Have you ever placed your keys in a secure location only to have to spend an hour searching for them later? What about meeting a new person and being unable to recall their name five seconds after they have introduced themselves? Memory lapses happen to the best of us, but that doesn’t stop them being frustration. Fortunately, no matter what your age, you can sharpen your mind to reduce the occurrences of those annoying lapses of memory. So, here are five key strategies to improve your memory:
1. Don’t Stop Learning
One of the best ways to preserve a sharp mind is to keep yourself mentally active. Every time you challenge your mind with a mental puzzle, you are reinforcing existing pathways and creating new connections between different areas of your brain. So, if you decide to read more books, start a new hobby or enroll in a class at the local college, you can be sure you are doing something to improve your mind.
2. The Secret Is Verbal Repetition
A proven method for remembering things is verbal repetition. If you have a hard time recounting things you read, start reading out loud. If you often misplace items, the next time you put an item away, verbally express where you are putting it. By vocalizing your actions and repeating information often, you will increase your recollection ability.
3. Use Notes
To-do lists and sticky notes are good ways to aid your memory. Start putting easy to forget information in a dedicated notebook. To make it easy to find things in your home, keep it clutter free. When you reduce the time you spend looking for items, you will have more time for learning new skills.
4. Forget The Stereotypes
As we get older, we often tell ourselves that becoming more forgetful is an unavoidable part of the natural aging process. Assuming that as fact, however, only serves to make your memory worse. While significant memory loss is linked to many injuries and diseases, it’s not a guaranteed part of aging. Knowing that your memory is not at the mercy of natural processes allows you to work actively to improve and preserve it.
5. Use All Your Senses
The more senses that are stimulated in any given situation, the easier it will be to retain information. Many studies have demonstrated that when multiple senses, such as smell, touch, and sight, are simultaneously stimulated, memory recall improves. So, the next time you got out for a meal, make sure you actively smell and taste all the flavors. Similarly, if you are trying to learn a new craft, pay close attention to the smell and feel of the tools and materials. By triggering more of your senses, you are providing your brain with more data to creating lasting memories.
6. Use Nootropics
Nootropics can really help you to keep on top of cognitive decline and are truly a case of better living through chemistry. Naturally occurring nootropics are plentiful throughout the world and can make all the difference to your mental state. If you want to know more, then look at this infographic below.
