Called the self-reference technique, this is really one of the best and simplest methods of all, so much so that we tend not to even think about it. Simply refer any information to yourself and it makes it easier to remember.
It can work on a mundane level - meeting someone called Peter and associating him with other Peters you know. On a deeper level, making personal associations with important facts or ideas - political, moral, social, etc. will help you remember them.
Janet
Sounds as if it might work, will try it out
Pauline
Rhis sounds an interesting method to take up - especially for name remembering which is my weakness.
hrc
it is very useful.
Julia
To respond to the people who wanted to use this as a revision technique. There are a couple of ways to do this (and yes, I do teach them to my pupils!).
The first is to relate this to your "imagery" technique. So you could for example write down the date of the Magna Carta. Then turn it into a visual image of something YOU find gruesome or amusing (hence the connection to you). Or you could visualise the whole scene and all the people, and tranpose it onto something that's more interesting to you. So mine would take place during an episode of Hollyoaks, but I can make them say all the relevant things!
The second technique is to use your emotions. Start with an actual piece of information that makes you shocked, sad, happy or angry. (Again this is specific to you). Then find a way to link the other info to it e.g. using a mnemonic or a mind map. SOme people would give their info and feelings a colour, others don't find it useful at all.
I hope this is helpful. The real problem of course is that having to revise is not as interesting as your own memories and recalling them! Put the work in and you will enjoy your academic knowledge too!
lynn Henry
No, dont agree
George
Good tip - but I founf the 'comments' even more helpful.
Vijay
I did not find this useful at all.
M.C.
Not really useful. I have difficulty with names .
sjbmail@ntlworld.com
very useful except when trying to remember new peoples names at a meeting. I can't make another person me no matter how I stretch the abstraction - any examples or guidance please?
Colin
To Bogwell, Just remember that the Magna Carta was signed at lunch time: 1215
Tracy
A useful technique, and one that I definately do subconsciously - if I think about it...
June
Can be a useful aid and is probably something we all do automatically.
Lisa
My husband knows about 5 Simon's and they are known by nick names after their first name ie. Simon Heli is a helicopeter pilot, Simon S'oton as that's where he lives and so on so the last name is not their real name but a personal surname we have given them to recognise who's who!
holly
this seems quite good because i have loads of new names to remember at my new school so i look at them and think right chloes tall and izzie is scary!!!!! and it works.
Phil
Next time you meet someone called Barker, just quietly in your head, say "woof woof!".
You will never be able to avoid doing it for the rest of your life, and one day you will do it out loud to them.
bogwell
i fail to see how i could relate remembering the date of the signing of the magna carta to me, to would help me to remember it.
No i dont know it.
Kathryn lacey
I find it easy to remember names by finding a distingishing factor in faces, if you retain the last few sentences which were spoken to you it is also easy to pick up on the last conversation you had with the person.
Ian
I know two Dutch Guys one called Pieter [pronounced Peter] and Peter [pronounced Pater]I am constantly getting them both mixed up! work that one out. I feel that I am thinking in English when speaking Dutch.
Monica
In these days of cross gender names it can be difficult not to offend when referring to people in conversation and realising that you are talking about a person who is not who you think they are! I often have to ensure that I am talking about the correct person bt giving the surname as well -just in case!
Sue
Yes this would be good for me I am in fundraising and it is good to remember snippets of info about funders
Convarjus
When being introduced to new people, namesakes do work - the name fits into memory quickly and I collect the differences quicker. When a new meet has an unusual name, it is often only the name I remember - if at all.
Grouping people under the one who introduces me also helps.
Dreamer
For a while I tried to find similar links for the many new names I needed to recall at work. On meeting a new colleague, I linked her face to a beautifully made bed with frills, bows and all the trimmings. Personally I tend to prefer a minimalist style. Perhaps that was the problem. The second time I saw her I visualised this bed, couldn't remember her name but made a link with duvet. So for a while I called her Mrs Duffy until colleagues told me her name was Vallance!
Pam
Don't really understand this. How could I make Othello or any plat/book and quotations personal to me/?
Heather
I agree with Rami. Recently I did some family history research. It was amazing to me to see the way historical facts and geographical locations lodged in my mind because they were associated with my family history. This of course made them meaningful too.......another key factor in memorising facts.
val vearncombe
yes, great idea if, the reference is humorous. e.g three residents in our block of flats were known as, phil, overfill,and refill.but finding the trigger in the first place is my problem.
Jaromir Buczek
I have three mates by the name of Peter, and I remember them by Tall-and-Lanky Pete, Mad Pete, and Pete-that-calls-me-Ruski Pete. :)
This technique works.
Cuddly-cat
Yes, Gill, there is a strong possibility of it all going terribly wrong. For example, I have a dog called Peter (well, I like the name!) and I also work with two people who share the same name - one of them told me he liked working with me becaue I have smiley eyes, didn't dare tell him what amused me every time I saw him.
PS I love my dog!
Laurie Turner
Yes, multiples of anything are easier to recall- remember one Peter you remember them all!
Alexandra
This sounds like a good technique. Most of the time I think I don't really listen to a persons name when being introduced. The brain is focusing on the physical impression, and it is not until the importance of that person registers, does the need to know their name take on importance.
andi b
all well and good but I seem to remember things when it seems to late
shanaz ahmed
i shall try to use this technique
brunnette-1
i no none called peter so if i met this man how should i remeber his name?
Kim
this works really well to remember for me but the connections are often very tenuous
Margaret
I seem sometimes to listen but when I try to recall I have forgotten it. I sometimes find some talk very interesting but a few days later have not really remembered it properly
Steve W
I will try this technique, I am terrible with names.
hipmummie
I mentioned earlier that I do this all the time. if it's not relevant or of interest I can forget it instantly.
Ljn
Have a class with two women both with Welsh names. I am always using the wrong name even though one is the tutor and the other is my copupil. Same problem with family - brother and son, two daughters. And you can't get much more personal than family. My grandmother used to go through all six of her sisters' names, then my mother's before she got to me.
Daphne
I make a picture of the person, and also add something, so that I have a 'cue' to help me remember, I am never ashamed of forgetting someone's name, just ask them straight out, usually giving my own first.
Mervyn
Useful in teaching situations
Antoniet
I recently was introduced to a new colleague called Antoniet I immediately associeted it with "French King" I thought this will stick but - when I needed to call her I called her Josephine! so - not a reliable technique
Brigitta
anon
This is a good point, but it only works if there is a strong connection between the thing and you.
Mollie
I really have problem with people's names and I usually have to hear them say it several times. Lately, I've started associating the name with something very familiar which works for me. For example, I met someone called Jeannie who was blonde. So instead of "Jeannie with the light brown hair," I used "Jeannie with the light blonde hair" and remember her name all the time. Alternatively, when I meet someone new and hear the name,I'll concentrate on it and repeat it several times to myself. So hearing a new name becomes a switch in my brain to make me learn it. Of course, if I immediately like the person, it becomes easier to learn the name since I want to and therefore, it's important.
Peter
I take offence at my name being used in this example because, to tell the truth Peter is no longer a common name, I am the only one in my workplace of 90 staff who has it. It seems to me this technique should not be called me, me, me but rather is about making information personal and meaningful to the individual learning it. Would it not be better for trainers to ask the question: how can I teach this subject so effectively my class will remember it? I can't help but think students are in part being seen as the ones at fault. And certainly not just students because it equally goes for workplaces and employees being taught anything.
Rami (website team)
Like many of these tips (which by the way all come from bonafide academics (we don't just make this stuff up you know. Well, not much of it) it's about formalising the 'best' way that the mind works. Trouble is, not everyone can think about information in this way all of the time. Self-reference is what many people do naturally but usually on one level - to help store small chunks of information. However, self-reference has been shown to significantly improve how students learn their required subjects. They can be actively taught in such a way as to relate the history lesson or political theory to their own values or experience. This in turn improves their results in recall tests.
Trevor
Any number of connections with your own knowledge can be very helpful. For example, I had to deal with two clients with the same first name: I used their different cars to link to my knowledge and preferences for a particular model to remind myself who was whom.
Victoria
Don't we all do this all the time? Surely it's impossible to learn any new piece of information without 'filtering' it through our own knowledge/experience/personality. If you meet someone new called Peter, and you already have a friend called Peter, I'd defy anyone not to have an image of the friend come to mind. I don't really think this is a 'tip', but simply a description of existing processes.
Gopher
Mmm, underwater bayonet fighting. Where do I join up?
gill
i agree, i try to use visual pictures of people with the same name to help me remember them - although this can go terribly wrong
les
Additional benefit gained when the person you met feels even more valued when you recall that their hobby is underwater bayonet fighting, or whatever.
