If you have ever…

• Missed an important appointment
• Bungled a critical presentation that could have been a great business opportunity
• Botched a job interview
• Spent too much time studying new product, software, or training information (without great results)
• Forgotten key details about a client or project
• Been unable to recall industry or market data
• Struggled with your to-do list

You know exactly why improving your memory and ability to recall information is so important.

15 reasons why you want to increase your memory power:

1. Become capable of delivering more powerful, persuasive presentations
2. Experience a big leap in confidence
3. Have a better understanding of what you are truly capable of achieving (hint: It is more than you think)
4. See a boost in sales your closing ratio
5. Gain the ability to more skillfully handle tough questions or objections
6. Enhance your co-workers and clients’ perception of your skill level
7. Spend Less time learning new product information or training
8. Internalize your goals and priority to-do’s
9. Raise your professional profile and improve visibility of your company
10. Confidently deliver a speech and cover every point without using notes
11. Lead an effective meeting, or workshop with little prep time
12. Build better rapport with clients and prospects
13. Easily position yourself as an industry expert
14. Gain GURU or Adviser status quickly when you rule the room
15. Garner a raise or promotion

Some "Memory Training" sites say that using techniques will not work, as you simply need to do games or exercises to improve your recall. Other say the opposite. Of course, as we know the truth is usually somewhere in between.

1. Yes, there are physical factors that influence your ability to recall.
2. Yes, the more your use your mind and memory, the more you will see improvement (i.e. playing memory games).
3) Yes, memory training techniques work!

Memory Training Increases Your Intelligence!
In this recent N.Y. Times article., memory training itself will help to build your mind muscle, and you will find as many others have that you will generally be able to recall information more easily, even when you are not trying or are not using the techniques.

The N.Y. Times article goes on to say the Memory Training has been found to increase your fluid intelligence- your ability to problem solve in areas where you have no real experience. What a bonus! So there are lots of benefits beyond simply increasing your recall!


Physical Focus and Memory Power
We are going to learn some concrete skills for improving your recall, but it is also important to understand other factors that you can control. Nutrition does play a role in your memory power.

Be sure your diet includes foods rich in:
Vitamin B6
Vitamin B12
Folic acid

Examples: spinach, broccoli, strawberries, black beans, soybeans and melons.

Also include Antioxidants such as
Vitamin C
Vitamin E

This means including foods like sweet potatoes, tomatoes, green tea, berries, citrus fruits in your diet to help with your memory. These foods interact with free radicals and neutralize them before they damage our body cells.

And as always...
Drink plenty of water! Staying hydrated will help you maintain energy and stay focused!

Law of FLOW
Law of attraction helps you to understand how to attract what you want into your life, rather than fighting for it. It is easier to get in the flow and use the momentum of a stream to your benefit rather than struggling to swim against the current.

Memory Training skills teach you how to work with you mind in the way it wants to work. Use the Law of FLOW to your advantage. You can increase your memory power, and recall information faster and easier.

THREE STAGES OF YOUR MEMORY

1. Record (Learn)
2. Retain (Store)
3. Recall (Retrieve)

When you struggle to remember something you are really stuck on Step 3. It is not that the information is missing, it is that you are having a hard time recalling it.

QUESTION for YOU
Have you ever forgotten someone's name, walked away frustrated, only to recall the name ten minutes later? Of course you have! (so has everyone else!) While this is frustrating, this proves that the information is IN THERE!

The good news is that we can show you how to retrieve the information more easily!

The most important thing you can learn about how your mind and memory work is this...
Your mind wants to think in pictures!

Rote Memorization
So you can stop repeating words over and over in your head. I used to do that too. There are three important things to know about that "technique" which is called rote memorization. (Rote Memorization = Learning by Sheer Repetition)
1. It is time consuming.
2. It is stressful.
3. It doesn't work.

ADVANCED RECALL
The good news is that with Advanced Recall Memory Training you can increase your memory power. Stop working so hard for so little results! There is any easier softer way!

Here are a few simple techniques that you can start applying today to help you recall information. Each situation might call for a different technique, so you want to use the one that is most appropriate for your situation.

Acronyms:
Take the first letter of each word and create a new word that is easy to remember. It is most helpful if the word you create is a trigger that will help connect you back to what you are trying to remember. Example: An example of a useful acronym could be the word HOMES. Each of the letters in HOMES begins the name of one of the Great Lakes (Huron, Ontario, and so on).

Presentation Skills Tip:
This is a good structure for creating a presentation or speech. You can create an outline based on a theme and the theme word will actually be the format for your presentation. For example: today we are going to talk about putting POWER back into your sales presentations. P is for Persuasive presentations. Own the Room. Win Trust. Energize people. Request action.

This is great way to create an interesting compelling presentation, and will also help you stay on point!

Acrostics:

Much like the acronym, except you will create a sentence. The first letter of each word will correspond with the first letter of the words you are memorizing. Example: In math many of us learned the phrase "Please Excuse My Dear Aunt Sally" in which the first letters correspond to "parenthesis, exponents, multiplication, division, addition, subtraction," - the order of operations in solving mathematic equations.

Basic Association:
Chaining and linking can also be extremely helpful when you want to learn a series of information in order. This can helpful when you want to learn steps to a procedure that always need to be done in order the same way every time, or for recalling a password or code.

By creating pictures and making up a story we can easily link things together in a memorable way. Example: A mathematical formula such as F = C/A could become a Fire truck (F) ran over Railroad Tracks (=) crushing a Cat (C) on top of (/) and Ants(A).

Filing Systems:
One of the most effective systems for recalling information has been around since 500b.c.
The Filing System has two key components.

1. Create images for what you want to recall
2. Organize or file pictures in a logical way so that you can easily access them
   (This skills set requires more time and detail to learn than can be accomplished in this blog. Please learn more at one of our upcoming workshops or call to discuss a personalized coaching program for you)

Stay tuned for more memory training and presentation tips and other ideas on how you can grow your skills and your business!