Unbelievable facts
You've probably at least once found yourself in a situation where you forgot your keys, wallet, headphones or other important things, but you couldn't remember where you left it.
Or maybe you needed to remember the name of something and it was spinning in your tongue but you couldn't recover it.
Our brain receives, processes and stores a huge amount of information, but sometimes mistakes happen and we forget even what we just thought about.
Remembering is a two-step process: we first encode the information we want to store, and then we retrieve it.
For those who suffer from distraction, the main problem is to initially code which pocket you left your passport in.
This often happens when something distracts us at that moment. When we try to extract important information, the brain has nothing to catch on, and we start scouring our pockets and other places.
We'll look at several ways to remember forgotten and lost quickly and effectively.
How do you find a lost item at home? (key, headphones, ring)
1. Keep calm
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When we realize we've lost our keys, the first reaction is to panic. Then we're mad that it's happening again. While this can help relieve tension, emotions interfere with focused and productive search.
Instead, try to stay calm and start looking.
Relax, clear your brain of extraneous thoughts, concentrate on your breathing, taking deep breaths and exhaling. Check the places where the lost item is supposed to be.
2. See when was the last time you held an item
This may seem obvious to you, but the first thing you need to do is imagine the place where you last saw a lost object.
You may not have left your headphones there, but this will boost your memory and you will begin to remember the location of the missing item.
Irene Kan, professor of psychology at Villanova University, who specializes in memory, recommends creating a mental image of everything you've been doing, and how did you feel when you saw a forgotten item for the last time.
Try to present everything clearly and colourfully. Think about this place:
What time of day it was
What did you do
Who else was at the moment
Your mood or emotional state
Other details
This process, called “replay,” will encourage you to recall details that were previously unavailable to you.
3. Go back to where you lost the item
Think about when your keys or headphones were with you and try to go back to those places.
There is a possibility that you accidentally dropped it somewhere nearby. You need to go all the way step by step, just like exploring a crime scene.
Often, an item ends up in a different place, falling under a table, chair, or sofa.
4. Search outside the search area
If you don't find a missing item in the right place, keep expanding your search area. Even if you think it's crazy to leave your wallet in the bathroom, go there too.
Researcher Michael Solomon, who wrote the book How to Find Lost Objects, states that in most cases they don't travel more than 50 cm from the original location.
If you're not sure if the item you lost was in a specific location, make a list of suggested places where you think you saw it.
It doesn't hurt to look in our bags and pockets — where we most often throw things when we're in a hurry.
5. Be persistent and rational
Often we fall into the trap of forgetting a place we've already checked.
Don't rush from one room to another. Only move to another location if you've already searched everything in one room.
Once you've gone through all the things in one area, don't waste time and come back to this place again. You don't need to go around in circles if you don't find the item the first time, most likely it won't be there the second time either.
6. See the most cluttered places
Scientists from the University of Aberdeen in Scotland have found that you should look for a forgotten thing in the places of the house where the biggest mess accumulates.
Researchers have found that people often spend too much time searching in clean places, which is completely counterproductive.
All you need is a quick look at the uncluttered parts of the room to see if the item is there or not, but we tend to come back to those places again.
If you're looking for headphones, focus on the area where you have the most stuff. If they were in a more open area, you probably would have found them long ago.
7. Repeat your steps
Research has shown that many memories depend on context. This means we're better at detail in an environment similar to where we learned this information.
For example, if you've been thinking about headphones in your living room and you've forgotten everything in the kitchen, try going back to the living room.
If you were listening to a particular song when the thing was with you, try listening to that song again.
Most likely, in a familiar environment, you will be able to remember what you have forgotten more easily.
8. Restore your train of thought
If you're physically unable to get to where you think you lost an item, try to imagine the place and what you did there.
Because many memories are stored on overlapping neural pathways to restore your train of thought, you might accidentally remember something you forgot.
9. Think or talk about something else
Our brain stores so much information, and you can easily get stuck trying to remember all the details.
In order to reboot your memory, try to get distracted, do some everyday activities, and the right idea will appear in your head after a while.
10. Ask for help
Very often, someone else has a lost item if you forget what you borrowed, or someone may accidentally move it.
Ask other people who were near the forgotten item if they saw your pen or keys. You might get lucky and find what you've lost.
Ask your colleagues, acquaintances or friends to tell you in advance if they are borrowing or taking something away. This is the only way to keep track of a lost item.
How to remember what you forgot
© Syda Productions
1. Create a signal.
It will be easier for you to encode information into long-term memory if it is associated in a specific detail that will serve as a “signal”.
It's best to link new information to things you already remember well.
For example, if you're talking to a friend at a coffee shop and she says her birthday is coming up, link that information to what you know. For example, “Alice said her birthday is September 2nd, which is a week after my mom's birthday.”
Sensory information can also serve as a signal. For example, many people's smells evoke vivid memories.
For example, the smell of pies mentally takes us to our grandmother's house. If the memory can be linked to a smell, such as the aroma of buns in a cafe, stimulate your memory with a similar smell.
2. Repeat the information immediately
If you, like most people, forget names as soon as you're introduced to a new friend, try to say the name out loud as soon as you meet.
Try to link his name to lots of details. What a person looked like, what he was wearing – all this will help you remember his name later. For example, “Nice to meet you Marina, the blue color of your blouse looks very good on you.”
3. Create a specific care and arrival schedule
Most likely, every time you leave home, you take the same things with you and check that all appliances are off.
Pack your things, check the stove or curling iron, turn off the lights. By creating a care and arrival routine, you start doing many things on autopilot, which means you're less likely to forget things.
4. Keep things in a specific place
Keep your car keys, wallet, cards and other important items that you always carry with you in the same place.
You can use a special vase or box for this purpose. When you leave home, you will clearly know where all the necessary things are located.
5. Use stickers
If your child needs to bring a craft to school, stick a sticker on a prominent spot in his room so he doesn't forget it in the morning.
Remind yourself with stickers to remind yourself of anything that does not fit into the usual order. It's very convenient to use reminders on your phone.
6. Get enough sleep
Sleep, especially REM sleep, is necessary for processing, consolidating and storing information. Sleep deprivation affects the functioning of your neurons, making it harder for you to remember and recall certain information.