Cultivation of Interest for Better Memory

Cultivation of Interest for Better Memory

There are things that are not sufficiently interesting (boring) to attract the involuntary attention.  The interest may be developed if the bestowed and held upon the object. It is very difficult to teach another person how to cultivate the attention. This is because it involves greater use of the will, faithful practice and persistent application. 

The first requisite is the determination to use the will. You should be convinced that it is necessary and desirable for you to acquire the art of voluntary attention. You must do some active earnest thinking for this. The problem is that the majority of people are too lazy to indulge in such mental effort. 

Secondly you must have a strong burning desire to acquire the art of voluntary attention. In this way you may induce a condition of interest and attractiveness in anything you want. 

Third and last, you must hold your will firmly and persistently to the task, and practice faithfully.

You can begin by turning your attention upon some uninteresting thing and studying its details until you are able to describe them. This will prove very tiresome at first but you must stick to it. Do not practice too long at a time at first; take a rest and try it again later. You will soon find that it becomes easier, and that a new interest is beginning to manifest itself in the task.

Begin to take notice of things about you; the places you visit; the things in the rooms, etc. In this way you will start the habit of "noticing things," which is the first requisite for memory development.

There are three general rules that may be given in this matter of bestowing the voluntary attention in the direction of actually seeing things, instead of merely looking at them. 

The first is: Make yourself take an interest in the thing. 

The second: See it as if you were taking note of it in order to repeat its details to a friend—this will force you to "take notice." 

The third: Give to your subconscious mind a mental command to take note of what you are looking at.

Remember first, last and always, that before you can remember, or recollect, you must first perceive; and that perception is possible only through attention. Therefore, it has truly been said that: "The great Art of Memory is Attention."