Let’s say you have a passion for salads in different varieties.
Because of this, you developed the skill of preparing them by yourself. So every time you crave for salad, you check the ingredients you have at home.
You commit to memory the ingredients you need to buy; but while doing this, your partner asks you to buy a thing or two since you’re going to the supermarket anyway.
If your attention is focused on the salad ingredients, it’s most likely that you’ll miss out buying the thing your spouse asked you to buy.
Or if your attention switched to your wife’s request, you may miss an ingredient or two for the salad. If nothing is missed on either one, then you have good memory coordination.
But let’s say you overlooked a thing or two, it’s likely that the thing you missed was never committed to memory in the first place. Find out the possible reasons why information is not committed to memory and how to overcome these predicaments.
Do you get distracted easily? Distraction is one of the most common reasons why information is not committed to memory. When a loud or startling sound, a foul smell, TV or video game noise, or any other external forces overwhelm incoming information, then it’s likely that you will not pick up the information for memory storage.
Only one solution is at hand. Shift your concentration to the information by getting away from all the distractions, or by taking these diversions away from you.
On the other hand, if your concentration is focused on something that interests you, new information can’t get through you. This may seem like a plus factor to memory retention but the problem here is that new information which may be important at the moment will not find its way through your memory.
Take for example, you are concentrating deeply on a set of jewelry which you want to buy for your spouse during a special occasion. Since the price is too expensive, you’re contemplating on how you can acquire the jewelry without draining your pocket.
Just outside the jewelry shop, an old friend sees you and calls your name; but somehow you can’t or don’t hear it. The shop attendant has to intercede so you can snap out of your concentration.
Technically, there seems to be nothing wrong with keeping focus on something, except that the focus may get rooted too deep (much like a trance) that you somehow tend to forget the outside world. To correct it, practice gradually shifting to a slightly shallow state of concentration.
This may take some time. Always keep in mind an attitude to stay alert.
Get motivated and interested. If something unimportant is called to your attention, it is likely that you don’t concentrate on it, much less remember it. However, there may be some things that may not interest you but nonetheless important, so it is best to keep motivated. What may seem unimportant at the instant the information is available may become important later. Besides, it is one way to boost your memory capability. It is an exercise for the memory bank of your brain.
Stress is almost always a culprit whenever the subject is inclined to shortfalls in memory retention. With emotional or physical stress, your performance with regards to memory is reduced.
You may have come across instances when you tried your best to remember something (a name, place, or date) but actually can not; it’s at the tip-of-the-tongue. Some theorized this syndrome occurs more with age. Others say the brain dumps memory information anywhere within itself. It gets disorganized. When we need to retrieve something, it’s like going through a file of assorted information.
Whatever the reason may be, the real cause of the syndrome is stress. The harder you try (even if you snap your fingers incessantly), the less likely you’ll remember it. This makes it more frustrating.
The way to handle it is to find relief from your stress through relaxation. Once you’re relaxed, the missing words will just pop out of your mind without any effort.
To relax, try deep breathing exercises. Inhale slowly through the nose, hold it for a while and exhale fast (as if blowing balloon) through the mouth. This is probably the reason why our mouth is bigger than our nostrils.