How To Keep A Sharp Memory

While you might think that a fading memory starts with old age, all of us have those moments when keeping a sharp memory evades us...at any age. Many times, we can't recall the last spot we left our keys, the last occasion we saw a friend or even what our significant other was wearing last night.

The sobering news is that if we don't take some time and effort to boost it, our memory may become occasionally fleeting and can circumvent even the most brilliant minds at any time.

If you stop to consider the many benefits for keeping a sharp memory, I am sure you'll agree that it's a good idea to look for ways to strengthen your memory.

Try a few of these easy strategies to strengthen, supercharge and keep a sharp memory. Don't wait until old age, practice using them throughout your life time. They can help keep your memory in peak operating condition:

1. Maintain a healthy way of living. You may not associate your overall health to keeping a sharp memory; however, if you stay healthy, you'll be helping to your memory at the same time. For example, eating wholesome foods will make sure that you're getting lots of nutritional vitamins that enable healthy brain function and minimize " free radicals " which often can hinder a sharp memory.

2. Get more physical exercise. While you normally think of physical activity as nice for the body, it's also an exceptional way to help keep a sharp memory. Exercise increases blood circulation to the brain and keeps air levels up. These types of increased oxygen amounts help keep you alert and provide more clarity in your thinking. By increasing the supply of oxygen to your brain, exercise helps reduce the threat for diseases and issues which can ultimately lead to loss of memory.

3. Pay better attention. You can enhance your memory by just becoming more aware of what's going on around you. When someone is speaking to you, give them your full attention. You'll have a much better chance at encoding their words and phrases to long-term memory.

4. Use your memory to improve your memory. Try to memorize a favorite poem or monologue. When you do you are engaging your brain and helping to build your sharp memory skills. Remember how many phone numbers you had memorized before you could store them all in your smartphone? Making yourself memorize something is great exercise for a sharp memory.

5. Get organized. Keep a daily planner to help organize your day. A good planner reminds you of important events while keeping you from having to juggle too many things in your mind all at once. Too much juggling can result in "scatterbrained" thinking. Also pay attention to the way you organize your life. You won't have to remember where you left your keys if you always leave them in the same spot. A great rule to follow is, "A place for everything and everything in its place."

6. Keep your stress level down. Too much stress can make your thinking erratic and cause challenges with your memory. Take steps to calm yourself down and you'll find that you're thinking with a clearer head. Deep breathing exercises, reading, relaxing music, and pleasurable hobbies are all great stress-busters. Include meditation in this mix. Meditation can be beneficial to memory because it also helps your body relax and release stress..another favorite of mine.

7. Rehearse information. If there's something in particular that you're trying to study or remember, try rehearsal techniques. It's a great way to ensure that information is passing into your long-term memory. With rehearsal, you just repeat and study information over and over until you remember it easily.

8. Visualize concepts. This is one of my favorites. I am a very visual person. Images can be very powerful. If you're a visual person, you might find visualizing more helpful than some of the other techniques. Visual people remember better if they see what they need to remember. It helps you to see information in a picture, chart, or graph.

9. Use mnemonic devices. Mnemonic devices can be used to help you remember certain bits of information by relating the facts to an easy-to-remember image, word, tune, or phrase. For example, the classic sentence, "Every Good Boy Does Fine," has been used for generations to help people remember the lines of the treble clef (EGBDF) for sheet music...Relating the information you want to remember to jokes or rhymes works well, too. These are fun ways you can remember facts and keep a sharp memory.

10. Get enough sleep. If you're sleep-deprived, you're more likely to suffer from poor memory. Go to bed and get up in the morning at established times to help your body form a natural day-to-night rhythm. Relax before bedtime to help you transition into a sound sleep.

11. Make associations. Time after time it appears that memories improve when we make associations to stimuli that are used in deep processing as opposed to tuning into just the physical characteristics. For example, you are more likely to remember someone's face if you make some type of association with it as opposed to remembering how the people look.

When you stay proactive with some of these memory techniques, you'll be sharp for a long time to come. Exercise your memory daily and it will serve you well in all aspects of your life...throughout your life! An excellent memory can be to your advantage in personal, educational, social, business, and financial situations.

As I mentioned before, even the most brilliant brain needs assistance to be better at remembering everyday things. Whether you can never remember what you were just talking about, or can't recall every single person you've talked to in the last 15 days...everyone can benefit from sharpening their memory. I Hope the strategies outlined in this article can help you keep a sharp memory!

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