![]() So remember to pay attention when you want to remember, but also let the mind roam free more often - to remember better!ĭr. Task-free downtime can lead to some of our most creative, generative moments - novel connections are made, new ideas are born, daydreams may appear that are not only satisfying, but also personally or professionally supportive. And this downtime has another important benefit, too: It supports memory consolidation. You were trapped in that small, wet box with nothing demanding your attention. You couldn't take your phone or computer in there. It's that the shower forced mental downtime. ![]() Have you ever had a great idea in the shower? Perhaps it wasn't because the shampoo's scent inspired you. And why should we? If focusing our attention, as well as using it to rehearse and elaborate supports successful memory, why shouldn't we aim for all focus all the time?Ĭonsider your direct experience for a moment. And we don't see mental downtime - when we purposefully disengage from finding, gripping and tightly directing our attention to some occupying task - as a valuable thing to do. ![]() We value and prioritize being continuously task-focused. Being too task-focused can harm our memory and creativity Repeated replays solidify the long-term memory trace. This involves forming connections between specific sets of neurons that code elements of the memory by replaying targeted brain activity. But to go from these initial stages to the storage of information in a more durable form over an extended period, known as long-term memory, requires consolidation. The two processes mentioned above support initial memory formation. The next time you see one or a video of one, you might suddenly remember, turn to the person next to you, and say, "Did you know that an octopus has three hearts?" 3. If you didn't already know that, you are - as you read this - tethering on that new knowledge to that existing image you have of an octopus. Now I tell you: an octopus has three hearts. You can store much richer memories by elaborating in this way.Įxample: Picture an octopus. ElaborationĮlaboration involves using attention to link new experiences or information to knowledge or memories you already have. In school, when you studied with flash cards, that was a rehearsal when you review the nuances of a joyful moment (e.g., a family wedding - the toasts, the taste of the cake) or a painful one, that, too, is rehearsal. Use your attention to trace over the information - the name you just heard as a new colleague introduced herself the most important facts from the work training you're in the details of a fun experience you just had. ![]() As a neuroscientist and professor of psychology who studies attention, I've found that there are three critical things you must do to successfully remember something: 1. What we think is a memory problem is often actually an attention problem. ![]()
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