Has it ever happened that you forgot something? Couldn't remember someone's name, password, event or even a word? Surely yes. But what did you do in such a situation? What they were doing? Let's talk about how to remember what you forgot.
We will offer you several not only simple, but also effective ways to solve this problem, and also tell you why such annoying misunderstandings happen to us. We will also touch on how to develop your memory and even attention.
How to remember what you forgot? Some tips on how to remember everything
Has it ever happened that you forgot something?
Couldn't remember someone's name, password, event or even a word? Surely yes. But what did you do in such a situation? What they were doing? Let's talk about how to remember what you forgot. We will offer you several not only simple, but also effective ways to solve this problem, and also tell you why such annoying misunderstandings happen to us. We will also touch on how to develop your memory and even attention.
Don't remember as you go
Memorizing on the go is less effective - information is often lost. And a conscious approach allows you to form stronger and higher-quality neural connections, which means you can retain them longer and remember faster.
To retain something in memory, stop
take a second and think about the action you are performing and what exactly you need to remember right now, and only then move on.
Why do we forget certain things?
The first, most common reason is insufficient concentration.
Remember how often you cannot remember where you put your keys, phone, notepads, even things. In most cases, you forget where you put the thing if you are in a hurry somewhere or you are distracted, if you are in a hurry and only think about how not to be late, you feel bad, etc. That is, one of the reasons for forgetfulness is absent-mindedness.
The second reason, no less common, is that you consider the information unimportant or unnecessary. In this case, you don't want to memorize it on a subconscious level. The reason may also be the complexity of the information itself.
The third option that we will highlight is weak memory. Agree, not all people can remember large amounts of information for a long time, no matter what it is. This means that after some time it will be erased from memory. It can also be noted that over time, memory weakens, and a person increasingly begins to forget what he knew.
In order to remember as much information as possible and not forget it, you need to constantly train your memory. We will talk to you about how to do this later.
In addition, it happens that we ourselves want to forget this or that incident, words, names, knowledge.
Take notes
Another valuable trick is capturing data using records.
We are already accustomed to writing everything down on electronic devices, but handwritten notes, according to scientists, allow us to remember what we need much better.
To see if this works for you, do a little experiment. Try using only paper and pen for a few days, and then take notes only on your smartphone. Then compare in which case you remember information better, and use the tool that suits you.
Recalling forgotten information
How to remember forgotten information? For example, you studied the material for a year, then repeated it before taking the exam, but when the time came to answer, you completely forgot everything. What to do in such a situation? Try to remember. To do this, do the following.
First of all, remember exactly how you learned this material - sitting at a book, taking notes, listening to the teacher. Try to reproduce this moment in your head as accurately as possible. In most cases, this technique helps to remember forgotten things.
In addition, we advise you to relax and think about something else. Quite often, important information slips out of your head precisely because of anxiety, fear, and lack of self-confidence.
Play some sports
A study conducted by Dr. David Jacobs from the University of Minnesota found that people who regularly engage in cardiovascular exercise at a young age have better memory in middle age (after 45 years of age). This research is not new. After all, it has long been proven in practice all over the world that exercises such as swimming, cardio fitness, running and others help prevent memory deterioration in the future.
To improve your memory, exercise. Start running, for example. This increases blood flow to the brain.
Looking for a missing item
First of all, try to remember where you usually put this item and where you leave it. For example, if these are keys, try to recall in your memory what you did after you opened the apartment door and went inside. If it is a telephone, remember with whom and what you talked on it, where exactly, and it is quite possible that you will soon understand where you put it.
We also recommend that you walk around the room as you usually do. It is quite possible that you will soon remember where you put this item and find your loss.
Neurolinguistic programming
The concept of NLP is relatively new. But it's very effective. After all, this can teach you to expand your boundaries. The basis of NLP is human limitations, which can be overcome through self-hypnosis. Spend some time alone.
Ask yourself what is causing your memory loss. Understanding the causes can help you say goodbye to memory loss and improve your mental abilities. It works almost the same as a placebo. Meditation is a great prelude to NLP. They work great together with diet and exercise.
Remembering passwords
What to do if you forgot your password? For example, we had such a misfortune that we don’t know how to remember the WiFi password. What to do?
In this case, you also need to sharpen your memory. First of all, remember what exactly you put on passwords - numbers, letters or words. Next, we try to remember what ciphers you often use. Try to go through the most likely options. In addition, a fairly effective way is to remember what you were thinking about at the moment when you registered, what you were doing. If you recall those minutes in your memory, it is likely that you will remember him.
What if you forgot and don’t know how to remember your login? In this case, you just need to remember what you like, what or who you associate yourself with. After all, logins are often our nicknames, nicknames, what we call ourselves.
Say what you saw and heard
Get into the habit of speaking out a dream, a movie, a book after you have seen it, watched it, or read it. This is short-lived, but very useful, because you can store the information in long-term memory. If you are bored, then practice your skill by retelling new stories to friends and family.
Don't forget about operational auditory memory. The point is that even if we don’t purposefully listen, our “subcortex” still records a couple of seconds. Thus, if we try to remember what we were just told, then we can reproduce it, like on a tape recorder.
“Where did we meet?”
First of all, you need to strain your memory and try to remember where exactly you saw him. What places are associated with him? This will make it possible to remember exactly where you met him.
Next, we try to determine what associations you have with the name of this person. It happens that it is associated with a particular action, event, color, etc. In addition, you can go through all the letters of the alphabet. It is quite possible that this way you will remember which one of them the person’s name begins with, and then remember it completely.
Create chains
For example, to remember a route in the city, notice static objects on your way and make a chain of them.
For example, let’s “link” a fence and a flower bed. First you need to see the fence in detail, its color, height, shape. Let's say you walk along the fence and in the middle you come across an impressive flowerbed. Smell the flowers and mentally recreate their appearance. Attach the next object to the flowerbed in the same way.
Recovering lost information always occurs faster by building an associative series along a chain. In this way, trained people keep any sequence in memory, for example, a shopping list or evening chores.
Remembering the past
The most necessary, but difficult skill is to remember the past. Quite often it happens that you want to recall some moment in life - childhood or youth, to revive in your memory this or that event, celebration, meeting. What to do in this case, how to remember the past?
It is also worth noting that it is not always possible to remember the past in this way, especially what happened in childhood. In this case, you need to seek the help of a psychologist and undergo a hypnosis session. In this situation, this is the most effective way to reliably reproduce the events that occurred in memory.
Get enough sleep!
Scientists from the University of California at Berkeley studied the process of memory loss in older people. It was found that memory impairment is associated with poor sleep. At the same time, another study found that naps help children maintain the energy they need to study well. When you combine these two results, you get one important conclusion: you need to get enough sleep to maintain and improve your memory.
The average adult needs eight hours of sleep per night. For you, this duration may differ by two hours more or less.
Remember how we used to put a book under our pillow before an exam or test? And it makes sense! The main thing is to read this book before going to bed. The best way to remember information is to read or review it before bed. This will help store the information in your brain.
Remembering a forgotten word
It also happens in our lives that we forget this or that word. Just a couple of minutes ago it was on the tip of our tongue, but now we can’t pronounce it. What to do in such a situation? Naturally, try to remember, although there are other options for solving this problem. So let's talk about how to remember a word.
First of all, it can be replaced with a synonym. Of course, if this word is a term or a name, then this option will not suit you. In this case, we try to gather our thoughts and try to remember at least part of it, the sound associations that this concept evokes in you.
Another option is to simply forget about this word, don’t get hung up on remembering it, and in a couple of minutes it will definitely appear in your head.
Watch your diet
The term “brain food” has been around for a long time. This is a food that improves your memory and keeps your mind alert. A new study conducted at the University Hospital of Basel, Switzerland, found that green tea is one of these superfoods.
Nuts, ocean fish, olive oil are very effective in improving memory. Therefore, it is worth including these foods in your diet. And you need to regularly eat eggs, tomatoes, blueberries and drink red wine (within reason). Chewing gum is another proven way to improve memory. Because chewing gum increases your heart rate.
Training your memory
Of course, the most important thing is that in order to avoid problems with remembering certain things, you should definitely train your memory. To do this, we recommend to your attention several simple but quite effective exercises.
Surely you have heard that nothing trains your memory as well as memorizing poetry or even passages of text. Be sure to try to memorize at least a couple of lines from a variety of books every day. At the same time, it is advisable to pay attention to large texts, memorizing them completely. So, taking any story, learn a paragraph every day, and do not forget to repeat what you have already learned.
The second simple exercise is to replay the events of the past day in your head every night. So, when you go to bed, remember how your day began, then step by step approach the night. Alternatively, you can rewind events in reverse order. This will also be a good exercise for the brain.
And finally, one more exercise for developing memory and attention. Surely you are often on the street - going to school, work, or just walking. With such a pastime, you can also develop certain qualities. To do this, it is enough to simply remember the license plates of passing cars and carry out various mathematical operations on them. In this case, you will never have a question about how to remember your WiFi password or your login.
Meditation
Meditation is very popular today. It is touted as a miracle drug. But you can actually get real benefits.
First, meditation can speed up your heart rate. This way, there will be more blood flow to the brain.
Secondly, meditation helps you relax and focus on yourself. And this has amazing long-term benefits for brain nutrition. It is also good for overall health.
Most meditation techniques and exercises involve deep breathing. And deep breathing is a great way to improve memory and relieve stress. By practicing these exercises for a couple of minutes a day, you can improve your posture, mood, and feel more energetic. And all this is free!
conclusions
We all face the problem of memory loss. This is quite understandable, because we are not always focused on receiving this or that information, our brain cannot always quickly remember this or that word, phrase, action, and we don’t want to remember some things at all.
In fact, remembering what you have forgotten is quite easy and simple if you follow the recommendations we have given. In addition, if you need to recall rather serious and necessary events in your memory, you can always seek the help of a specialist. As you can see, to answer the question: “How to remember what you forgot?” – not so difficult.
Use mnemonics
The computer uses binary code to store data. And then presents this data in a user-friendly form. Just like a computer, the human brain records data in a specific pattern. And later returns this data in a specific form.
It is this feature that mnemonics uses. It helps store information in the form of a specific code, allowing you to call up the information you need in a form convenient for you. Sounds a little complicated, right? But it's actually simple. When using mnemonics to remember information, you will use simple rhymes or abbreviations.
Location
A classic example is headphones. Many people forget them or the charger in the most unexpected places, and then cannot remember where they left them.
First of all , think about where you usually put your headphones. In which pocket of a jacket or bag? Which part of the desk?
Then remember what you did after you supposedly put them in the right place. Where did you go, who did you talk to, what else was you thinking about at that moment, what music did you listen to or want to listen to? The more details you remember, the faster you will find the loss.
Another good method is to walk around the room as you normally would. Just walk along your usual route. If this does not help, reproduce the events not in chronological order, but in reverse. Usually the brain reboots during the process and concentrates better on details.
As a last resort , just go back to where you last saw the thing you needed and remember what you were going to do with it. One of the methods will definitely help.
Pay attention to details
Memory and attention are closely related, so the next professional trick is an identikit. Try to focus your attention on the facial features of the people you meet throughout the day .
You need to select any part of the face: nose, ears, eyes or chin, and focus exclusively on it.
By constantly practicing, you will be able not just to stare at a stranger, but to quickly notice what you need. To complicate the task, “change the settings” - choose smaller details in clothing or hairstyle. To add variety to this activity, try to look at a stranger and see which celebrity he or she resembles. This exercise will be most valuable for those who do not have a phenomenal memory for faces.
Password
Passwords are especially often forgotten. If you have already tried several options and none of them work, and there is no way to restore access, use a special algorithm.
First of all , think about what you usually put on your password: numbers, letters, words? Write down the most likely options on a piece of paper.
Then try to remember what you were doing and what you were thinking about at the time of registration. Associations, we remind you, are a powerful thing. Compare the associations with passwords on the sheet and think about which one would be most convenient to enter, and you will find the one you need.
with login - think about who you associate yourself with. Because the login is usually either an email, a first and last name (which is difficult to forget), or a nickname or character name. Reproduce them in memory.
Photo for memory
Earlier studies found that viewing photographs
, which depict important moments in life, help us remember those moments, but this takes time.
In addition, according to scientists, to remember certain moments in life
, you need to periodically review photos, which happens less and less due to the huge number of digital images that are “scattered” recorded on the computer.
The study was published in the journal Psychological Science
.
Human
Have you met? See you exactly! Just when and where? And anyway, what’s his name? It happens that they say hello to you, and you answer mechanically, not really understanding who it was. It’s worse if the person continues the dialogue, and you stand there and cannot understand where you know each other from. To avoid getting into awkward situations, try to remember the name.
To do this, mentally go through all the letters of the alphabet and determine the most suitable one. Then remember what places you associate with your interlocutor. What sounds, thoughts, smells and colors. If you strain your memory, the name will come up by itself.
even easier if you remember who introduced you to each other: just remember the third interlocutor and the moment he pronounces the name. It should work.
If we are talking about an actor or a celebrity, then everything is simple: remember the films in which he played, the songs he sang, his significant other, events and the clothes he wore to them. The name is remembered very quickly - verified.
Go back to the start
It seems that there is no such person in the world who, at least once in his life, has not forgotten why exactly he entered the room. There is a theory that all kinds of doors and arches serve as a kind of dividers. When we go through them, our consciousness switches, so we often don’t remember why we came.
Our memory is “tied” to places and spaces. That is, sometimes it’s easier for us to remember something by remembering where we thought about it or where we made a decision.
Therefore, the easiest way is to walk the same route back or do it mentally.
Try to remember yourself and your feelings in the previous room: simulate the situation in as much detail as possible, without including your imagination.
It is better to remember in a calm environment, sit comfortably, so that no one and nothing distracts.
Past
You and I are not yet old enough to sit in a rocking chair and tell our grandchildren stories from childhood or youth, so remember for the future how to remember an old episode.
To begin, restore individual images in your memory, let them pop up in your head like scattered pictures.
Then start pulling on each of the threads, remembering the details: what happened before and after this episode? What provoked this or that reaction, what action or word? It’s not always possible to remember an incident this way, but it’s worth a try.
And in order not to forget anything (or forget less often), you need to train your memory.
Here are some final tips for you:
- Start learning poetry . To some this will seem boring and banal, but this is how teachers develop our memory (Yes, we teach Lermontov not because Tamara Vasilievna really likes him. Although, everything is possible...). If you don’t like poetry, learn passages from prose.
- Every day, replay the events of the past day in your head . No, we are not talking about memes from VKontakte, where the brain does not let you sleep because it thinks “ABOUT HIM.” Try to scroll through the whole day from waking up to going to bed. This is useful both for memory and for analyzing personal effectiveness.
- While walking or on the way home/to school, try to memorize numbers and perform mathematical calculations with them. Subtract the house numbers from the speed indicated on the road sign, add to this the number from the jacket of that passer-by, divide it all by the number of the passing car. It will be difficult at first, but you definitely won’t forget your passwords again.
The left heel will tell you
Another method of memorization - kinesthetic - has long taken root among actors who have to learn huge texts by heart. This mnemonic technique is also associated with associations. True, it is more suitable for those who have better developed motor memory of gestures and movements. If, when telling someone how to get to the right address, you help yourself with your hands, and you remember people by their gait, and not by the timbre of their voice or the color of their eyes, then the kinesthetic method is definitely for you. In this situation, any information (multi-page speech, digital combination, chronological table, poem from many stanzas) is also divided into portions, but they need to be associated not with any object, but with movement. First, you read the data you need, making a characteristic gesture before the start and at the end of each block. For example, you snap your fingers and then say: “There is a green oak tree near the Lukomorye.” Before the next line - “The golden chain on that oak tree” - you imperceptibly shrug your shoulders, and before and after the third line you carefully tap the floor with your left heel. First, you will very quickly remember the order of movements, and then each of them will pull out the desired line, cue or digital combination from memory.
Total Recall: Secrets of Memory
Everyone knows that with age, memory for events that just happened weakens. Something happened just a few minutes ago, you just heard or read something - and now it’s impossible to remember. The person wonders: “How could I forget so quickly?” And immediately anxiety begins: are these the first manifestations of dementia, Alzheimer's disease?
Enjoy nature
A walk in the fresh air is very beneficial. And especially if you want to improve your memory. Researchers at the University of Michigan tested this theory.
A group of subjects were asked to take a walk in the fresh air. And then remember the list of elements. Another group was walking in the city and they were asked the same question. The results of the first group were 20% better. The researchers didn't stop there. Now the first group looked at natural landscapes, and the second - at photographs of cities. And again the first group coped with the task better.
Next time you forget something, try looking at a photo of a forest.
How do we remember?
Human memories form traces in the brain, are deposited in layers of instant, short-term and long-term memory, stored, erased and restored depending on many factors influencing these processes.
Thus, visual and auditory information is processed instantly: in 0.1–0.5 seconds, the brain decides whether you need this sensory information - and if not, then it immediately erases it. If information seems important, it is stored in short-term memory. You have no more than 20 seconds to remember about seven elements (± 2 units), for example, seven letters, seven numbers, or seven names of objects that your interlocutor tells you on the phone. Did you manage to write it down or immediately forgot? And if it is repeated several times, then the information enters long-term memory.
Scientists have calculated that it takes from 15 minutes to an hour to transfer traces formed in short-term memory to long-term memory. This time is called the consolidation period. So, if you are trying to remember the names of colleagues at an important event, you need to do some effort and mentally repeat this information, or better yet, come up with an association. Fortunately, there is no limit to the capacity of long-term memory and the time it can be stored.
Current
- NASA sent an observatory into space to study black holes
- The first Russian to fly on Crew Dragon has been named
- Japanese tourists delivered by Roscosmos to the ISS
People who have phenomenal memory are called mnemonists. They can remember complex tables of numbers, long strings of words, mathematical formulas and entire phrases in unfamiliar languages through association. For example, Soviet journalist Solomon Shereshevsky always worked without a notebook and could record any interview as a memory. The puzzled editor sent the young employee for examination to the neuropathologist Alexander Luria. It turned out that Solomon was able to remember with the help of synesthesia: words for him had colors, tastes, smells and were tangible, like things. Amazing mnemonics made him a pop star: he could reproduce from memory any long series of words spoken a week, a month, a year ago or even earlier.
Sometimes a certain disease gives a person supermemory. For example, a British autistic artist with savant syndrome, Stephen Wiltshire, has a unique photographic memory: he draws buildings, streets, cities in every detail, even if he saw them for only a few seconds from the window of a bus or helicopter.
