We all have a good memory; the problem is no one taught us how to use it.我们有着很好的记忆力，但问题是没人告诉过我们如何正确使用记忆力。
Forget to send that email? Return a call? Meet a deadline? If you chalk up memory mishaps to having too much to think about, you might be making excuses. “We all have a good memory; the problem is no one taught us how to use it,” says four-time USA Memory Champion Nelson Dellis.忘记发邮件了?忘记回电话?到了截止日期才想起来有任务没有完成?如果你把记忆错误归结为有太多的事情要考虑，你可能在找借口。“我们都有很好的记忆力;问题是没有人教会我们如何使用它，”四次获得美国记忆冠军尼尔森•戴利斯(Nelson Dellis)说。
Dellis says he always had a mediocre memory, and didn’t think he had championship-caliber memory potential. Today, he’s the record holder for remembering the most names, memorizing 201 in 15 minutes. He was inspired to train his memory after his grandmother passed away in 2009 with Alzheimer’s disease. “She had been of sound mind just 10 years before,” he says. “I didn’t want that to happen to me. I wanted to find something I could do now that would prolong my brain health.”Dellis说他的记忆力一直都很差，他认为自己的记忆能力并不强。如今，他是记住最多名字的记录保持者，在15分钟内记住了201个名字。他的祖母在2009年去世，患有阿尔茨海默氏症。他说:“10年前，她的思想还很健全。我不想让这种事发生在我身上。我想找到一些能延长我大脑健康的方法。”
Dellis decided to enter the championship as a way to measure his memory gains. While you might not be interested in remembering a couple hundred names, you can use Dellis’s favorite tools to improve your memory and focus.Dellis决定参加锦标赛，以此来检测他的记忆力。虽然你可能对记住几百个名字不感兴趣，但你可以使用Dellis最喜欢的方法来提高你的记忆力和注意力。
MAKE IT EXCITING将要记住的事情变得有趣One of the best ways to boost your memory is to take advantage of what the brain is naturally good at: remembering the extraordinary. “Most people can recall a traumatic or memorable event,” says Dellis. “It’s not some sort of super human memory; in those instances, there was something special and our brains absorb that better. Ninety percent of your day is non-interesting; you need to turn it into something memorable.”提高记忆力的最好方法之一就是利用大脑天生擅长的东西:记住不同寻常的东西。“大多数人都能回忆起创伤或难忘的事情，”Dellis说。“这不是某种超级人类记忆;在那些情况下，有一些特别的东西，我们的大脑吸收的更好。你每天90%的时间都不是很有趣;你需要把它变成值得纪念的东西。”
Trick yourself into making things exciting. It helps to understand that your brain works well with pictures instead of abstract ideas. If you want to remember to pick up pizza on the way home, for example, picture the cheese sizzling and then burning your mouth.欺骗自己让事情变得令人兴奋。这有助于理解，大脑对图片而不是抽象想印象深刻。如果你想记住在回家的路上去买披萨，比如，想象一下奶酪咝咝作响，然后会烫着嘴巴。
“Give it a color and make it as real as possible,” says Dellis. “If you want to remember a name, come up with picture of what the word could represent.”“给它一个颜色，让它尽可能真实，”Dellis说。“如果你想记住一个名字，可以想象一下这个词可以代表什么。”
For example, picture someone named Nelson turning into Nelson Mandela. Once you have a picture, it’s more easily stored in your mind, says Dellis.例如，想象一个叫Nelson的人变成了Nelson Mandela。Dellis说，一旦你有了一张照片，它就更容易储存在你的脑海里。
USE A MEMORY PALACE使用记忆宫殿Dellis’s most tried-and-true technique is creating a memory palace, which involves creating pictures and memorizing them along a path through a space that you know well, such as your home or office. “You could probably walk through with your eyes closed,” he says. “If you want to remember grocery items, link each one to that space.”Dellis最可靠的方法是创建一个记忆宫殿，它包括在你熟悉的地方(比如你的家或办公室)中创建图片和记忆。“你可以闭着眼睛走过去，”他说。“如果你想记住食品杂货，把每一件都链接到那个地方。”
For example, imagine toilet paper covering your front door, then make up a story about why it’s there. “Did kids come by and throw it on your door?” asks Dellis. “Take it as far as you like. If the next item is milk, imagine a cow spraying milk all over the door. Continue to create mental pictures through your house. When you get to the store all you have to do is think of your house and mentally walk the same path, and the pictures will be waiting for you. All elite competitors use some form of memory palace.”例如，想象一下用卫生纸盖住前门，然后编一个关于它为什么在那里的故事。“孩子们过来把它扔在你的门上了吗?””Dellis问道。“就按照你所喜欢的去编吧。”如果下一项是牛奶，想象一头奶牛在门上喷洒牛奶。继续在你的房子里创造图片。当你去商店的时候，你所要做的就是想想你的房子，并在思想上走同样的路，这些照片将会在你的身边等待着你。所有的精英选手都使用某种形式的记忆宫殿。
LINK THINGS将事情关联起来Another memory tool is using a linking method. “You’re still coming up with pictures, but the way you store them is different,” he says. “A linked list connects each item to the next, so it’s a narrative.”另一个工具是使用关联法。他说:“你还在拍照片，但你储存照片的方式不同。”“一个链表将每个项目连接到下一个，连起来就是一个故事。”
For example, if you need to reply to an email, call the IT department about computer issues, and schedule a meeting, imagine the person you need to email is involved in a crime ring after receiving dozens of stolen computers and you need to go to a meeting to decide what should be done with him.例如,如果你需要回复电子邮件、打电话给IT部门询问关于计算机问题、安排会议,想象你需要回复电子邮件的人收到了几十个偷来的电脑，参与了一个犯罪团伙,你需要开会决定如何对付他。
“The more bizarre, over the top, hilarious, or vulgar it is, the easier it is to remember,” says Dellis. “We remember things that are truly out of the ordinary.”Dellis说:“越奇怪，越搞笑，或者粗俗，就越容易记住。”“我们记得那些真正与众不同的东西。”
GET READY FOR INFORMATION随时准备接受信息A lot of memory is about paying attention. “It sounds obvious, but we live in a day when our attention span is very fickle, because there’s so much coming at us all the time,” says Dellis. “Force yourself to be laser-focused on one thing at a time.”很多记忆都是需要集中注意力的。“这听起来很明显，但在日常生活中，我们的注意力持续时间很短，因为每时每刻都有很多信息涌来，”Dellis说。“强迫自己一次只专注于一件事。”
For example, when Dellis meets people and wants to learn their names, the first thing he does before asking their name is to mentally ask himself, “What is this person’s name?” over and over.例如，当Dellis遇到陌生人并想要知道他们的名字时，他首先要做的就是在心里一遍又一遍问自己:“这个人叫什么名字?”。
“This process, as insignificant as it seems, does wonders,” he says. “You’re not thinking about what to say or noticing something across the room. You’re paying attention to the person in front of you, getting ready to accept their name.”他说:“这个过程虽然看起来微不足道，但却能创造奇迹。”你不是在想该说什么或注意到房间对面的什么东西。你在关注你面前的人，准备认真听他们的名字。
DAILY PRACTICE每日练习Tools and tricks can help you remember things, but the key to building a strong memory is practice. Dellis recommends a few websites that will help. MemoCamp is a paid site that tests you on remembering names, numbers, words, and more. Dellis uses it to get ready for competition. Another tool is MemRise, a free site that helps you memorize words with games. Anki is another app Dellis uses for memorizing language. And Dellis is also the cofounder of Art of Memory, a website that helps you learn and practice memory techniques.工具和技巧可以帮助你记住事情，但是建立强大记忆力的关键是练习。Dellis推荐了一些可以帮助你的网站。MemoCamp是一个付费网站，它可以让你记住名字、数字、单词等等。Dellis用它来准备比赛。另一个工具是MemRise，它是一个免费的网站，可以帮助你在游戏中记忆单词。Anki是Dellis用来记忆语言的另一个应用。Dellis也是记忆艺术(Art of Memory)的联合创始人，这是一个帮助你学习和练习记忆技巧的网站。
Give your brain a daily workout by ditching to-do or grocery lists, suggests Dellis. “It’s easy to write something down,” he says. “I love the fact that I’m using my own memory power, exercising my brain, and taking a moment of the day to stretch brain muscles. Commit a speech to memory. Memorize a poem or a deck of cards. Whatever your interest, it helps your memory.”Dellis建议丢开待办事项或者购物清单，给你的大脑一个日常的锻炼机会。“写东西很容易，”他说。“我喜欢我用自己的记忆力量，锻炼我的大脑，花点时间来锻炼大脑肌肉。记住一篇演讲、记住一首诗或一副纸牌都可以。无论你的兴趣是什么，它都会帮助你提高记忆力。
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