This method is very unlikely to bring about any amazing results. So let’s take another approach to memorization.

First, let’s see which things are easy to remember and which are not.

Things We Remember and Things We Forget About

Basically, we remember things that concern ourselves. If we got strong emotions during a situation, we’ll remember it afterwards. If we don’t feel anything about a certain fact, we’ll probably forget that fact.

Things that concern us only indirectly, like the exact numbers of a telephone number, are very hard to remember if you use the wrong technique. The problem is that we often want to remember such things. We don’t want to forget the birthdays of our friends for example.

The Right Technique To Remember Things

If you want to remember something, convert it to something that makes you feel. Something of personal importance. Something that is easy to remember. This could be something funny, strange or even perverted.

There are different techniques to do just that:

• Using mnemonics: You probably used a few mnemonics at school. Most of the time, a mnemonic is a sentence or a word that is easily remembered and can be converted back to the things you want to remember.
• Remember similar sounding words: This one can be used to memorize names for example. Instead of trying to remember the exact name, memorize a similar sounding word and associate this word with the person who’s name you want to remember.
• Using peg words: Peg words are a way for memorizing lists by learning another list of words first and then associating the words of the new list with those of the list you already know. The pre-memorized list should be comprising of words that are easy to associate with numbers. I don’t want to go into great details here, as I plan to write an article about it soon.
• The phonetic alphabet: The phonetic alphabet is a way to transpose numbers in words and words back in numbers. See my article The Phonetic Alphabet for further information about this.
• Conversion to mental images: This one can be used well to remember words or sentences that are easy to imagine. Involve as many senses as possible. Try to see the facts, touch them, smell them, hear them. Visualize them in detail. Form strong mental images.

You can also combine the above methods.

Other Techniques to Improve Memorization

There are some other techniques which don’t really convert the facts but help you to remember them as well:

• Repetition: This one is well-known. It’s the only technique most people use frequently to remember things. Unfortunately, it’s not very effective on its own.
• Exaggeration: Make things seem funny or strange. Make important details of your mental image appear huge for instance. This way you’ll remember them a lot easier.

Short Example: Remembering Passwords

Passwords only concern us indirectly. We usually don’t associate the password with anything that makes us feel. So we easily forget it.

But why not convert it to a sentence? Sentences are way easier to remember than mere combinations of symbols.

You could do it like that:
PEccT2mP+A could be converted to Pink Elephants can cause Trouble to many People and Animals.

Imagine in detail how a pink elephant is causing trouble. Be creative. Use as many senses as possible to do that. See the elephant, smell it and hear it.

It’s easier to remember the password this way, isn’t it?

Of course, it doesn’t need to be like this. There are other people who think about the things they perceive and don’t forget all of it after a couple of seconds. People who are able to increase knowledge and understanding by thinking. People who use the right technique, be it consciously or unconsciously.

So how can you too become a productive thinker?

First you need to know that forgetting is the major problem. Forgetting is easier than learning. Forgetting just happens. If you let it happen all the time, learning is as efficient as trying to fill a bottomless pit. A total waste of time. But why not just add a bottom to the pit? Suddendly your effort would pay off. In other words, remember your thoughts and thinking will lead to great knowledge and understanding.

Sounds easy, right? Just remember your thoughts… But how to do it? How do you think the right way? There’s one easy technique I highly recommend:

Write down your thoughts! Yeah, good solutions don’t always have to be complicated. I will make some additional explanations though.

You need three things to write down your thoughts in an efficient way:

1. Something that allows you to make quick notes wherever you are. A small notebook and a pen would do fine for example.
2. Something to file your thoughts. Such as a computer.
3. Something that creates thoughts. I strongly recommend a brain but you can use a computer as well.

What you do with these three things (or two if you’ve chosen the computer twice) is… No wait, forget about the third item, I’m tired of this stupid joke, this is a serious topic. So what you have to do is:

• Always carry the notebook and pen (or the like) with you. Write down anything that you consider to be important. Any idea, insight, piece of knowledge or theory. Instantly jot it down on your notebook. At any time. Wherever you are. Make notes while reading, learning or travelling. Even if you wake up in the middle of the night.
• Having written down some interesting thoughts, it’s time to file them. Put them into categories and update them regularly. You don’t need to create many categories in the beginning, you could start with only one file and create directories later.

Making quick notes allows you to remember almost every important thought. Filing and updating is important because it forces you to think about the stuff you’ve jotted down. This leads to new insights and new ideas, ready to be written down as well. You acquire more knowledge and a deeper understanding in addition. So finally thinking pays off. Thinking has become productive.

Of course, there are other ways to make thinking more productive. Some people found ways to think productively without the need of an external help, but even they could probably profit from the technique I just presented. I use it myself and it yields great results.

Now you can either give it a try or decide to forget about this article. It’s up to you.