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Improve Your Memory With The 60 Seconds Memory Challenge
By
Mark Channon |
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Is it possible to improve your memory in 60 seconds? Let's find out by learning a simple yet very powerful technique to start you on the road to an excellent memory, the 60 seconds memory challenge!
It sometimes seems to me that a good memory is underated, so many people comment on how bad their memory is, yet when given the chance to improve it they never follow through because at the end of the day you have to work at it can seem easier to just get by. There is no magic wand or pill that can instantly give you a good memory but there is an instant way to change 'how' you remember and recall information.
Mnemonics
It's an ancient technique over 2000 years old, most people have heard about it but seldomn understand how to utilize it. I'm talking about mnemonics.
"Ah, that thing where you create a rhyme to memorize something else, I hear you say...", notes on a musical stave for example - Every Good Boy Deserves Football (E, G, B, D, F).
Yes, this is 1 type mnemonic but not what I'm going to be focssing on here. Mnemonics go a lot further than this, the definition of mnemonics is "something to aid memory", when you think about this carefully you realize that the definition is vast.
The type of mnemonics (memory techniques) I focus on are based on imagination, association, strong belief systems, incorporating objectives and physical experience. Having been an actor for about 18 years you naturally create a way of remembering scripts which feed on all of your senses rather than just using repetition to drum something into your head, I'll go into more details about this in later blogs, for now let me give you a taster of some visual mnemonics.
The Challenge
You are going to memorize 10 items in about 60 seconds and all you have to do is read the following and imagine it in your mind as clear as you can, be sure to get all of your senses involved. If you don't want to read it try out the interactive version of the 60 seconds memory challenge.
- Imagine standing on a huge fried Egg and the yolk dripping in between your toes.
- Imagine sticky Cellotape tying your knees together.
- Imagine Ketchup being poured over your thighs.
- Imagine a Cucumber and your....behind (leave that one to you I think!)
- Imagine a Watch tied around your waist, the hands spinning around wildly.
- Imagine someone through freezing Ice-cream all over your chest.
- Imagine Bread growing out of either side of you neck like Frankenstein.
- Imagine Cereal dripping down your face.
- Imagine your hair is made out of Spaghetti, with lots of sauce.
- Imagine Monkeys swinging from the ceiling.
Test how many you remember by running through each part of your body and seeing which item is associated with them:
- Feet
- Knees
- Thighs
- Behind
- Waist
- Chest
- Neck
- Face
- Hair
- Ceiling
You should get 8-10 correct, if you missed 1 or 2 it's because your images and associations where not clear enough, recap those again if this was the case.
The most powerful thing about this very simple technique is not that you can easily remember 10 items. The real power in this technique is that you will remember them for the next hour, day, week and even months from now just by doing it 1 time.
This simple technique has many applications; memorizing 'things to do', 'topics in a meeting', 'points in a presentation' or 'complex facts'. It is what's called a mental filing system and it's possible to create filing systems with thousands of files allowing you to memorize thousands of facts.
Hopefully in the last couple of minutes you can see how good your memory could become. Mnemonics encompass a wide range of techniques and like most things, sometimes they can be quite challenging and they do take some work, however the benefits way outway the effort you have to put in and after a period of time they feel less like techniques and become more 'a way of thinking'.
For a quick grounding in mnemonic techniques, check out the free memory tutorial, improve your memory at Memory School
Author's Bio
Mark was one of the first people in the world to become a Grand Master of Memory in the 1995 World Memory Championships. He has worked as a memory trainer for over 12 years, running public and corporate seminars for companies and organisations such as Rothschild, Lincoln National, Dyslexia Scotland and the BBC. Mark has worked with students of all ages and has trained at many top independent schools in the UK such as Eton, Roedean, Oakham, Woldingham, Oundle, St Bede’s, Whitgift and St Peter’s (York).
Mark believes that Memory Training is all about getting results. The application of mnemonics (memory techniques) are practically infinite. You can memorize key facts, programming languages, names, presentations, scripts and more. Mnemonics are not 'tricks', rather they are 'a way of thinking' that can infinitely improve your memory. Yes you start by learning techniques but like most things in life the more you practice the more natural it becomes until eventually, it's second nature.
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