Your memory isn’t a set-it-and-forget-it system of your brain. You’re not locked into a certain level of remembrance throughout your lifetime and that’s it. You can improve your memory if you have the tools, discipline, and motivation to do so, and below are some excellent tips and tricks to make even an elephant envious of your newly developed, memory-strengthening skills.
How To Easily Improve Your Memory Today!
Have you ever been to a party and instantly forget the names of people you were introduced to, and then awkwardly try to avoid them throughout the night? Well, if it’s any consolation, it happens to many people, and even better still, it can be corrected so forgetfulness for you will be a thing of the past.
Get Physical
First, a healthy body makes for a healthy mind. So, keeping in tip-top physical shape is your first step to having great memory skills. The overall package for superb physical health is to see your doctor regularly, maintain a sensible diet, and get plenty of exercise regularly. This simple-to-follow formula complements the exercises for your brain that follow.
Never Stop Learning
It’s a common determination by experts that continued education may keep the memory strong and sharp by habitually staying mentally active. This means, in simpler terms, that you should always strive to learn new things. These things can be something as complex as a few classes at the local college, or as easy-going as beginning a new hobby, such as joining an art class or learning to play a musical instrument. Even simpler still, a daily crossword puzzle, a chess match with a friend, or starting that great American novel you’ve put off for years are all perfect places to start.
Workout All Senses
There’s more to memory improvement than just seeing something and engraining it within your mind. You have four other senses, aside from sight, that can aid you on your road to better memory retention. Feeling textures, smelling aromas, and hearing sounds throughout your day all add up to form a complete picture in your brain for future reference. Just like you view vocabulary words and repeat them until you know them inside and out, you can use your sense of smell, touch, hearing, and even taste to assist keep your memory locked in your mind.
Clear Out Some Brain Storage
Like a flash drive or an internal hard drive of your laptop computer, there is only so much space you can fill with information. Now, you’re brain, I know, is not like that. But you can free up mental energy in your mind by putting trivial and/or daily-use information on other mediums like calendars, planners, phone apps, and the simple yellow sticky note on your refrigerator. This process allows you to focus solely on new or otherwise important information and not be burdened with insignificant facts, names, appointments, or dates.
Reinforce With Repetition
This next one is ‘old school’, as it has been used by students of all grades to remember such things as the fifty states, the Preamble to the Constitution, and the primary bones in the human body, and I’m talking about the repetition. By repeating something constantly, your brain will reinforce the fact, name, or word within your memory. Many people find writing down the aforementioned information to also be highly useful as they can then picture the word on the page and remember it moving forward.
The Myths Of Memory
The joke of younger people is to make fun of older folks when they can’t remember certain things. Even though this may have nothing to do with a person’s age, and just something that was forgotten, if you engrain within your mind that you’re memory is failing, then it will go that route. Your self-doubt that you can keep your memory sharp at any age will become a reality…if you let it. Instead, stay positive and laugh off younger people who try to put you down. Odds are your mind is sharper than theirs anyway, and after learning the tips here, your memory will be better too.
Feed Your Brain And Improve Your Memory
You are what you eat, they say, and although this is a bit general, eating certain foods can aid in boosting your memory skills. Foods such as fish, especially fatty fish, like salmon, trout, herring, and albacore tuna are rich in omega-3 fatty acids and these help build brain and nerve cells and are essential for sharp memory retention. Coffee, love it in the morning? If so, you’re in luck because it’s great for supporting brain health. It’s the combination of caffeine and antioxidants that deliver the one-two punch for excellent memory skills. Other foods are equally supportive for aiding in keeping your memory super keen, and these include blueberries, broccoli, dark chocolate, pumpkin seeds, various tree nuts, fresh oranges, and green tea.
Get Your Sleep
Getting a good night’s sleep is not only good for overall health, but it also affects your memory in a very good way. It’s been proven that sleep strengthens memories and reinforces things you have recently learned. It can also tie new memories with older memories and create a bridge between the two. Scientists have determined that getting enough sleep daily for your age improves memory by as much as twenty to forty percent. Conversely, lack of sleep can be detrimental to remembering even the easiest of facts, dates, and people. Lack of enough sleep causes forgetfulness, as well as a grumpy mood, anxiety, and an all-around sluggish state of mind, so get to bed at a reasonable hour.
Have An Active Social Life
For unknown reasons, people who are social and interact with many people on a regular basis have better memory retention than those who are isolated or introverted. Socialization supports brain health and whether you’re learning names, ages, or other facts about people you just met, you’re brain is working far stronger than those sitting at home, alone and brainlessly watching the television.
It’s Never Too Late
You can’t teach an old dog new tricks is a misnomer. It’s never too late to better yourself and your memory skills, no matter what your age. It will take some disciple, a little extra work, and a bit of time, but the result will be well worth it. You won’t forget that person’s name you just met, or those items you need from the grocery store, or any number of other trivial things you forgot in the past, now that you have the skills to become a memory master.
