Martin Mak

Improving Memory And Mental Clarity With The Power Of Mental Focus

Don't let life pass you by,  notice the small things in life and feel alive!

Do you remember as a child lying on your back on a beach or in the field and looking at the different shapes of passing clouds?  If you do, you will know how enjoyable it can be to focus completely on one thing.  To be receptive, you need to allow all your senses to explore the environment.  The more sensory pathways you open up, the more extensive and exact your perception will become.  This has been acknowledged by scientists in numerous studies.  Students can memorize new material twice as well if it is presented in a visual form – for instance, as a film or video – and not just by merely listening to a lecture.  This is because visual cues from the eyes play an important part in the learning process.

The best known method for focusing our thoughts towards what is important and training our perception is Meditation.  Meditation has been practiced for thousands of years by Buddhist monks for instance for spirituality and to open up the mind to new knowledge.  Zen Buddhism is about mastering the art of Meditation to achieve remarkable things in life.  Demonstrations have been performed by a skilled archer and meditator with his eyes blindfolded and shooting an arrow so accurately that it will put out a burning candle hundreds of paces away.  He performs this feat by accomplishing the highest concentration and entering a state of deepest calm.

In western psychology, the phenomenon of controlled attention is also useful.  Anyone who wish to train or improve his or her memory must begin by controlling perception.  For instance, if you find  that you keep forgetting someone’s name,  it’s likely that  you are too easily distracted and do not place enough emphasis or importance to the person’s name when you are introduced.  A deeper focus on the situation will improve your memory.  A quick tip is to look at the person’s face, without staring.  

With a quick sweep of your eyes, notice what the person is wearing, the color of his or her eyes,  hair, skin.  Take an interest in that person, ask about where she was born, what are the person’s hobbies, children, pets etc.  Ask the person how her name is spelt. If there is only one way to spell ‘Tom’, the more relevant question is to ask how to spell his last name.  Take notice of it and make interesting associations with it and tie it in with what the person is wearing or the person’s physical attributes.  Is he or she tall or short, fat or slender?  Does he or she have freckles or a tan?

Your creativity is also influenced by how intensely you deal with the job at hand.  If you need a new idea urgently – for example, an anniversary gift for a spouse, you perhaps need to let yourself be inspired by the world around you. 

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