Your ability to remember can in fact become one of your most valuable business assets, and improving your ability to remember is not difficult. It is actually very easy for anyone to do, and it can also be a lot of fun.

Here are some tips to try out that will instantly improve your memory:

1) Use the Power of Visualisation:

Take whatever it is that you are trying to remember and try to turn it into a simple image or series of memorable images.

2) Activate Additional Senses:

Beyond visualisation, try to involve as many additional senses as you can while trying to commit a piece of information to memory.

The more senses that you involve, the more of your brain you'll be using and the more connections in your mind to the information you'll be building, so it will be much easier to remember.

3) Use the Power of  Your Creativity and Imagination:

Next, you could try to go through the story in reverse and recite the words backwards.  The Serial Position Effect highlights the tendency to remember items at the beginning and end of a list more easily, so make sure you pay special attention to the words in the middle of the list.

Also, keep in mind that this techique can be used for much more than just random words.  Those images could represent key points of a speech or presentation that you need to give.

With putting forth little to no effort, we can all remember things that are crazy, unusual, and extraordinary in some way.

Using your imagination can improve your recollection

4) Create a Story:

Normally, when trying to commit information to memory, most people will just read the information over and over again, or they will recite it to themself over and over again, or they will write it out over and over again.

This brute force approach to memorization is boring, cumbersome, and overall just not very effective.  Instead, let's try a totally different approach.

I'd like for you to commit the following random list of words to memory forwards and backwards in less than 3 minutes: apple, watch, umbrella, racket, car, football, bee, ring, stapler, comb.  The trick is to incorporate tips 1-3 above while creating a story in your mind.

Just relax and see what I describe happening almost like a movie playing in your head.

You see a gigantic (apple).  Shooting out of this apple is a spinning (watch) that's ticking very loudly. The watch starts to spin on top of a large and colorful (umbrella). The umbrella somehow starts to grow a (racket) out of its top.  This racket starts to smash up a (car). The car runs over a giant (football). As air rushes out of the football, a large (bee) flys out of it. This bee flys through a flaming (ring). The flaming ring sets fire to a (stapler). This stapler starts to continuously staple a large black (comb). 

Read through the story just one more time while trying to clearly visualize and experience everything described. Now, go ahead and recite all of the random words in order by just going through the story in your mind.  

Next, even try to go through the story in reverse and recite the words backwards. Please keep in mind that this techique can be used for much more than just random words.  Those images could represent key points of a speech or presentation that you need to give.

They could remind you of 10 key advantages that your company offers over its competitors.

Make an Effort to Remember Names:

You've just learned the "story method", and it's just one of many powerful and fun techniques for improving your ability to remember things! The principles above from the story method can also be applied to getting better at remembering names.

Not every event comes with name badges

You are not getting the most out of business networking if you are constantly forgetting the names of people that you meet. When you can remember someone's name, it shows them that they are important to you and this can build rapport.

Conversely, if you are forgetting names or calling people by the wrong name, it can be very detrimental to business and personal relationships. One of the best ways to become better with names is to learn to take a person's name and turn it into a powerful visual.

Alice might become a white rabbit. Jim might become a gym. Next, it's even better if you can then visually connect the powerful visual to a unique aspect of the person's look. If Alice has beautiful hair, you'll see the white rabbit running through her hair.

If Jim has big ears, you'll imagine seeing a gym in each of his ears. It might seem a bit silly at first, but this technique for remembering names is very powerful and effective. With just a little bit of practice, you'll become better than ever at remembering the names of people that you meet.

These tips are just the beginning. There are proven techniques that I teach in my new book, "Instant Memory Training for Success" that will help you to remember presentations, languages, exam material, and much more.

Anyone can learn to better remember just about anything with training and practice. Invest some time in developing your memory, and you can soon be enjoying more success in your career and personal life. Your memory will become your secret weapon.