Forget other mnemonics—this is the best way of studying, hands down. This is the last memory improvement technique you will ever need to learn.
Most mnemonic devices come up short because they do not provide enough associations to remember information. Many mnemonics rely on letters—but we don’t think in letters—we think in pictures (for more on the importance of pictures, click here.)
This article will teach you easy studying habits that you can implement immediately. Learn how to improve your memory by utilizing visual associations.
It's All About Creating Effective Associations
When it comes to memory retrieval, association is arguably the most important factor. If information has personal relevance, it is much easier to remember. Association helps us group together similar material and link new information to older, solidified memories.
Luckily, we don’t have to wait around for our brains to associate information at the normal, sluggish rate. We can supercharge our memory if we turn the information into pictures and create entertaining actions to link the material together.
Turn New Information Into Pictures and Link the Pictures Together
As discussed in the article 3 Tips for Improving Memory from Over 2,000 Years Ago, turning information into images is the most reliable memorization strategy. But piles of pictures can get misplaced inside the whirlwind of our brains. We must associate the pictures with one another. The easiest way to associate them is with a string of actions or action chains.
How to Create an Action Chain
Action chains strengthen our memory by accomplishing two important tasks: linking similar information together and anchoring old memories to new ones. When it comes to memory, pictures are the wooden planks that create the structure, and action chains are the nails that hold it all together.
Link Similar Information
Let’s take the following shopping list as an example of something we might need to memorize:
· eggs
· bacon
· bread
· burgers
· cheese
· peas
· apple pie
· flour
Create Memorable Picture Reminders
These edibles are very common and easy to picture. But I can’t count the number of times I’ve come home from the supermarket, only to realize I’ve forgotten the most basic groceries, like milk or eggs. Picturing the food in its normal form is way too mundane and easily forgotten. Instead, imagine the food as larger than life, like a cheese block the size of a cruise ship. Alternatively, picture it in enormous quantities, like a hillside full of eggs. Try giving the items a more memorable form—instead of bacon and burgers, imagine a pig and cow running amuck.
Link the Pictures Together With Entertaining Actions
After conjuring up your picture reminders, create exciting, hilarious, and absurd action chains to link it all together. The more ridiculous the better. Maybe a pig (bacon) is picking flowers (flour) until eggs begin to hail from the sky. The pig runs for shelter underneath a canopy of cheddar cheese.
Underneath the cheesy canopy is a cow (burgers) trying to fend off the pig with French bread. The pig pulls out a pea shooter and pelts the cow backward into an enormous pool-sized apple pie.
With a solid action chain in place, remembering one item on the list will trigger reminders for all others. Recalling the huge apple pie triggers thoughts of the baguette-fencing cow who falls in it, the flower-carrying pig shooting peas, and the cheesy tree protecting the pig from the hailstorm of eggs.
Link New Information to Old
As a final line of defense against forgetfulness, we must associate our action chain with a physical or virtual location. For more detailed information on how to do this, check out 4 Simple Steps to Remember Anything Using Your Favorite Entertainment.
We’ll use the Washington Monument for our example.
Imagine the pig picking flowers in front of the monument before the egg storm starts. The pig flees for shelter under the enormous wheel of cheese, which is now impaled on the monument. Under the cheesy wheel, the pig uses a pea shooter to fend off the baguette-wielding cow, knocking the bovine back into the reflecting pool, which has turned into an apple pie.
If the list were longer, we could place additional items around the Lincoln Memorial.
Action Chains Create Strong and Reliable Associations
The key is to create action chains and store your material in familiar locations. These locations can be places you’ve visited in real life (like houses, monuments, stadiums, and parks) or places you’ve visited virtually (like settings in movies, TV shows, or video games). This technique will allow you to index your brain like a filing cabinet and will help you to remember every grocery item, SAT vocab definition, and important math equation.
Action chains are true action heroes. Any learner can become a mental juggernaut by utilizing a few simple techniques!
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