Mini-guide to improving your memory

1. Memory palace technique: Visualize your way to recall

Action: Visualize a familiar place like your home. Associate items you want to remember with
specific locations (e.g., imagine a giant egg on your couch).​
Science: This technique leverages spatial memory, enhancing recall by linking new
information to familiar environments. [PMID: 31644984]

2. Distributed practice: Spaced repetition for mastery

Action: Study material in short sessions, spaced out over days or weeks. Gradually increase
intervals to solidify long-term retention.​
Science: Spaced repetition strengthens synaptic connections by forcing recall when
memories are almost forgotten, enhancing long-term retention [PMID: 12607171].

3. Post-learning exercise: Boost consolidation

Action: Engage in high-intensity exercise shortly after learning new information to enhance
memory consolidation.​
Science: High-intensity exercise after learning improves long-term memory by facilitating
early stages of consolidation, with benefits seen after a delay [PMID: 36401115].

4. Mnemonics: Create absurd associations

Action: Use acronyms or rhymes to encode information. For example, "Every Good Boy Does
Fine" for musical notes.​
Science: Mnemonics enhance memory by creating vivid, memorable associations that engage
multiple cognitive pathways [PMID: 37086812].

5. Sleep: The memory consolidator

Action: Ensure 7-9 hours of quality sleep each night. During sleep, memories are
consolidated from short-term to long-term storage.​
Science: Sleep plays a critical role in memory consolidation, with research showing improved
recall after adequate rest [PMID: 31451802].

6. Mindfulness and meditation: Calm the mind, enhance recall

Action: Practice mindfulness meditation daily to reduce stress and improve focus.​
Science: Meditation increases gray matter in areas related to memory and attention,
enhancing cognitive function [PMID: 27115491].
7. Interleaving: Mix it up for better retention

Action: Alternate between different types of material or skills during study sessions (e.g.,
switching between math problems and vocabulary).​
Science: Interleaving improves deep learning by forcing the brain to retrieve information
from different contexts, enhancing flexibility and retention [PMID: 29399621 ].

8. Retrieval practice: Test yourself

Action: Regularly quiz yourself on material without looking at notes. This strengthens
memory by actively recalling information.​
Science: Retrieval practice enhances long-term retention by reinforcing neural pathways
associated with the information [PMID: 31145027 ].

9. Chunking: Break down information

Action: Divide complex information into smaller, manageable chunks (e.g., breaking a phone
number into groups).​
Science: Chunking reduces cognitive load, making it easier to encode and recall information
by organizing it into more memorable units [PMID: PMID: 29698045].

10. Write it out: Handwriting for better encoding

Action: Write notes by hand during lectures or when studying. This engages multiple senses,
enhancing memory encoding.​
Science: Handwriting activates motor and sensory pathways, leading to deeper encoding and
better retention compared to typing [PMID: 37605367].

11. Reconsolidation: Update your memories

Action: When recalling a memory, update it with new information to reconsolidate and
strengthen it.​
Science: Reconsolidation allows memories to be modified and strengthened upon retrieval,
enhancing long-term retention [PMID: 28495311].

12. Context-dependent cues: Revisit the scene

Action: Return to the environment where you first learned information to trigger recall.​
Science: Contextual cues can enhance memory retrieval by linking new information to
familiar environments [PMID: 35483742 ].

13. Emotional encoding: Make memories emotional

Action: Associate new information with strong emotions to enhance encoding.​

Science: Emotional arousal increases the release of neurotransmitters like dopamine and
norepinephrine, which strengthen memory consolidation [PMID: 34848328].
14. Dual coding: Combine visual and verbal information

Action: Use both visual images and verbal descriptions to encode information.​
Science: Dual coding theory suggests that using both visual and auditory pathways enhances
memory by creating multiple retrieval routes [PMID: 29399621].

15. Working memory training: Challenge your capacity

Action: Engage in tasks that challenge working memory, such as dual-tasking exercises,
flashcards, recalling information, memory games etc​
Science: Training working memory can improve cognitive flexibility and enhance short-term
memory by strengthening neural networks… not really shown to have much significant effect
on long term memory [PMID: 27474138].

16. Errorless learning: Prevent misinformation

Action: Use flashcards with answers visible to prevent incorrect associations.​

Science: Errorless learning prevents the formation of incorrect memories, which can
interfere with correct recall [PMID: 18247118].

17. Interference reduction: Minimize distractions

Action: Study in a quiet environment with minimal distractions to reduce interference.​

Science: Reducing interference during encoding enhances memory by minimizing competing
stimuli that can disrupt consolidation [PMID: PMID: 14744216].

18. Semantic elaboration: Connect to meaning

Action: Relate new information to its meaning or significance to enhance encoding.​

Science: Semantic elaboration strengthens memory by linking new information to existing
knowledge structures [PMID: 28490637].

19. The Walrus technique:

Action: Can’t find your keys? Visualize a walrus balancing them on its tusks while singing
Bohemian Rhapsody.

Science: The weirder the cue, the stickier the memory (thanks to norepinephrine)

20. The “freshman year effect”

Action: Novelty boosts memory encoding. Take a different route to work, eat sushi for
breakfast, or watch Die Hard in German.

Science: Diverse experiences increase gray matter in the hippocampus—essentially lifting

weights for your brain
21. Learn random skills

Action: learn to Juggle, speak Icelandic, master the art of folding fitted sheets.

Science: The goal isn’t competency—it’s forcing your brain to build new neural backroads.

22. Outsource your brain

Action: Use apps for rote tasks (passwords, grocery lists).

Science: Free up mental RAM for remembering more crucial tasks.

(P.S 19-22 I learned from Dr Charan Ranganath… you can learn more about memory on the
recent podcast I did with him!)