tasks that require reasoning, comprehension, and learning, we use our working memory. Our working memory allows us to hold relevant information in our brain while we do something else at the same time. It’s a short-term storage tank for thoughts and ideas that you can retrieve at the ready... Working memory also plays a vital role in focus and attention... allows us to ignore irrelevant information, including distracting thoughts... [and] the ability to stay focused make us more productive..."
So, it looks like I have two options: stop reading, or, find a way to improve my working memory. If you opt for the former, well, I guess you can go do something else. But, if you're facing facts, then we'll move on to what we can do about remembering more, more quickly.
EXECUTE | Toward a Better, Faster Memory
When bringing about change in our lives, it rarely is a sole factor that needs attention. More often than not it is a package deal. Such is the case with improving our memories. Working to derive a consensus, I found these 7 tips to be most significant:
Give it meaning. "One killer technique is to come up with real-life examples of principles you've just uncovered. If you've just learned about slant rhyme, you could read poems that exhibit it. If you've just discovered heat transfer, you could think of the way a warm cup of coffee disperses warmth into your hands on a cold winter's day."
Exercise. "Exercise enhances blood circulation and oxygen to our brain, giving it more functionality."
Train your mind. "...there is no doubt that mind exercises can significantly enhance our memories and reduce brain-related diseases. The rule of thumb is, if you need to take a mental break from the activity, it’s good training for the brain. But we need to play the right kind of brain-training games. One type of game has been shown over and over to improve working memory. It’s called the “dual n-back game”."
Teach someone. "As research shows, it turns out that people retain: 90% of what they learn when they teach someone else/use immediately."
Meditation. "...there are some physical benefits: "The physical benefits of meditation include lowering blood pressure and alleviating depression, and, it can also improve your working memory. And the meditation sessions don’t have to be long to get the benefits. Eight minutes of daily meditation will do the trick."
Sleep. "Researchers have found that individuals who get a full eight hours of sleep perform up to 58% better on working memory tasks than individuals who get less."
Avoid fluency. "When you're reading something and it feels easy, or you forget something immediately after learning it, you're experiencing is fluency... Therefore, we should force ourselves to recall a fact."
Read the Full Post: So Many Things, So Little Memory: Remember More, Faster