It is an age-old myth that you cannot retain information beyond a certai age, and that your memory starts going downhill from there. That is just what it is – a myth. Time and again, there have been people who proved otherwise be it in any walk of life. Learning, sports and addressing disability, even finding the love of your life are aspects which are not bound by age.
Sharpening your memory is just one of those many fields. The very fact that you are reading this proves that you are looking to improve your memory and information retaining skills. Read further to enlighten yourself, and try out the following 11 ways to have your memory improving considerably.
Meditate and concentrate:
One of the reasons why people easily forget what they learn is due to too much brain-clutter. Make it a point to relax and stimulate your memory every once in a while. Set aside a few minutes for relaxation each day. Use various effective meditation techniques to help you concentrate and remember better.
Be verbal about it:
Hearing helps you remember better than just seeing or listening. Say it aloud to yourself a few times before it completely registers in your mind.
Exercise more often:
The mind works in accordance with the body, and vice versa. If you wish your mind works to the best of its ability, have your body following suit. Workout more often. It will help clear your head of all negativity and stress, thereby making more space for knowledge of importance.
Break it down:
Use bits and parts to remember better. Don’t dive headfirst into what needs to be learnt. Huge chunks of information are harder to retain than smaller pieces. Break down your stuff wisely and remember it well.
Eat foods for brain development:
Vitamins, green leafy veggies, antioxidants, fish and whole grains are all foods that are known for improving brain development. Make sure you include nuts and dry fruits in your diet, not forgetting milk, to have your mind reach its optimum.
Use pictures and colours:
“I hear and forget, I see and remember, I do and understand.” The wisdom of this quote stretches far and wide. Use colours and pictures to your advantage and will never have a hard time remembering anything in future.
Get good sleep:
A good memory is synonymous with a clear mind. As matter of fact, the latter can only be achieved if you give your mind the complete required rest and sleep to rejuvenate and refreshen itself.
Organise and discipline yourself:
Use ways to discipline your affairs. You cannot expect your mind to function to the best of its ability in a chaotic or stressed environment. Your subconscious needs peace to function, and you can only bring about that peace with discipline.
Keep stress at bay:
As mentioned before, stress will do nothing but worsen your brain condition further. Your memory does not improve in the vicinity of stress. Use self-help measures and other effective techniques to have stress driven out and peace settled in.
Tie it up with memory:
A smell, a colour, a joke a person said or some happening that occurred as and when you were learning about something may become one of the ways by which you can recall it easily. In order to retain knowledge about something, try and remember your surrounding and the setup exactly as it was when you learnt it in the first place.
Stop brain damaging acts:
Staying up late, doing drugs, eating junk and smoking are all acts that do not work in favour of the healthy functioning of your brain. If it is good health and an incredible memory that you seek, get rid of these habits at the earliest.
The above ways are definitely not all of the ways there are to improve your memory. These are only the generalised rules and methods, which work best for almost everyone. You can give them a go to find out if they work for you too. What works for others may not necessarily work for even you.
You can always come up with innovative and better ways of remembering things. Memory can always be improved, no matter what your age or physical condition is. If you can will it, you can definitely do it. Do whatever it takes to sail your boat and helps you remember stuff better, and longer.