How to Have a Photographic Memory

Are you having problems with your memory? As you continue to age, your memory naturally deteriorates. But you can stop your memory loss. As a matter of fact, you can even increase your memory. After all, humans use only a small fraction of their brain cells. Use it or lose it! It’s just that simple! Develop a photographic memory at any age, even as you step into seniority.

Memory has everything to do with awareness and mental associations. You must be able to associate the information and input it in your brain, so that you can retrieve the information later. To facilitate the mental processing of the information, you need to do the following:

Concentration

Try not to do too many things too quickly at the same time. This not only creates time-stress but also disorients the mind. Forget about multi-tasking; most probably, by now, you have passed that age!

Visualization

Visualize the information in your mind's eye, which is essentially the process of remembering. Seeing is believing, and a picture is worth a thousand words. If you can vividly visualize something in your mind's eye, your memory of that becomes more vivid, and that memory will be retained much longer.

Creativity and Imagination

Being creative and imaginative is an indispensable asset in good memory. The explanation is that with a creative mind, you can come up with mental associations that are totally outrageous and therefore unforgetable. The more absurd your mental associations are, the longer they will stick in your memory. You can learn to become more creative and imaginative through more practice. If you can think of something extraordinary, you can create out-of-the-ordinary mental associations that you will not easily forget. For example, when you are introduced to someone by the name of “Dustin”, you can create the image of a dustbin, and associate the features of that person with a dustbin. The more ridiculous that image is, the more you will remember that person’s name.

Repetition

Give the information a sound so that you can hear it as well as see it. Repeat the information as much as possible. For example, if you are introduced to a person, repeat the name of that person several times to register it in your brain. However, the process of repeating and remembering may not be as simple and straightforward as you wish: there may be obstacles to hindering the process. These obstacles may include distraction, lack of focus, inadequate motivation, and a stressful environment.

Compartmentalization

Finally, you need to store the information in an organized and systematic way in a mental folder in your memory. The human mind has a great capacity for storage of information. In fact, you have probably used up only about ten percent of brain storage space. To help you remember all types of information as well as to retrieve  the stored information, you need to think logically and categorize systematically the information in your mind's eye. The brain is like a file cabinet, where you put different types of information according to different categories or headings.

The bottom line: to protect and preserve a photographic memory, you must have a healthy brain.  What is good for the heart is always good for the brain because good blood circulation is essential.  Also, live a stress-free life: read my book No Ego No Stress. 

Stephen Lau

Copyright© by Stephen Lau