It's Right on the Tip of My Tongue...

When researchers at the University of Texas conducted an MRI on Ron White while he memorized information, they discovered that he engaged 35 percent more of his brain than the average person. No wonder he is the current USA memory champion. 

White uses loci, a 2,500-year-old memory method, to engage his brain and recall information. Try it, and White says you can learn how to give speeches without notes, memorize chapters of books, and recall names and faces. Here’s one way to use the loci method:

1. Memorize a map of your home and assign numbers to accessories, furniture and common areas. “Your No. 1 spot may be your front door, No. 2 might be a picture on the wall and 3, the vase,” White says.

2. Turn whatever you want to recall (a speech, product knowledge) into an image. 

3. Visualize the info you want to recall as an image on the furniture or accessory in the order you want to recall it.

“If I was giving a speech on how to make more money and the first three points were make more money, time management and communication, I would visualize dollar bills on the front door, a clock on the picture, and a telephone on the vase,” White says. “Then when it came time to give the speech, I would simply mentally walk around my home talking about the information I saw.” 

You can also visualize names as objects to improve recall. “Every time you meet someone, turn their name into an image,” White suggests. “If you did this for 60 days, you would literally have pictures for hundreds of names created. Then just reuse these images over and over and become an expert on recalling names and faces.”