60 Ways To Improve Your Memory & Brain Power

I sometimes wonder what my life would be like if I can remember almost everything just like Kim Peak. My computer and the internet will probably have no use for me, right? Yeah, we all want to have a superpower memory (minus the brain defects, of course).

Ever since I flunked my math subject in highschool, I’ve been obsessed with improving my memory and have been trying all the different methods that I can find. Now that I’m older, I discovered that what works for me best is one of the simplest techniques of all time – i.e. reading. Yes, comrade. What I said is true. Reading alone can help improve your memory tenfold. So, if you read all the tips I’ve provided below, you’re definitely on your way to unleashing the power of your brain and utilizing it to its fullest potential.

SENSORY ENHANCEMENT

1. Engage All Your Senses – We often try to remember things using one or two of our senses. Scientific studies have proven that the more senses you engage in your mental projection, the more likely you will be able to retain the information inside your head. We usually neglect touch, taste, and smell when we are memorizing something. Try to involve these senses and notice the big difference it will make.

2. Add Color – Advertisers know how to effectively use colors to attract attention and leave a strong impression to their target audience. Keep in mind that the more you give attention to what you are trying to remember, the more it will stay in your memory. Learn the effects of colors and how you can use them to boost your brain power.

3. Effective Listening – Most of the time, we tend to forget things not because we have a poor memory, but because we fail to listen to what is being said. When you are in a conversation, listening is really not that hard as long as you are interested in the subject, but if you know how to listen effectively regardless of the topic’s relevance, you’ll be able to increase a large fraction of your brain’s capacity to remember.

4. Request Repetition During Conversation – In seminars and lectures, speakers often do the favor of repeating significant subjects for the audience so they can remember it. In normal conversations, however, you may need to ask the other person to repeat something you feel that it's important so that you can reduce the possibility of forgetting it.

5. Ask For The Pronunciation – If you’re trying to remember names of acquaintances, it is very effective to politely ask for the pronunciation. This will not only give the name a strong impression on your mind, but will also show your interest in the other person.

6. Ask For The Spelling – Sometimes, you will encounter people who may just not make any sense even when it comes to pronouncing their names. If that’s the case, it will be better to ask for the spelling.

7. Take Photographs – Pictures convey a thousand words. I’m not suggesting that you take pictures of every person you meet. Besides, we’re done talking about remembering names. For other things that you want to remember, sometimes by associating it with photographs or taking a shot of it can help a big deal in improving your memory.

8. Use The 5S Method – People in Japan make use of a system called the 5S Method. A lot of companies worldwide have incorporated this system as a management methodology. The point is, an organized environment is equivalent to organized thinking. It’s helpful to keep your things in order so that it will be easier for you to remember where they are located.

LOGICAL THINKING

9. Mental Preparation – Take time to relax and get yourself ready for any activity that will require your mental energy. If you prepare yourself by anticipating how things will run during your day, your mind has more time to stay calm. It also helps you avoid anxiety which is a leading cause of memory loss.

10. Observation – Discoveries are made by people who know how to observe properly. Most people remain passive to the things that are happening in their surroundings. Thus, they let the opportunity of discovering something new or realizing something that has been staring them in the face for a long time pass through their own hands.

11. Learn Speed Reading – Logical thinking requires you to compare new ideas with old ones already existing inside your mind. When you have more ideas inside your head, you’ll find it easier to analyze different things. To do this, of course, you will need to learn speed reading.

12. Sequencing and Ordering – Sometimes, you will need to think in a linear fashion to remember things. If you put your things in order inside your home or your office, I don’t see any reason why you shouldn’t do the same inside your mind.

13. Numbering – Numbers were invented exactly to put things in order inside our minds. You may not like math because it’s difficult, but it’s always good to keep in mind that all of us learned to count from one to ten. You don’t always need to make it difficult for yourself.

14. Business Cards – Professionally, this is a necessity for most people. The reason is fairly obvious, of course. All the important information you want to remember about the other person is contained in their card.

15. Personal File – If you’re in the habit of exchanging business cards with other people or collecting any kind of data from any kind of source, then you will certainly need to have a place to keep them. Make sure you apply sequencing and ordering in your personal file.

16. Internal Repetition – You can hear yourself talk inside your head everyday. That’s called subvocalization. If you make it a habit to repeat anything you want to remember during a conversation using subvocalization, you are increasing the power of your brain to remember.

17. Time Allotment – Things are often forgotten when not enough time is allotted by our attention. In social gatherings and business occasions, people make sure they give themselves enough time for meeting people and having short conversations.

18. The Progressive Method – Avoid taking everything all at once. Your brain and mind have its own limits. No matter what you’re doing or trying to remember, start small but always try to keep breaking your previous record.

19. Form Good Habits - Your nervous system creates neural pathways each time you learn something. These neural pathways become stronger through repetition and practice. It only takes a month to turn a new skill into a habit.

20. Learn Something New – By acquiring new skills each time you see an opportunity, not only will your brain power improve but you are also increasing your potential for adaptation. Understanding your own environment becomes easier by learning something new every day and forming them into habits.

21. Solving Puzzles – Crossword puzzles, arcade games, word games, chess, etc. All these things require your mind to invent tactical solutions. Strategy games played with a time limit is even better because it forces you think faster.

22. Create Your Own Technique & System – The Link Method, Method of Loci, Mind Maps, etc. are just some techniques created by people to enhance memory and brain power. You can start out by trying which works for you best, but as time moves on, you should also learn how to customize and create your own system.

23. Always Make A Plan – Sure there are people who enjoy spontaneous activities, but if you’re after brain power, that won’t help. In all your intellectual endeavors, it’s always good to have a plan.

24. Question Everything – It’s always easy to take everything we see or hear for granted. However, if you want to take control of your own mind, making use of How and Why as your perceptual filtering system helps in broadening your perspective.

CREATIVE THINKING

25. Affirmative Thought Patterns – Negativity takes more energy out of your brain. If you always keep your mind in a positive state, you’re creating a fertile ground for positive ideas inside your head and everything you will project outward (in reality) will be the same.

26. Use Your Imagination – Do you notice that what you imagine is exactly what comes out of your mouth when you talk to someone? Our memories are exactly those images that the mind creates. To expand your imagination, don’t rely on your TV. Pick up a book or go to different places.

27. Sex – Surprising, isn’t it? Before you get any ideas, however, please know that I’m not suggesting the mere act of having sex. I suggest that you read the Mystery of Sex Transmutation from Napoleon Hill’s book called Think and Grow Rich.

28. Mental Slideshow – I’m sure you’re familiar with Microsoft Powerpoint. If you can develop a habit of putting information inside your head in your own mental Powerpoint, you’ll brain will have an easier time remembering things for you.

29. Don’t Waste Time – Can you calculate how many hours you spend in one year doing routine activities like taking a bath, driving a car, preparing lunch, or whatever? Imagine if you are using that opportunity to listen to instructional CDs. Use your time wisely.

30. Learn A New Language – In our world today, it’s really not enough that you just know how to speak or write your own language. By learning a different one, you’re not only making yourself more marketable, but you’re also giving yourself the chance to develop your brain’s ability to remember.

31. Write or Blog – It doesn’t really matter whether you are writing a diary, a journal, a poem, a news story, a novel, etc. As long as you write your thoughts down on something, you’re keeping your brain active and improving your concentration. Writing done with research is even more beneficial for your memory.

32. Learn To Play Music – Musical notes are like numbers for the brain. The sound of these notes and the symbols they use already engages your sense of sound and sight. Your memory will get even better if you involve the other senses as mentioned at the beginning of this article.

33. Listen To Classical Music – To your mind, pop music is like television while classical music is like a field trip.

34. Educate Yourself – Learning does not stop in school. If you want to improve your memory and thinking, convince yourself that you must study new ideas each and every day of your life.

35. Develop Your Intuition – There are times in your life when you just know something without necessarily using your mind to think about it. This is called intuition. The next set of tips is not only designed to improve your memory but your intuition as well.

PSYCHOLOGICAL APPROACH

36. Self-mastery – Your mind is the hardest thing on Earth to control. If you can’t control yourself, that makes it even harder. Read my article called Forget The 7 Habits… Here Are 30 Ways To Become Highly Effective.

37. Steadfast Concentration – Successful people know how to focus all their attention to their ultimate goal. However, most people find it hard to do just that and get easily distracted by other concerns. A simple solution is to keep the image of your goal inside your mind for as long as you can. When other thoughts start entering your mind, slightly pinch yourself and return to the image that you were focusing on.

38. Hypnosis Audios – Hypnosis makes use of the power of suggestion and belief suspension. In earlier decades, it was hard to find professional hypnotists for consultation. Today, websites like Richard MacKenzie Direct provides tons of hypnotic mp3s.

39. Imaginary Characters – Don’t you find it a bit boring to talk to your mental self all the time? This may sound odd, but why not try giving it a different character or even multiple characters. Imagine one of them is Einstein; wouldn’t it be fun to talk to him about stink bombs?

40. Brainwave Entrainment - Meditation and concentration produce changes in brainwave patterns. Studies in neuroscience have proven that the same patterns can be produced through the use of binaural beats. If sitting in a lonely corner for a few minutes or several hours is not your idea of brain and memory enhancement, then perhaps you can try brainwave entrainment.

41. Explain It – Sometimes, simply talking to your friends may help enhance your memory and understanding. The process of explaining your ideas allows you to put things in order and sequence inside your mind.

42. Autosuggestion – People who don’t think they are smart are usually right. People who do think they are smart are usually right too. It is clearly a choice among the two. If you prefer the last one, confirm your belief by making a note of your achievements so that you have something to show yourself each time you are in doubt.

43. Find A Role Model – As young kids, we learn from our parents by imitating their behavior and actions. Who says you can’t imitate people even when you are an adult? If you want to become smarter, find role models and try to emulate their behavioral patterns. Just be sure to analyze any advice before taking it into consideration.

44. Open Your Mind – I’ve encountered a lot of people who find it easy to reject almost any kind of idea presented to them. They are the kind of people nobody would want to talk to as well. I’m certain they are infected with the D.U.M.B.A.S.S. Disorder.

45. Avoid Too Much Stress – Although stress can be useful in helping you cope with the demands of everyday living, too much of it can actually damage your brain. Learn the effects of stress on the brain so that you know exactly when enough is enough.

46. Keep Yourself Motivated – Indeed, you have found an article with dozens of tips on how to increase brain power and improve your memory, but if you don’t know how to motivate yourself, you might go back to square one within a few weeks. Read this piece I wrote if ever you find the need to motivate yourself.

47. Make It Fun – If it’s not fun, then don’t do it. It’s that simple. Remember what I said about stress? Doing something that is not fun for you may eventually give you stress. On the other hand, when you enjoy learning, understanding, observing, and studying something, remembering it will require no effort at all.

PHYSICAL APPROACH

48. Proper Breathing – Your brain as well as your body requires a adequate supply oxygen to function properly. I’ve read a great book that teaches different kinds of breathing techniques to help you physically, mentally, and spiritually. It’s called The Hindu-Yogi Science Of Breath by William Walker Atkinson (a.k.a. Yogi Ramacharaka). I strongly suggest that you get a copy.

49. Right Amount Of Sleep – Sleep is the maintenance period of your brain. During this time, the organic computer processor inside your head has lesser things to attend to which allows it to focus all its energy in defragmenting all the data you have downloaded during the day.

50. Exercise – Keep in mind that your brain is connected to your body through the entire nervous system. When you neglect your body, your brain will start to feel that you’re neglecting it too. Exercise by running or walking for 15-30 minutes everyday to keep your body fit and healthy.

51. Maintain A Good Posture – Do you notice that when you get a bright idea in your head, your body seems to sit or stand straight? Keeping your body in a good position actually affects your thinking process.

52. Food Allergens – Foods that give you problems not only affect your body but your brain as well.

53. Avoid Simple Carbohydrates – When performing any mental task, try to avoid foods like white bread, rice, pasta, and sugar. These can cause brain fog which makes it hard for you to think clearly and concentrate on your activities.

54. Let’s Have Some Coffee – Caffeine actually makes you mentally dexterous because of its psychoactive characteristics. However, consumption should always be moderate. Its short term benefits may be great but drinking too much coffee may cause long-term side effects. If you’re planning to read these tips all over again, you might want to have some coffee on your side.

55. Release Those Endorphins – Your pituitary gland produces and releases a chemical called endorphin to reduce stress. This happens when you exercise, get excited, or have an orgasm. You like the sound of that, don’t you?

56. Engage In Activities Requiring Hand-Eye Coordination – Tennis, basketball, billiards, Atari games, and so on. Did I just say Atari?

57. Use Your Right Brain – You seldom use the right side of your brain which is responsible for pattern recognition and creative thinking. One way you can trigger activity on this portion of your mental hardware is by singing, using your left hand, drawing, painting, writing, or any other activity that requires you to think out of the box.

58. Eat Less But More Frequently – Body builders, athletes, and health conscious individuals eat 5 small meals a day. This allows them to control the rate of metabolism of their bodies. For brainiacs, doing the same thing allows a steady amount of blood flowing to the brain. Overeating, on the other hand, causes more blood in your body to flow to your digestive system.

59. Don’t Forget Breakfast – I usually take breakfast in the afternoon because that’s the time I wake up. However, if your body clock is normal, eating breakfast significantly improves your memory and your brain’s overall function.

60. Be Cool – A cool, but comfortable, temperature is more favorable for your brain. If you haven’t forgotten, your brain actually releases more heat than any other part of your body. If a computer processor needs a cooling fan, so does your brain.

Always remember, my friend, knowledge is power. [RS]

If you liked this post, give us some link love and don't forget to share this with your friends using the Bookmark and Share button below. Please do subscribe to Virtual Synapses via Email to receive updates of my latest articles.