本文发表在 rolia.net 枫下论坛Tricking Your Brain to Remember Names
Does this ever happen to you? You are at a networking or even a social event. You are introduced to somebody but as soon as their name is spoken it disappears from your memory, never even seeming to enter your mind. Now you are stuck with a dilemma. This may be an important person for your networking, someone with whom you really want to make a connection. They may still be standing right in front of you, but you have no recollection of their name. You must figure out a way to get their name again. Do you ask them again? I never want to do that as that seems quite embarrassing, even rude, especially if it was only a few minutes earlier that they were introduced.
This used to happen to me all the time and I could not seem to figure out how to avoid it. Then I stumbled on a little gem of knowledge a few months ago that has proven most successful in preventing this from happening. It came from a National Geographic documentary I was watching on the brain and memory. It featured a gentleman named Ron White who is the two time U.S. memory champion. And the following little memory tip is his.
That feeling that the name did not even enter our minds is actually very accurate. The brain, which is literally bombarded with millions of facts, observations and stimuli on a daily basis, is actually hardwired to not notice everything in this vast sphere of impressions it faces. It literally filters out most of what it observes so as to only let in what is needed. However, at times, important things might get blocked out by this automatic process, such as in the case of our introductions. This effect is even more pronounced during periods of stress such as—you guessed it— at networking events.
Focus is the filter that the brain uses to determine which observations or facts get in and which do not. Simply put, we are far more likely to recall what we focus on; focus prepares our brains to receive specific input. So the way to override this automatic forgetting or ignoring is to train our brains to focus on the specific input we want it to receive. If we learn to focus our minds on names when we enter an event we create a powerful expectation for our brains. I tried this and it works, though I must admit it’s a little strange at first. Fortunately, it very quickly becomes automatic.
Try this. When you enter a networking event or a party, repeat to yourself over and over something like “I want to remember names. I want to remember names.” Or if you see that you are about to be introduced to someone, or are introducing yourself to someone, quickly learn to repeat to yourself a few times “what is your name? – what is your name? – what is your name?” I noticed immediately that the names stuck in my head right away. It seems like magic, but all we have actually done is prepare the brain with the expectation of receiving specific information, so it can focus on this particular input and override the automatic filter.
I have found this little trick to be one of the most useful for not forgetting names right away. Remember to try it a few times even if it seeks weird at first. It quickly becomes a very useful habit.更多精彩文章及讨论,请光临枫下论坛 rolia.net
Does this ever happen to you? You are at a networking or even a social event. You are introduced to somebody but as soon as their name is spoken it disappears from your memory, never even seeming to enter your mind. Now you are stuck with a dilemma. This may be an important person for your networking, someone with whom you really want to make a connection. They may still be standing right in front of you, but you have no recollection of their name. You must figure out a way to get their name again. Do you ask them again? I never want to do that as that seems quite embarrassing, even rude, especially if it was only a few minutes earlier that they were introduced.
This used to happen to me all the time and I could not seem to figure out how to avoid it. Then I stumbled on a little gem of knowledge a few months ago that has proven most successful in preventing this from happening. It came from a National Geographic documentary I was watching on the brain and memory. It featured a gentleman named Ron White who is the two time U.S. memory champion. And the following little memory tip is his.
That feeling that the name did not even enter our minds is actually very accurate. The brain, which is literally bombarded with millions of facts, observations and stimuli on a daily basis, is actually hardwired to not notice everything in this vast sphere of impressions it faces. It literally filters out most of what it observes so as to only let in what is needed. However, at times, important things might get blocked out by this automatic process, such as in the case of our introductions. This effect is even more pronounced during periods of stress such as—you guessed it— at networking events.
Focus is the filter that the brain uses to determine which observations or facts get in and which do not. Simply put, we are far more likely to recall what we focus on; focus prepares our brains to receive specific input. So the way to override this automatic forgetting or ignoring is to train our brains to focus on the specific input we want it to receive. If we learn to focus our minds on names when we enter an event we create a powerful expectation for our brains. I tried this and it works, though I must admit it’s a little strange at first. Fortunately, it very quickly becomes automatic.
Try this. When you enter a networking event or a party, repeat to yourself over and over something like “I want to remember names. I want to remember names.” Or if you see that you are about to be introduced to someone, or are introducing yourself to someone, quickly learn to repeat to yourself a few times “what is your name? – what is your name? – what is your name?” I noticed immediately that the names stuck in my head right away. It seems like magic, but all we have actually done is prepare the brain with the expectation of receiving specific information, so it can focus on this particular input and override the automatic filter.
I have found this little trick to be one of the most useful for not forgetting names right away. Remember to try it a few times even if it seeks weird at first. It quickly becomes a very useful habit.更多精彩文章及讨论,请光临枫下论坛 rolia.net