{"id":80,"date":"2026-04-10T15:34:22","date_gmt":"2026-04-10T15:34:22","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/2026\/04\/10\/five-tips-to-make-your-memory-work-more-effectively\/"},"modified":"2026-04-10T15:34:22","modified_gmt":"2026-04-10T15:34:22","slug":"five-tips-to-make-your-memory-work-more-effectively","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/2026\/04\/10\/five-tips-to-make-your-memory-work-more-effectively\/","title":{"rendered":"Five tips to make your memory work more effectively"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/span> ImageFlow\/Shutterstock<\/a><\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

As a researcher investigating how electric brain stimulation can improve people\u2019s powers of recollection, I\u2019m often asked how memory works \u2013 and what we can do to use it more effectively. Happily, decades of research have given us some clear answers to both questions.<\/p>\n

Memory<\/a> essentially operates in three stages, with different brain regions contributing to each one<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Sensory memory<\/a>, which can last only milliseconds, registers raw information such as sights, sounds and smells. These are first processed by the brain\u2019s five primary sensory cortices<\/a> (visual cortex for sights, auditory cortex for sounds and so on).<\/p>\n

Working (short-term) memory<\/a> holds and manipulates a small amount of information over several seconds or more. Think of this as your brain\u2019s mental workspace: the system that lets you do mental arithmetic, follow instructions and comprehend what you\u2019re reading. So it mainly involves the prefrontal cortex<\/a> \u2013 the front part of your brain that supports attention, decision-making and reasoning.<\/p>\n

Finally, long-term memory<\/a> stores information more permanently, from minutes to a lifetime. This includes both \u201cexplicit\u201d memories (facts and life events) and \u201cimplicit\u201d ones (skills, habits and emotional associations).<\/p>\n

For long-term memories, the hippocampus<\/a> and temporal lobes<\/a> \u2013 located deep within the brain, around the sides of your head near your temples \u2013 contribute largely to memories involving facts or life events, while the amygdala<\/a> (near the hippocampus), cerebellum<\/a> (at the back of the brain) and basal ganglia<\/a> (deep in the brain) process emotional or procedural memories.<\/p>\n

\n \"Illustration<\/a>
\n <\/span>
\n Anshuman Rath\/Shutterstock<\/a><\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Working memory often acts as a conscious gateway to long-term memory \u2013 but it has its limits<\/a>. In 1956, the American psychologist George Miller proposed that we can only hold about seven \u201cchunks\u201d of information<\/a> in our working memory at any time.<\/p>\n

While the exact number is debated to this day<\/a>, the principle holds: working memory is limited. And that limitation can shape how effectively we learn and remember things.<\/p>\n

But you can also get your memory working more effectively. Here are five easy steps for improving both your working and long-term memory.<\/p>\n

1. Put your phone away<\/h2>\n

Smartphones reduce your working memory capacity. Even just having a phone nearby<\/a> \u2013 no matter if it\u2019s face down and on silent \u2013 can reduce performance on memory and reasoning tasks. <\/p>\n

The reason is that part of your brain is still subtly monitoring it. Even resisting the urge to check notifications consumes mental resources \u2013 which is why researchers sometimes call smartphones<\/a> a \u201cbrain drain\u201d. The solution is simple: put your phone in another room when you need to focus. Out of sight really does free up mental capacity.<\/p>\n

2. Stop your mind racing<\/h2>\n

Stress<\/a> and anxiety<\/a> can take up valuable mental space<\/a>. When you\u2019re worrying about something or are distracted by racing thoughts, part of your working memory is already in use.<\/p>\n

Relaxation training<\/a> and mindfulness practices<\/a> can improve both working memory and academic performance, probably by reducing stress levels. And if meditation feels intimidating, try breathing techniques such as \u201ccyclic sighing\u201d<\/a>. Inhale deeply through your nose, take a second shorter inhale, then slowly exhale through your mouth. Repeating this for five minutes can calm the nervous system and create better conditions for learning.<\/p>\n

3. Get chunking<\/h2>\n

Everyone can expand their working memory using the technique of chunking<\/a> \u2013 grouping information into meaningful units. In fact, you probably already do it to remember some phone numbers or lists of words \u2013 breaking long sequences into bite-size chunks that your brain can recall as a mini-group.<\/p>\n

Video: National Geographic.<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

The same principles apply if you\u2019re delivering a presentation, to help your audience remember your key points more effectively. Chunking would involve grouping ten case studies, say, into three or four themes, each with a short headline and single key takeaway.<\/p>\n

Repeat this structure on each slide: one idea, a few supporting details, then move on. By organising information into meaningful patterns, you reduce cognitive load and make it more memorable.<\/p>\n

4. Become a retriever<\/h2>\n

In the 19th century, German psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus demonstrated how quickly we forget information after learning it. Within about 30 minutes, we lose roughly half of what we have learned, with much more fading over the next day. Ebbinghaus called this the forgetting curve<\/a>. The light blue line on the chart below illustrates this.<\/p>\n

The forgetting curve \u2013 and how to disrupt it<\/strong><\/p>\n

\n \"Chart<\/a>
\n <\/span>
\n Elva Arulchelvan<\/a>, CC BY-SA<\/a><\/span>
\n <\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

However, there is a way of ensuring that more sinks in when you are trying to learn a lot of information in a short period of time: retrieval practice<\/a>.<\/p>\n

When preparing to give a talk or studying for an exam, rather than simply rereading your notes, keep testing how much you remember. Use flash cards, answer practice questions, or try explaining the material out loud without notes.<\/p>\n

Memory works through associations. Each time you successfully retrieve information, you link the material to new prompts, examples and contexts. This builds more cues<\/a> to accessing the information, and strengthens each memory pathway<\/a>. Often when we \u201cforget\u201d, the memory isn\u2019t gone \u2013 we just lack the right retrieval cue.<\/p>\n

5. Give yourself a break<\/h2>\n

Research shows that memory is more effective when study or practice sessions are spread out<\/a>, rather than massed together. If you are studying for an exam, build solid blocks of downtime into your revision schedule. The dark blue line on the chart above illustrates how spacing out your practice sessions can help you remember more information over time, by adjusting Ebbinghaus\u2019s forgetting curve.<\/p>\n

One study suggests leaving gaps between each revision session that equate to 10-20% of the time left<\/a> until your exam or presentation. So, if your deadline is five days away and you do hours of revision a day, you should still take between a half and full day off in between sessions. In other words, don\u2019t overdo it \u2013 you probably won\u2019t see the rewards!<\/p>\n

If you only remember one thing from this article about improving memory, make it this. Memory isn\u2019t just about intelligence, it\u2019s about strategy. Small changes in how you study or work can make a real difference in how well, and how long, you remember crucial information.<\/p>\n

\"The<\/p>\n

Elva Arulchelvan does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

ImageFlow\/Shutterstock As a researcher investigating how electric brain stimulation can improve people\u2019s powers of recollection, I\u2019m often asked how memory works \u2013 and what we can do to use it more effectively. Happily, decades of research have given us some clear answers to both questions. Memory essentially operates in three stages, with different brain regions […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-80","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=80"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/80\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=80"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=80"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/redzine.co.uk\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=80"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}