Photo: psychologism

Forgetting things has been a good companion in the majority of people’s life. Here are a few of the best techniques to improve your memory:

1) Capture

The best way to remember things is to not use your brain. Carry around a small paper booklet where you can write down tasks, ideas, and commitments to be sorted later. Writing things down is probably the best tip for people struggling to keep track of everything

2) Link

This works incredibly well whenever you need to remember a sequence of information. You can use this technique to memorize presentations you have had to give and as a backup if for some reason you can’t use your notepad.

3) Peg

The peg technique is an advanced form of the link technique so that you don’t have to refer to items in an order. The actual peg technique makes use of a phonetics system for the digits 0-9 so you can remember up to hundreds of numbers in sequence.

4) Trigger

Another way to help boost your memory is to place strategic triggers when you need them. Unless it is a particularly unusual name, you probably already know someone with the same name. Making a mental note that the new person you just met, Jonathan has basically the same name as your friend, John, will make it easier to recall the name later.

6) Helpers

If you need to remember something, ask someone you are with to remind you. As in, “Can you remind me to buy the tickets before we leave the mall?” Relying on the other person isn’t why this usually works. Usually, the other person will forget unless it is something important to them as well or they have an excellent memory.

7) Organize

Absent-mindedness can make you forgetful, but usually, most memory troubles are due to a lack of organization. Take the time to get a calendar, to-do list, and filing system so you don’t have to burden your memory.