Renew You!

Ways to improve your memory 

Thanks to the Internet and 24-hour news cycles, our brains are constantly bombarded with new information. With so much going on in our heads, it’s sometimes hard to remember the important stuff. Here are a few tips to improve your memory recall.

Set reminders. These are kind of a cheat, but they do help in memory recall. Perhaps the most famous reminder is a string wrapped around one’s finger, but in the age of Outlook and iPhones, alert reminders that tell you exactly what you need to remember are an ideal way to not forget something. Just remember to set them!

Shuffle your iPod. Memory recall is just like any other skill; the more practice your brain has, the better it will be at remembering things. One way to practice memory recall is to set your MP3 player on shuffle during your morning commute (or simply listen to your favorite radio station). At lunch, try to remember what songs you listened to and in what order they played. You can skip backward on your iPod to see how you did (or check the radio station’s Web site for song listings).

Drink—in moderation.  Consuming large amounts of alcohol greatly affects memory recall. In fact, much of the DUI test (reciting the alphabet backward, following simple instructions) is a test of memory. Excessive drinking can also affect day-to-day memory. But studies have shown that drinking in moderation (a glass of wine a day) can, in fact, improve one’s memory. So know your limit.

Pay attention. It may seem obvious, but one must learn something to remember it. The more you focus on new information when you receive it, the more likely you are to remember it later. So when you identify important information, simply take a few seconds to focus on it and process it and the better your chances that it’ll be available to you when you think of it later.

What tricks do you use to remember things?