Be honest about your experience with mnemonics.
You've read a book or two, maybe even taken a video course. And yet …
You're Still Scrambling To Recall Information!
If that sounds like you, then here's the sad truth: You're suffering from "memory improvement randomness." That's what happens when people read a book on mnemonics, take a stab at the techniques and then … give up … only to pick up another book by someone else and try all over again.
Fortunately, there's a cure.
In fact, there are 7 of them.
Why Most People Are Allergic To Mnemonics
First off, let's look at one big problem.
The word "mnemonics" isn't all that sexy, is it? And it sounds an awful lot like "pneumonic," in the singular "mnemonic" form, which makes it sound even more like this beautiful art relates to pneumonia.
"Mnemotechnics" is nicer, and definitely won't make you sick. But the "technics" part makes the whole thing sound like hard work.
That's no good.
Because the truth is that mnemonics are not only easy, but they're the most exciting activity in the world.
And that's the key to falling in love with this special field of personal improvement.
How To Find Excitement In The World's Oldest Mental Art
To locate and embrace the excitement of using mnemonics and memory techniques, you first need to get rid of the notion that any of this is "hard work." It isn't. Never has been. Never will be.
Unless you decide that it must be. That's all mindset and this podcast on developing better mindset will help you with that.
Bookmark those resources for later as we dive into the 7 Eternal Laws Of Memory Improvement. Follow each of these laws of mnemonics and you will quickly find the fun in using memory techniques and never forget what a wild ride the art of memory can be.
1. You Have The Duty To Go Insane With Your Mnemonics
The trick to remembering anything is association. You take a piece of information you don't know and associate it with something you do.
For example, I had no idea the word 感到 (gǎn dào) meant to feel. But I do know of a character named Gandalf from Lord of the Rings. And in my imagination, I know how to hurt his feelings.
So that's what I did. In the craziest way possible. Then, using the drawing skills I have, I got it down on paper to make the learning process even faster and easier.
Of course, the trouble with teaching mnemonics is that I can't exactly show you exactly what the imagery looks like in my mind. I would need a Hollywood film crew and a Spielberg-sized budget for that.
But rest assured that what happens when Gandalf feeds the Tao Te Ching to that black horse isn't pretty. But it helps me remember not only the sound and the meaning of the word, but also its tones in Mandarin.
If you'd like to get better at making crazy imagery in your imagination, check out the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast episode called Mindshock: How To Make Amazing Visual Imagery And Memorize More Stuff.
2. Every Building You've Ever Been In Is Infinitely Valuable
To get the most from mnemonics, you need to locate the crazy images you come up with in a Memory Palace.
Unfortunately, a lot of people think that Memory Palaces take too much work, and that's probably my fault.
You see, I've used the phrase "build Memory Palaces" when talking about mnemonics thousands of times. What I really mean is "create" Memory Palaces – or whatever word you need that involves spending 2-5 minutes creating a fantastic tool you can use to organize and store your mnemon
Published on 9 years, 5 months ago
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