Anthony Metivier's Blog, page 3

PAO System: How to Use This Powerful Technique

You’ve probably heard that a PAO System is for memorizing numbers, and maybe lists.

It’s actually a lot more powerful than that. 

The problem is…

A lot of people don’t know enough about it to understand its raw power. 

They also don’t know the different ways you can modify the Person Action Object pattern, or even have multiple versions for different purposes.

And that means they’re missing out on something truly special.

But not you. 

You found this page and we’re taking a deep dive into all things PAO.

Are you excited?

Let’s get started!

https://youtu.be/ogtVQ48VgC4

What Is The PAO System?

PAO memory systems go back a very long time.

It is a simple way to break linking down into individual units that can interact in memorable ways. 

Take these numbers, for example:

21 36 90

They’re not that difficult to memorize, but someone using a traditional PAO system would divide the numbers into a set of images specifically ordered according to the PAO pattern. They would imagine something like Jack Nicholson throwing burning matches at a bus.  

Person = Jack NicholsonAction = Throwing matchesObject = Bus

People derive the exact images they use in different ways, and we’ll talk about how to do that in a moment. 

 

Briefly, 21 is Jack Nicholson in my PAO System because I’ve built each image based on the Major System:

2 = N1 = D or T

From these rules, I assigned the word “nut.” Since Jack Nicholson often plays characters who are completely insane (or “nuts”) he strikes me as perfect for that number.

But you might be wondering… 

How the heck did people come up with such an interesting way to approach memory?

A Brief History of Person Action Object Systems 

The notion of combining or linking information you want to remember to a Person Action Object complex begins much more simply. 

The first reference I can find is the Katapayadi system. The oldest available evidence is 683 C.E., but it is almost certainly older than that.

In this alphanumeric system, we see what is probably the first detailed basis for transforming numbers into words. 

What kinds of words?

PersonsActionsObjects

Later, you see this arrangement built out with great sophistication in the works of Giordano Bruno, especially On the Shadows of the Ideas.

I’m not entirely sure, but I think Bruno chose to include Hebrew letters in his memory system because of the gematria. In this system, each Hebrew letter is classified so that it also represents a number.

And since almost every Hebrew letter represents an animal, you pretty much have either a person or object in each letter along with the number. This approach is likely also the origin of what used to be called a “bestiary,” and on that Lynne Kelly is really the expert.

The question is…

How does all this work? 

Well, changing numbers into associations that do things allows the person using memory techniques to compress much more information into far fewer images.

However, not everyone goes for fewer images. Many people assign three associations for each 2-digit pair. For example:

01 = Peter Sutton suds soap

In this case, 0 =2 and 1 = T, leading me to choose an anthropologist for the person, creating suds as the action and soap as the object.

I’ll show you how to simplify all of this later so you need only one image, but let’s look a bit deeper at some history and technical matters based on the general principles we’ve discussed so far.

PAO System vs Major Method vs Dominic System

Two other systems to know about are the Major Method and the Dominic System.

Dominic O’Brien came up with his variation to compete in memory competitions.

Technically speaking there is no such thing as a Dominic System PAO – at least not to my knowledge. This is because the Dominic System reduces a PAO down to a PA system. It’s been refined down to Persons and Actions. 

The Major, much like the katapayadi, lets you create any number of words from numbers. So you can have:

PersonActionObjectEmotional stateSmellFlavorFavorite snack, etc

It’s much more flexible and I strongly recommend using the Major so that you can come up with many more words for your PAO list. 

There are other systems you can explore, such as the Ben System and the Shadow. 

(For more on the Shadow, check out my conversations with Braden Adams.)

The Shadow is a very powerful and much more robust version of a PAO system, especially for playing cards.

How To Use The PAO System

There are many ways to use a PAO system. You can use it to:

Memorize numbersMemorize tones in tonal languages like ChineseMemorize difficult and vocabulary when you can’t figure out more direct associationsNumber your Memory Palaces so they always have pre-built associations at each stationMemorize playing cardsKnow the verse numbers when memorizing scripturePerform a stunt by memorizing and reciting PiBenefit from incredible brain exercise

One way that people use the PAO system for numbers is very formal. They will always approach numbers in 3 sets of 2 pairs and then use their person action object in order. 

That means that if you have a sequence of numbers like 89 43 21:

89 will be encoded as the person43 will be encoded as the action21 will be encoded as the object

Using my system, the images here would be:

A viper (Cobra Commander) rams a nun (or Jack Nicholson). 

Then, when memorizing the next set of digits, I can have the final object interact with the next set.

In other words, if the sequence is 89 43 21 55, the object that represents 21 can be doing something to the image for 55.

In this way, you can either have short vignettes or much longer narrative sequences.

Getting Started

The first step is to choose how you’re going to approach PAO memory systems so that success is guaranteed.

Again, for most people, I suggest learning the Major System. It helps reduce the arbitrariness of the associations in a way that other systems do not. 

But you’re also free to simply assign people, objects and actions to numbers without any special reason. If you have synesthesia, you might have some deeply intuitive choices that come to mind based on that aspect of how your mind words.

Assuming you’re like most of us and you go with the Major, realize that the limited number of words you can choose from is actually a good thing. 

A lot of memory systems work so well because limits are productive, not restrictive. They just don’t always seem that way at first glance. 

It might also be helpful to realize that a PAO list is really just a variation on the pegword method. I’ve shared the basis for my entire list there if you want to take a look. 

Or you can look up various number dictionaries for ideas. Bruno Furst created a really interesting one.

But should you really look the words up?

For ideas, sure.

But the results will really start to flow when you personalize each and every assignment you make for a full 00-99 PAO. 

Examples From My “Magnetic” PAO

For many years I got along just fine with just the Major System. 

But then I competed with Dave Farrow and realized how slow I was using the Major to memorize cards. 

Later, Florian Delle made me realize that you can actually “compress” each assignment in a way that lets make each one a Person that is both an action and an object.

For example, my 84 used to be “fire.”

But after speaking with him, I upgraded it to a character in a movie who uses a blowtorch. Fire because a person who uses an object to burn things.

To repeat: The person is the object that takes an action.

This made everything so much faster!

Another example: 

36 used to be a box of matches for me, based on the Major System.

It’s still “match,” but now it’s Mike Tyson in a boxing match. Tyson is the person, boxing is the action and his gloves are the object. 

In this way, when I want to memorize a number like 8436, I just have to imagine the blowtorch character from Missing in Action 2 setting Mike Tyson on fire. 

This works the same way when memorizing playing cards that have been assigned numbers or memorizing Chinese tones or verse numbers in scripture. 

And the best part?

If you take a moment to number your stations in a Memory Palace, you instantly have an image to interact with in each and every memory space you use. 

I don’t use that approach particularly often, but it has come in handy many times as an organizational tool. 

A Fun Way To Practice A PAO

Here’s an exercise from the Magnetic Memory Method Masterclass: 

Once you have all your figures worked out, get some index cards. Starting with 00-99, fill them all out.

Then, shuffle them up. 

If you come across a 42, name out the figure you chose.

Once you’re able to name the associations relatively quickly, you can then start practicing memorizing them in order. 

I would suggest starting small, such as with three, two-digit pairs. As you go, place the associations in a Memory Palace so you have a point of reference.

Make The PAO System Your Own

At the end of the day, developing your own PAO System is a highly personal journey.

Although it will undoubtedly share similarities with others, it will still work best when it’s unique to you.

For example, both Ron White and I share William Shatner as an image. But the exact way we use the association differs.

It’s the Major System that causes us to land at the same choice, but after that, you can refer to any particular Star Trek episode or movie, and even several of them, depending on what you’re memorizing.

Again, a rigid PAO approach strikes me as unlimited. I like it to be flexible and give me more options. 

Explore The PAO System For Language Learning

When I’ve struggled to come up with associations when learning a language, I always stop. I ask myself what the numbers would be for the word I’m struggling with. 

For example, there’s a word in German: faseln. It means to “spout off.” 

When I looked at the F and S, I thought of 80. That is an image of… you guessed it:

William Shatner as James T. Kirk with his phaser set to stun. “Eln” would be 52, which is a lion in my PAO system.

I use a “lion” for 52. But instead of relying on the generic concept, I push it further to a specific lion: The MGM lion. For your 00-99 PAO, it might be the cowardly lion from the Wizard of Oz or one of the characters from The Lion King.

But not just any lion. It’s the MGM lion so that the image is vibrant and familiar, not generic. 

And imagining Captain Kirk using a phaser on the MGM lion because the lion was “spouting off” a bunch of drivel made it fast, fun and easy to memorize the sound and meaning of that word. 

It’s the personalization that makes it work, and the science of active recall shows us the how and why.

So what do you say?

Are you ready to develop one of the most powerful memory systems available to you? 

Make it happen!

Roman Room: A Solid Memory Palace Strategy

The Roman Room method is just one term for the most powerful memory technique humanity has ever known.

It helps you memorize information for a few simple reasons we’ll explore on this page.

The best part?

The Roman Room technique helps you memorize information quickly.

What kinds of information?

Everything from foreign language vocabulary to entire speeches.

Ready to learn and master this powerful learning technique?

Here’s a Table of Contents for you of what’s on this page for you:

The Origin of the Term Roman Room?
Roman Rooms or Memory Theatres: Which Is Better?
How To Prepare To Use A Roman Room
How to Use Your First Roman Room
Practicing the Roman Room Method
How to Expand Your Roman Rooms
How to Modify A Roman Room
Is the Roman Room Method the Best Memory Technique?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zz4G6...

 

The Origin of The Term “Roman Room”

First off, it’s important to repeat that this term is just one variation of a mental tool that appeared many thousands of years ago, long before Rome was even built. The term “Roman Room” means practically the same thing as:

Journey MethodMemory PalaceMind PalaceMemory CastleMemory RoomMethod of Loci

I’ll never forget one of my first students – he was 88 and didn’t like any of these terms. So I said call the Roman Room technique whatever you like. He chose “apartments with compartments.” Once settled, he went on to revive his German and memorize dozens of poems. 

But there’s a reason some people call this technique the “Roman Room.” This is because Roman Orators used their homes, and even the stages they spoke from, to help them memorize and recite their speeches. 

In fact, a phrase we still use today is thought to come from the use of rooms as memory devices. When a speaker would say, “In the first place” or “in the second place,” this verbal habit was referring to the information in a mental room used to store the point. It’s entirely possible that the people in the audience also used the technique, and used it along with the speaker to rapidly internalize the information as they heard it.

This use of locations is why the Roman Room technique is sometimes called the Method of Loci. Loci is the plural of locus, a Latin word for a place. You have “loci” when you have strung multiple places together, such as the four corners of a room. 

In the Greek tradition, we have the Story of Simonides of Ceos, which I give two powerful  versions of in our detailed study of 7 Ancient Memory Palace tips.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nSn2q...

Now, this technique is not just about using buildings or rooms. We also have the notion of space itself, which was incredibly special to the Greeks in many ways. As Thales said, a person widely considered to be both the first philosopher and scientist:

Μέγιστον τόπος άπαντα γαρ χωρεί

 Megiston topos hapanta gar chorei

Space is the ultimate thing, as it contains all things.

Pre-historically, we have evidence that ancient people did not use rooms at all to create their memory tools. For example, people have used constellations to help them remember. Lynne Kelly demonstrates in The Memory Code how aboriginals used skyscapes both day and night to help them remember songs. She also shows how they used long stretches of  geography and even objects like the lukasa to help them and locations of medicinal plants. 

I would go so far as to say that humanity has survived precisely because it learned to use external and internal structures as memory aids. Imagine trying to remember what kind of plants are safe to eat during a drought, versus which are poisonous. If you can’t remember, you’re dead. 

Roman Rooms or Memory Theatres: Which Is Better For Memory Palace Training?

If you can’t find any terms you like, let’s introduce another option that I’m quite fond of and talk about Robert Fludd’s “memory theatre.” It uses rooms very specifically, or at least, that’s what memory expert Frances Yates believes. She talks a lot about Fludd’s variation on the Roman Room in her seminal book, The Art of Memory. 

The idea here is that we can mentally visit locations, and this man is apparently imagining a structure like the Tower of Babel, an obelisk, what appears to be a town square and perhaps an angel introducing a new person to heaven. 

On the Oculus Imaginationis diagram, we see different spaces that can be used in combination with other kinds of mental imagery to help us remember words, poems, mathematical formulas and names. 

However, there is a difference to notice between ars quadrata and ars rotunda. The first is the art of using squares and the second is the art of using round and dynamic spaces, such as using trees in a forest or other shapes in nature.

As an experiment, I created my own version of The Tower of Babel and used it to memorize these two terms. On locus one, I mentally imposed a big fat circle that is badly overweight. That reminded me of the term ars rotunda. On the second locus, I imposed a square and thought of Q from James Bond bringing the secret agent into a new quadrant for ars quadrata. 

Now, Fludd was apparently against using a virtual Memory Palace or any imaginary space. But that didn’t stop him from using spaces of imagination. 

Who was Robert Fludd? And why should we care about his memory teaching?

He was a key thinker in the development of both scientific thinking and the use of memory techniques. He had a lively, albeit controversial exchange with Johannes Kepler, and thought deeply about the nature of the mind and memory, providing many illustrations of how he thought our mechanisms of psychology worked.

Again, it seems that Fludd preferred using actual buildings for his spatial memory work, not imaginary spaces. In fact, Yates thinks he may have used Shakespeare’s Globe Theatre for his Roman Rooms. And if you take a look at one of his diagrams, you can see that this theatre space with entrances to multiple rooms is coded in an interesting way:

Notice how the image of this theatre depicts five entrances (three on the ground floor and two on the top floor). Corresponding with these rooms are different shapes. Yates is not sure, and no one can be, but it’s easy to imagine that Fludd may have had actors stand on these shapes and then used them to walk through the rooms behind those doors. 

Then, in each corner and possibly on each wall, he had pre-determined “loci” where he would place the information he wanted to memorize. We don’t know, but we can theorize that Fludd would have visited the rooms behind those doors, not imagined them. Assuming that you’re using rooms you’ve seen with your own eyes, now let’s talk about…

How To Prepare To Use A Roman Room

 If you want to be a purist, you would first set a specific goal. For example, a goal might be to use this memory technique to memorize a speech, as the Roman orators would have done. But you can use this style of journey system to memorize anything else, from foreign language vocabulary and phrases to mathematical formulas. 

For the vast varieties of possible memory goals and the powerful outcomes anyone who becomes a discipline of these techniques can experience, I want to correct a misconception. 

It is sometimes said that memory techniques that use space are only useful for memorizing lists or what is sometimes called “unstructured” information.

This claim is not necessarily false, but it is deeply misguided about the nature of the information we want to memorize. For example, information is structured by default, isn’t it? How could it be information if it didn’t have a structure? The word information itself has multiple structures, for example. 

The letter ‘I’ that begins the word is a structure, as is each letter in the word. The word has four syllables, each syllable a structure until itself. Analyzing information in this way is one of the great secrets used by memory artists to rapidly create multiple hooks and make concrete associations out of even the most concrete and abstract material.

To the true mnemonist, there is in fact nothing abstract or difficult or obscure when it comes to memorizing information. Every detail comes in the form of perceivable assemblages of multiple structures for which mnemonic associations can always be made. You just need to be trained and well-practiced.

Let’s go a bit deeper on this point:

When memorizing my TEDx Talk, on some of the locus of my Roman Room, I was able to encode 11-17 word phrases in the corner or along the walls.

This approach works because every sentence is a list. It’s just one word coming after another in a particular order. We just happen to call it a “sentence.” And the word “sentence” is just a list of letters, s-e-n-t-e-n-c-e.

It’s the same thing with a string of digits. For example, the 1200 digits of pi memorized and recited publicly by my student Marno Hermann who established himself at the top of the South African memory competition records is technically a list, and yet…

If you use this technique properly, in a way that allows you to both get the info into long term memory and recall it out of order, you can manipulate the linear nature of information.

You can use what I call “Magnetic Compounding” based on ideas from Giordano Bruno that vastly explode the potential of everything memorized inside of a Roman Room.

But that would no longer technically be a Roman Room – it would be a Magnetic Memory Palace. So let’s stick with the plot, shan’t we? Here’s how to get started with your first Roman Room: 

Get out a piece of paper. Think of a room you’re familiar with. Draw the room using just four lines  to represent the room.  Represent the corners of the room with numbers.  Write down the list of the stations. 

The reason I ask students to follow these steps is not just because I have loved receiving them by the thousands as symbols of people taking action. I do love that!

But I ask serious students of memory improvement to draw the Roman Room because it helps them tap into more visual and spatial memory power than imagination accomplishes on its own. We also harness the power of something called “the levels of processing effect” by physically creating this memory aid through drawing. It then becomes newly visual to you as a blueprint, which means it’s better remembered.

Then, by writing numbers and words, you’re processing it through your numerical and verbal brain – strengthening the journey. The more levels of processing, the better, and this is true no matter how good you get. I find that if I don’t complete this quick step for both simple and elaborate Memory Palaces that I create, the technique just doesn’t work nearly as well. 

I think that drawing the memory journey is like the equivalent of a London cabbie driving the streets in preparation for the exam and then taking prep tests to manually write out the routes by hand. Sure, you can probably remember the routes without taking those steps… eventually. But if you really want to succeed, you’re going to do what good students do, and compound your efforts using multiple approaches. 

If you’re worried that this simple Roman Room won’t be enough space to memorize much, don’t be. Here are two mindset tips to keep in mind:

If you haven’t developed the skills to memorize just four pieces of information in one room, why worry about thousands of pieces of information?  Any dedicated individual who puts in the time can pull dozens, if not hundreds of rooms from their memory. 

Just think about your years in elementary school and high school. Personally, from pre-school to when I graduated with my PhD, I have drawn dozens of these powerful memory tools. And that’s not to mention all the movie theatres, cafes, restaurants, churches, hotels and bookstores I’ve seen (just to name a few possible options you surely have waiting for you in your memory). 

Be willing to start small, and if you’re not willing to do that, be willing to scale back after a massive effort at making enormous Memory Palaces poses too much challenge for your spatially unexercised brain. I myself overwhelmed myself like crazy in the beginning, and it seems that some of the best students do need to feel that bit of pain in order to train themselves to simplify. There’s nothing wrong with failing to follow the advice to keep it simple, so long as you learn from the experience.

How to Use Your First Roman Room: A Real-Life Example

One of the best ways to learn the Roman Room technique is to go through a real-life example.

Let’s use my February 2020 TEDx Talk and break it down into steps.

Step One: Write a Great Speech (Or Organize Your Info Well)

This step is kind of obvious, but throughout history, people have failed to do make sure their presenters are receiving the best possible message.

Even back in 90 BCE, the author of the Rhetorica ad Herennium gave instructions on how to use the Roman Room method in combination with a well written speech.

In the case of language learning, the equivalent of this step would be to organize the words and phrases you want to learn. Every minute spent in preparation will save you time later and create a better outcome.

Step Two: Select the Best Possible Roman Room

When thinking about how I was going to memorize my TEDx Talk, the stakes were high. That’s why I chose a clear and distinct location based on a place I see every day.

Then I drew it by hand. The full version, created with the help of a graphic artist, looks like this:

By figuring out each part of the Roman Room first, it is easy to start the encoding process.

Step Three: Place Your Magnetic Associations

The first line of my TEDx Talk is:

How would you like to completely silence your mind?

To memorize this line, I simply started at the first locus and thought of Howie Mandel.

Why this comedian?

Well, besides the fact that we’re both Canadian and I liked him a lot when I was a kid, “how” and “Howie” have the same letters and basic sound. Using sound-links in your choice of mnemonic images is a key part of what makes the technique work. The tighter and more evocative the images, the easier you’ll recall the information.

Step Four: Add as Much Elaboration as Needed

Howie provides just the word “how” from within this Roman Room on the first station.

To get more of the first sentence in place, I next imagined Howie chopping wood (would) while hitting thumbs up on his phone (like). Once this part of the line was encoded, I didn’t need the rest of the line because this was the point of the talk.

Step Five: Keep Moving Forward

The next step is to move to the next locus in your Roman Room.

In my case, I went from locus one in the Roman Room when I was done the first line and encoded the next line on locus two.

Sometimes I needed to encode the sentences word for word, but other times I only encoded keywords. It’s a fairly long talk, but I can often get a lot of words on one locus, so it took the equivalent of 8 Roman Rooms in total.

But again, “Roman Room” is just one of many possible names for this technique, so it’s important to not focus on the terminology. So please understand that the Magnetic Memory Method has fused all of the best techniques together into one smooth and systematic approach.

We’ll discuss some of the other parts involved in using it successfully below. First, we need to touch upon instilling the content you want to remember for the long term.

Practicing the Roman Room Method For Long Term Memory

This is the fun part of using the Roman Room method. 

You see, encoding is only half of the task. You also have to practice decoding the speech using spaced repetition. Sometimes I call this process “Recall Rehearsal,” especially when I’m using Roman Rooms to memorize any speech fast.

To do that, I followed a few unusual steps that I recommend to anyone using this technique. 

Recall the speech forwards from beginning to end.  Pick segments of the speech to practice in different orders. Walk the Roman Room while reciting.

Reciting the speech from beginning to end is obvious. That’s how you want to deliver it, after all.

The Secret of Non-Linear Spaced Repetition

But if you want to be absolutely flawless and have no hesitations, each part needs to really stick in your mind. If you only practice starting from the beginning, you will give the beginning what is called Primacy Effect. The end will get what is called Recency Effect.

Learning to use spaced repetition to defeat the Forgetting Curve started in earnest with the research of Hermann Ebbinghaus.

 

These laws of memory, first identified by Hermann Ebbinghaus in his book, Über das Gedächtnis (about memory) show that we tend to remember best the first and last things we encounter in an information series. We forget information at different rates, creating an effect he called “the forgetting curve.”

You probably have heard a friend who can tell you how a movie begins and ends, but completely botches retelling the middle of the story. This happens precisely because of these effects. 

To avoid that problem while standing in front of the audience, I recited my speech out of order so that each part received sufficient doses of primacy and recency. I know that sounds weird, but recalling information out of order is absolutely essential for establishing long-term memories as quickly as possible.

This simple process of recalling the speech out of order gives each part of the speech equal doses of primacy and recency, completely stopping the forgetting curve in its tracks.

In the end, I succeeded and delivered the speech entirely from memory, using no slides or pictures. I successfully recited each and every quote as well, thanks to the fact that each was robustly remembered. Using these patterns to practice recall is the best way to achieve that level of bulletproof delivery and remove all nervousness.

Pegword Lists and the Hook Method

One neat way you can get more out of this technique is to learn how to use the pegword method, which is sometimes called the “hook method.” 

In some sense, I’m already doing this in the example I just gave. Howie Mandel became a kind of hook that carried my memory across several words. 

However, if you develop a set of images for each letter of the alphabet, you can link your Roman Rooms to each letter.

For example, locus one can be the A-locus. Perhaps you have a friend named Alan or Albert who will always be standing there.

Then, if you want to memorize a line like the one from my speech, you could see him fistfighting with Howie Mandel (or some other Howard). This additional approach can be useful for beginners because sometimes it can be a struggle when you’re new to think of what images you used.

But if you know what each letter stands for, then it’s easier to remember that it was Alan punching Howie to kick-off a sentence that starts with “how” because you know Alan. Howie is just an actor on a screen who has not been able to activate nearly as much of your brain and memory. 

I have a detailed example list of images that I’ve used on my tutorial about the pegword method. 

How to Expand Your Roman Rooms

As mentioned, you can easily create more Roman Rooms. Most people have potentially thousands of them in their minds.

But let’s say you want to make one bigger.

Let’s look back at the Robert Fludd theater again. 

You can do the exact same thing as Yates imagines Fludd did.

Let’s say that in Roman Room #1 you include 5 doors. Personally, I would encode these alphabetically. 

Behind door A would be the entrance to my friend Alan’s home office. (I actually use his entire house, but just one additional room does a lot to expand into more space if you’re not ready for bigger Memory Palaces.) 

Behind door B would be my dad’s workshop (his name starts with B). Behind door C, I might use one of my highschool sweetheart’s homes… sigh, Ah Charla, whatever happened to you?

Another way you can expand any Roman Room is to add the walls. Four corners and four walls = 8 loci. You could also add the floor and ceiling, giving 10. This configuration is the so-called Vaughn Cube. 

Or, you can change the color or your first Roman Room and reuse it. This is very mentally taxing, which is why I discourage beginners from using the technique in The Definitive Guide to Reusing A Memory Palace. 

Finally, you don’t have to stick to the corners and walls. This practice is my personal preference now because I memorize a lot of verbatim lines. But for language learning, I like to add furniture. Sometimes multiple shelves of books can be useful too, but generally the more compressed the space, the more difficult it can be to manage.

How to Modify A Roman Room

As I discussed in my writing on How to Renovate a Memory Palace, I generally discourage making changes after-the-fact. It’s time consuming and reveals that you haven’t really put enough time into planning either your Roman Rooms or your learning goal. 

For example, it would have been a huge frustration and a waste of time if the rooms I used for my TEDx needed to be changed along the way. 

Not only that, failing to structure the journey correctly from the beginning could have led to completely blowing the talk altogether.

If you really must modify a Roman Room after-the-fact, I suggest that you do it after all the core information has already been entered. Then, see if you can add a wall where you previously only used the corners. Or use the foot of the bed where you previously used only the pillow area. 

When you get really good at this technique, you’ll find that you can get extremely detailed in your Memory Palaces. Mary Carruthers tells us in The Medieval Craft of Memory that John of Metz used every stone of the tower he lived in for his loci. He must have practiced a lot to reach that level of skill!

 

Is the Roman Room Method the Best Memory Technique?

Success with any memory technique you choose depends on your goal. It also depends on your current level of skill and on the nature of the information. This is as true of Roman Room memory solutions as it is of every mnemonic technique you’ll ever find.

At the end of the day, preparation matters. I suggest that beginners start with simple goals, like a handful of vocabulary in a foreign language or song lyrics. 

To learn an entire language, you’re going to want to develop at least one Memory Palace Network. 

If you want to deal with numbers, you’ll need to add a second technique, either the Major System or the Dominic System – both are essentially pegword methods tailored for numbers. And rest assured that they’re not new. They both descend from the Katapayadi system which we can track back to 683 CE. 

There’s so much more to be said about all the memory systems out there. But the best thing to do is pick one, get started and stick with it for at least 90 days. Practice a minimum of 4x a week. No matter what approach you use, it’s consistent study and practice that we each need to become memory masters. 

If you’d like more help, please sign up now for my FREE Memory Improvement Kit here:

 

How to Reset Dopamine Levels: 5 Exercises and the Truth About Dopamine Fasting

Did you know that visualising success, jumping in a cold river and consuming illegal narcotics can trigger the release of the same pleasurable neurochemical in your brain?

I know, I know…it sounds like a late-night infomercial from the 90’s, but it’s true. It’s science. And this little feel-good chemical is called dopamine.

Dopamine is a well-known but often misunderstood neurotransmitter that plays a vital role in our experience of rewards, motivation, and cravings.

If you have any interest in psychology and personal development, you’ve probably heard of it. Unfortunately, the internet is rife with popular myths about the nature of dopamine, dopamine ‘levels’ and how this all impacts our sense of pleasure, focus and drive.

Broadly speaking there are two types of dopamine levels to be aware of: tonic and phasic.

Tonic dopamine levels are the baseline levels of dopaminergic activity that occur in our brain. If these levels are too high this can be related to impulsivity, hyperactivity and mania, among other symptoms. If they are too low, this may lead to loss of pleasure, depression symptoms and fatigue.

Phasic dopamine levels are the moment-to-moment fluctuations in dopamine that we experience in response to specific stimuli such as food, media, cigarettes and alcohol. If phasic dopamine levels are too high, particularly for a prolonged period of time, this might lead to addiction and associated risky behaviours. If they are too low, this may reduce our ability to experience pleasure.

https://youtu.be/GS8v98zkfNw

What Factors Impact Your Dopamine Levels?

However, it’s important to note that our dopamine systems are impacted by environment, genetics and specific circumstances and their relationship to behaviour is complex. While there may be a correlation between loss of motivation or low mood and low dopamine levels, this doesn’t mean that feeling low or unmotivated is only a result of dopaminergic dysfunction.

So what does we really mean when we say we want to “reset our dopamine levels.”

Well, this would be to return our baseline (tonic) dopamine levels to a normal range. There are generally three ways you can do this and later in this post I’ll offer some specific examples:

Reduce or eliminate the factors that cause dopamine dysregulationAdopt healthy habits that support dopamine (and other neurotransmitters) balanceIncrease your tolerance and capacity to experience pleasure and pain

But first, it’s necessary to consider why we may have low dopamine levels or more low motivation and mood more generally.

5 Reasons Why Your Dopamine Levels Are Low#1. Chronic Stress

Releasing dopamine can often be a way that we deal with the stress of the present moment. It helps us disengage (go on autopilot), distract (ignore discomfort) and disconnect (numb).

When we’re stressed, our brain releases a hormone called cortisol. Unfortunately, chronic stress leads to persistently elevated cortisol levels and this can disrupt our dopamine balance and contribute to reduced motivation, pleasure and general cognitive function. Stress can also mess with your memory.

Reducing your stress levels may therefore increase your baseline levels of dopamine and increase your dopamine receptor sensitivity and in doing so, reduce the urge to reach for quick dopamine spikes.

#2. Trauma

When we talk about dopamine detoxes, most of the attention is focused on daily habits such as social media, Netflix, and overconsumption of food, caffeine, nicotine or other substances. However, we often overlook the root causes of our reaching for those things in the first place.

While part of this behaviour may be linked to societal abundance and increased access to dopamine-spiking stimuli, this whole system is partly fuelled and maintained by the very common experience of trauma.

Trauma is basically any intense physiological or psychological stressor that the nervous system cannot process in the moment and which results in a defense mechanism that limits our range of future responses to a situation.

The result of this trauma can range from simple disconnection and disengagement in life all the way to a formal diagnosis of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD).

Traumatic experiences – particularly during crucial periods of brain development – have long-lasting impacts on the brain’s neurochemistry. That’s not to mention trauma from brain injury, which can also cause issues.

While we’re still learning about the brain, it’s entirely possible (maybe even probable) that “dopamine hits” give us relief from painful emotions and therefore trauma makes us more susceptible to craving and addiction.

For example, trauma impact the functioning of dopamine-related brain regions such as the prefrontal cortex, amygdala and hippocampus, and disrupts dopamine receptors and the Hypothalic-Pituitary-Adrenal (HPA) axis, which helps regulate stress hormones like cortisol. Fortunately, by receiving therapy to heal our trauma we can move towards a state of nervous system regulation and control.

#3. Dopamine Abuse AKA. Pleasure Seeking

When we engage in pleasure-seeking activities such as excessive screen time or consuming unhealthy or processed foods, we are rewarded with brief surges in dopamine without any effort.

The problem with instant gratification (as opposed to delayed gratification) is that the brain was evolutionarily designed to provide good feelings in response to effort. This means that over time, our dopamine receptors become desensitised and we are dependent on more and more intense forms of pleasure-seeking.

The extreme end of this occurs in substance abuse such as amphetamines or cocaine, whereby the result is chronically low dopamine levels, depression, decreased motivation and cognitive dysfunction. However, overindulging in something like YouTube, Netflix or social media can do the same thing, just on a smaller scale.

In psychology there is something called “the opponent process theory.” This is a general heuristic that is used to describe how the brain seeks to find balance.

In the case of pleasure and pain, if we only seek pleasure, we eventually experience pain, whereas if we intentionally seek out discomfort we will be rewarded with pleasure (such as in the case of intense exercise and endorphin release).

This is known as hormesis – exposing ourselves to mild stressors to improve resilience and well-being in the long term.

#4. Sleep, Diet and Exercise

Another important reason why your dopamine levels may be low (and definitely not one to be overlooked) is because of a generally unhealthy lifestyle. Insufficient quality sleep can get in the way of the brain’s ability to reset dopamine levels, damaging your concentration, motivation and mood regulation.

Similarly, if we don’t get the essential nutrients we need, such as amino acids, vitamins and minerals, our brain is not optimised for dopamine production. Exercise is important for overall brain health as well as the effort-based dopamine release we described earlier, so a sedentary lifestyle can also contribute to low levels of dopamine.

#5. Genetics

The final factor that may relate to low dopamine levels is genetics.

There is a complex relationship between dopamine production, the enzymes involved in dopamine synthesis, dopamine receptor sensitivity and the efficiency of transporters. It’s beyond me and beyond the scope of this article. Importantly, there is currently no test that can accurately tell you if you are genetically predisposed to low tonic dopamine levels.

The most important take-away from this is that you can change how you feel, and we are about to share how!

Dopamine Fasting: Does This New Trend Really Work?

There has been a lot of talk in recent years about dopamine fasting and if it can be helpful. Because the relationship between dopamine and behaviour is still relatively misunderstood, there are conflicting opinions among researchers.

According to Dr. Anna Lembke, psychiatrist and author of Dopamine Nation, and neuroscientist Andrew Huberman, in the case of those with chronic dopamine imbalances, such as recovering addicts, a dopamine fast whereby we intentionally abstain from things that trigger our phasic dopamine levels, while our tonic dopamine levels get back towards normal, can be helpful.

For those with a history of substance abuse, this is best discussed with a psychiatrist before attempting any form of detox, which can be quite challenging and emotionally disruptive.

Why You Need To Avoid Easy Street

However, for most of us, Huberman suggests that it’s more effective to actively reduce (not completely eliminate) things that give us pleasure too easily. For example, I noticed at one point, about a year ago, that I had picked up a couple of small but noticeable immediate gratification habits throughout the extended COVID lockdowns in 2020 and 2021.

Firstly, whenever I ate a meal by myself, I would always consume content, usually an educational podcast or Youtube video. It was easy to justify this as productivity, but the reality was, it was entertainment. Secondly, when exercising I would consume caffeine beforehand and listen to music throughout.

21st Century Abstinence

Both of these activities fell under something that Huberman refers to as “dopamine stacking,” drawing from multiple sources of pleasure at once (food, digital media, caffeine, music, exercise). I took his advice and began to eat meals without any external stimuli and exercise (usually) without any caffeine or music. Initially there was resistance, but after a few weeks I noticed that I was enjoying both eating and my post-work exercise ‘high’ a lot more.

One thing to consider is that you might want to abstain from what you habitually reach for when you’re in distress (such as your phone), and learn to tolerate distress and discomfort, and if possible, go one step further and actively seek out challenges. If you don’t have chronically low dopamine levels, a complete dopamine fast probably won’t have any long-term effects, and the stress of doing so might actually counteract any subtle positive effects of the fast anyway.

The originator of the “dopamine fast” psychiatrist Dr. Cameron Sepah, actually says that his initial focus was not neurochemical (as you can’t fast from a naturally occurring chemical) but it was a cognitive-behavioural therapy method intended to help people reduce impulsive behaviour.

How to Repair Your Dopamine Receptors: 5 Mindfulness-Based Exercises

Based on the factors that cause a reduction or imbalance in our dopamine levels, it’s clear that maintaining a healthy diet, getting regular exercise, having sufficient sleep and reducing your overall stress levels are all important.

However, here are some other ways to reset your dopamine levels.

Exercise #1 – Meditation

There are several forms of meditation and the one that is most likely to improve your baseline dopamine levels (and general brain health) is ultimately the practice that a) makes you feel good b) you are motivated to do most consistently. This will be different based on your unique brain, history, temperament, and natural level of concentration.

For example, focused attention meditation is a great way to stimulate high levels of dopamine release, but many people find it difficult to concentrate for long enough to get into such a state.

Loving-Kindness meditation can be deeply healing and is great for fostering feelings of love, safety and connectedness, but some people find the visualisations that are a part of the practice challenging and struggle to feel compassion at will.

Chanting or singing meditation is an amazing way to stimulate the Vagus nerve, reduce physiological stress and release dopamine but some people may be too shy to chant out loud.

Exercise #2 – Cold Exposure

In sticking with the theme of hormesis, progressively introducing yourself to uncomfortable situations, one of the most potent ways to reset dopamine levels is through cold exposure. This is most commonly done with ice baths, swimming in cold water or cold showers.

Cold exposure stimulates the production of norepinephrine, which is a precursor to dopamine. One study found that immersion in cold water raised blood levels of dopamine by 250% and that this was still elevated for up to 72 hours after the exposure.

On top of this, there are other health benefits to consistent cold exposure, such as a reduction in stress levels, improved blood circulation, improved focus and energy, and better sleep, which may indirectly help in balancing out your dopamine levels.

Exercise #3 – Viewing Early Morning Sunlight & Avoiding Screen Time at Night

Human beings spent 99% of our history without electronic lights. As a result, our physiology is highly attuned to natural light, which is influential in regulating our dopamine production. Viewing early morning sunlight (without sunglasses) for 10-30 minutes a day can help release dopamine when done consistently. It goes without saying to make sure you don’t stare directly at the sun!

On the flip side, viewing bright artificial lights between 10pm and 4am has been shown to significantly reduce the amount of dopamine in our system. This is worrying given that a large majority of the world’s population are watching screens late into the night.

Exercise #4. – Do One Thing at a Time

By stacking several sources of dopamine at a time, we may over-spike our phasic dopamine levels which can lead to a crash and reduced motivation in the long term.

For example, if you’re going to exercise, you may be accustomed to having energy drinks, loud music, and social connections all at the same time. If you can reduce one of these (e.g. don’t always listen to music or ingest caffeine), that’s a good start.

Likewise, you may be used to having a beer while watching a thriller movie on television and eating dinner – you may want to try having dinner without the television playing.

When it comes to memory, there is a case of multi-tasking while using spaced repetition techniques. But overall, even when using a memorization technique, it’s generally best to focus on one thing at a time.

Exercise #5. – Control Your Thoughts

It’s quite clear that when we have negative thoughts our nervous system takes this as a stressor, and it reduces our capacity for pleasure.

However, what a lot of people don’t know is that by intentionally having positive thoughts or using positive mental imagery, we can actually release dopamine. Memory palaces, which combine goal-oriented, focused attention with mental imagery can undoubtedly improve our dopamine levels.

The Truth About How To Repair Dopamine Receptors

Ultimately, it’s important to maintain not only a healthy dopamine balance, but also to ensure you get enough of the other “feel-good” neurochemicals such as endorphins, serotonin, and oxytocin. This will ensure that you feel more fulfilled and motivated in general and don’t have as many cravings to reach for dopamine hits.

Making the necessary effort to balance dopamine levels when there are so many easy sources of neurochemical reward available at our fingertips can be a tough task. Like most healthy habits, the best route to long-term success is to start with small steps.

It may be necessary to improve our diet, exercise and meditate, but within this it’s also important to choose things that we enjoy in order to keep us motivated and consistent. Find an exercise routine that you like doing, eat healthy foods that you prefer (you don’t have to eat kale if you hate it!) and experiment with meditation styles till you find a style that you enjoy. Don’t forget to include a Memory Palace exercise routine too.

If you’re concerned that you may have chronically low dopamine levels as a result of substance abuse, or you’ve experienced a prolonged period of low mood, make sure you contact a counsellor or psychotherapist in your area. If that’s something you need, Ben Fishel has been on the MMM Podcast before and I highly recommend him for global telehealth counselling, or if you’re looking for a psychotherapist in the Melbourne area.

How to Become a Mnemonist & Develop Exceptional Memory Skills

If you’d like to become a mnemonist, or a person who excels at using memory techniques, it’s actually pretty easy.

Or at least, it can be if you follow the right steps based on the right goals.

What exactly are those goals and what steps do you need to follow in order to become a memory expert capable of demonstrating how memory techniques work?

That’s exactly what we’re going to cover in this post.

I’m a memory expert and mnemonist myself. But I won’t just be using my own examples.

I’ll share with you the stories of many other mnemonists as well.

That way, you can compare and contrast the different mnemonic styles you can pursue.

Along the way, you’ll also discover how to memorize a large amount of information.

Ready?

Let’s get started!

https://youtu.be/1yY3k9fbZyo

What Is A “Mnemonist”?

The term mnemonist is related to the word “mnemonic,” which means “memory technique.”

This means that a mnemonist is essentially someone who is skilled with using memory techniques.

The term may also refer to a person who:

Gives memory demonstrations (like Harry Kahne)Teaches memory techniquesDoes a combination of both

There’s a bit of a grey area here because sometimes people think that people with superior autobiographical memory, synesthesia are also mnemonists.

For example, there are people like Solomon Shereshevsky or Daniel Tammett where autism may be involved. In each of these cases, it seems clear that these people used mnemonics or something very close to mnemonics when memorizing vast amounts of information.

Kim Peek does not appear to have used mnemonics, but the mental calculator Sal Piacente has successfully reproduced many of Peek’s talents.

You may also encounter people like Jill Price. She’s associated with photographic memory, but technically has hyperthymestic syndrome. One of the first studies was based on Jill Price’s case, and this condition is not to be confused with eidetic memory.

In sum, a mnemonist has developed a skill. Virtually anyone who wants to have this skill can train for it.

How to Become a Mnemonist and Unlock Your Memory’s True Potential

Once you’ve decided to become a mnemonist, your path is mostly straight forward.

Let’s have a look and pick up some specific examples along the way. Note that some of these steps are in a logical order. But others can be started any time, such as making friends in the memory community.

One: Decide To Be All In

When memory expert and mnemonist Harry Lorayne decided to master his memory, it was to escape punishment.

In order to do it, he went to the library and devoted himself to figuring out what mnemonic devices are and how to use them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kaPMu...

When I say “be all in,” I don’t just mean read a lot of books on Memory Palaces.

I also mean devote yourself to practicing the techniques with a wide variety of information types:

VocabularyNumbersSymbolsPlaying cards

By doing this, you’ll start to deeply understand more about what memory really is and how you can make it work better on demand.

Two: Start Simply

That said, you have to start somewhere. And for most us, we’ll need to start with a simple goal.

A first goal is to learn how to memorize a list. You can do this using the pegword method, or a use an even a simpler number-rhyme system.

Three: Make Friends In The Memory Community

Given the many stages of learning, it’s useful to be able to speak with others who are both behind and ahead of you.

You’ll find lots of cool people doing amazing things. For example, Braden Adams memorized 70 decks of playing cards for charity.

Marno Hermann broke a record in his country for reciting pi.

And Jesse Villalobos got a raise and a promotion.

There are so many examples like this, and the best part is that most of these people are happy to share their experiences and the specific memory hacks they’ve explored.

Four: Learn More Advanced Mnemonic Techniques

Once you’ve mastered the basic techniques, it’s time to keep developing your skills.

Now, exactly what counts as an “advanced” memory technique is admittedly subjective. But in general, number rhyme systems and alphabet mnemonics are simple compared with tactics like using a 00-99 PAO System based on the Major Method are more advanced.

At this stage, it’s possible to get stuck with decision anxiety because instead of the Major Method, you could choose the Dominic System.

Other times, people cause issues for themselves by using Anki to learn the more advanced systems. But that’s really evading the skill you’re trying to build by confusing mnemonic spaced repetition with rote learning.

Journaling and mindmapping to test if you really want to be a mnemonist can help resolve such issues, and ultimately you want to know about both options, even if you only use one.

Five: Increase The Complexity Of Your Goals

As you continue using memory techniques, you’ll likely find that you plateau. In other words, you get pretty good and then your growth comes to a stand still.

2x USA Memory Champion John Graham has a great suggestion: adding distractions. You can practice memorizing pi with loud heavy metal playing, for example.

Or, you can keep yourself challenged by:

Exploring new topicsBecoming a trivia masterMemorizing mantras as part of a concentration meditation programApplying mnemonics to learning a languageGiving memory demonstrations

One person who gives very interesting memory demonstrations is Nelson Dellis. He’s memorized decks of cards underwater and while climbing Mount Everest!

Six: Know Your Memory History

Most of the “real deal” memory techniques are in the past.

For example, did you know that Aristotle was a memory master? He was one of the first to write about the more advanced memory techniques based on the alphabet.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_3N2i...

Then there are the Aboriginal memory techniques discussed by people like Tyson Yunkaporta and Lynne Kelly.

Perhaps my favorite mnemonists are Matteo Ricci and Giordano Bruno. They both traveled widely during the Renaissance and we still feel their influence.

In fact, it’s a pet theory of mine that in the 20th century, the mnemonist Bruno Furst took that name as a reference to Giordano Bruno.

Seven: Keep Studying Other Mnemonists

Technically, your goal of studying the great mnemonic traditions is never done. And since it’s a living tradition, it only makes sense to take courses and read the books of those currently alive and writing them.

I do this myself, and in recent years have loved learning from mnemonists like Tony Buzan, Ron White, Jim Kwik, John Michael Greer, Martin Faulks and Brad Zupp.

Even if I don’t agree with some of these people, or have criticisms that come to mind with now disappeared courses like Phenomenal Memory, it’s only possible to stretch yourself if you have the widest possible picture of what’s out there. And by understanding how others use memory techniques, you’ll fashion new goals for yourself that you probably wouldn’t have come up with on your own.

Eight: Teach Others

Although this step is optional, it’s almost impossible to understand mnemonic imagery properly without explaining it to others.

How exactly to teach others is its own discussion, but in brief, you can simply give a demonstration and then explain how you were able to accomplish the feat.

A lot of mnemonists I know get frustrated that people often aren’t interested in picking up the skills for themselves.

But I suggest avoiding this conclusion. Teaching of others will certainly benefit from them. But it also helps you. By talking about what you’re learning, you’ll see the gaps in your own knowledge. And that will give you clues regarding how to come back to this list and start again from the beginning.

Because ultimately, that’s what memory training is really all about: the deliberate practice of keeping an open mind and focusing on the fundamentals.

Beyond Memorizing Lists

As I hope you’ve seen, there are different kinds of mnemonists and different goals mnemonists can complete.

If you would like to develop exceptional memory skills and call yourself a mnemonist, I can really only ask one thing:

Seek the truth about memory.

And that means being radically honest.

Nothing is gained by trying to pull the wool over anyone’s eyes. Sadly, there’s quite a bit of cheating in the memory world, and that only harms everyone.

But if you’re willing to talk about the mistakes you’ve made, something I go out of my way to do, you’ll help and inspire others who also want to enjoy superior memory skills.

And if you would like my free course on using the incredibly powerful Memory Palace technique, here’s where to get it:

It will take you through my favorite of all the ancient memory techniques, with exercises and examples.

So what do you say?

Are you ready to master your memory and become a world class mnemonist?

Make it happen!

207 Deep Philosophical Questions for Smart People

News flash: philosophical questions for smart people must actually be philosophical.

I raise this point because so many people ask general interest questions and call them philosophical.

But that doesn’t mean that they actually are philosophical.

At its core, philosophy is the investigation of the nature of being.

As Martin Heidegger often put it, asking deep philosophical questions of his own, we need to question the being of being itself. Now how’s that for a mind bender?

Take things a step further:

How is it that we as beings have come to not only ask questions about the nature of being, but also come to question the nature of what it means to ask questions in the first place?

Ready for more reflection?

Let’s dive in!

207 Thought-Provoking Philosophical Questions

With these points in mind, here’s a list of questions that will help you experience rich and rewarding conversations with friends and family.

I’ve split the questions up into different categories and will sometimes discuss why the questions are so valuable to discuss.

Ready?

Let’s get started.

Ontology

As Dale Jacquette points out in his book Ontology, we often take the question of what exists for granted. What does it mean for something to exist? How does existence relate to things that are merely coming into being?

Ontological questions focus on being and who it relates to the opposite: non-being or non-existence.

Here are some of the most important questions in this area:

Why is there something rather than nothing? What does it mean to exist? What must be true in order for us to say that something exists or does not exist?

This question is especially interesting because we talk about many things that technically don’t exist, such as unicorns. 

Yet, the very notion of unicorn is premised upon other things that do exist, such as horses and animals that have horns. We can also think about horns in relation to seashells. So with this in mind, is it really the case that unicorns do not exist?

For more on the problem of non-existence and some proofs that non-being cannot be the opposite of being, see Plato’s Sophist.

What laws govern matter? When does life begin?

This question applies both to life as such in terms of when it first appeared in the universe, and when it starts following pregnancy. You can also ask to what extent that the universe itself might be alive.

Nietzsche was a philosopher who definitely thought the universe was not alive. See aphorism 109 of his book The Gay Science for an extraordinary warning against such humanization of being.

What happens to us when we die?What is the most perfect form of being?Does a god exist? If a god exists, why would we need to prove this? Is change real or only apparent? What is real?What is reality? Is reality one or many?

This question means to investigate not just the nature of one reality as opposed to a multiverse. It is also the question of whether or not everything in the reality is connected, or if there is separation between things.

Is reality material or spiritual? Is reality permanent, or is it itself always changing? If the entire universe is always in motion, can any object ever be at “rest”? Are light and darkness equal?Does history exist or did humans invent it? If so, does it repeat itself? Does the past continue to exist after it is gone? Is the world of tomorrow already here?

These last two questions were raised by Einstein and Gödel. For a full analysis, see A World Without Time.

In essence, it is fascinating to think that even though yesterday is gone, the world of yesterday is still there and potentially accessible.

Epistemology

As Christopher Norris puts it, epistemology boils down to the difference between opinion and verifiable fact. How do we know what we know and by what criteria do we know if that knowledge is valuable?

Knowledge can be about ideas, things, substances or states. Here are a pile of compelling questions you can ask in this area:

What is the nature of knowledge?Where does knowledge reside? In individuals or in humanity collectively? Is knowledge in our sense-impressions? In mental perceptions? In our judgements?What counts as a valid source of knowledge? What are the different sources of knowledge? Is knowledge something that we can possess?What is truth? How do we test what is true? What is a question? What is a good question? Why do some words and phrases translate cleanly between languages while others do not?Can we think something into existence?Can we think something into non-existence?Can we think about things that don’t exist?What is a substance?
What is a number?
Do “spirits” exist? If so, do they “know” things? What is a fact?What is an opinion?What is a mistake? What does the fact that mistakes are possible tell us about the nature of reality? If you know what you’re looking for, why would questions about it arise? 

If you don’t know what you’re looking for, how is it possible that you have enough knowledge to know that you want to find it? (This is essentially Meno’s Paradox.)

How much can an individual person know? Can an individual ever know anything on their own?

This question is very important because language is not owned by any individual. At its core, all knowledge is likely shared by virtue of this fact alone.

What is “language”? Are all languages equal? What makes a justified belief justified? How does language refer to the real world? What is truly objective and not subjective? What is the order in information? Or is it all chaos?What is philosophy?Why is philosophy important? Am I doomed to always be naive?Ethics

Peter Singer is one of the most important philosophers associated with ethics. One of his core concerns involves the duties of individuals with respect to the whole.

Within this field, one must consider the maximization of pleasure and the minimization of pain. It’s very hard to balance these two factors without causing harm to some by minimizing pain for others – and this problem explains a lot of the strife and turmoil we see in the world throughout human history.

These questions will help you think through philosophical questions related to ethics.

By what principles do we judge things right or wrong? What does it mean when we say that things “ought” to be a certain way?What are the principles, criteria and standards by which we should decide what to do? Is justice good because we prefer it, or do we prefer justice because it is good? What makes a human being moral? Should you seek to maximize your personal pleasure? Is it right to take on pain for yourself if it helps maximize the pleasure of others? What does it mean to be a good friend? What are my personal responsibilities as a local, national and global citizen? Is there a scientific basis to ethics?Sam Harris thinks that the answer to this question is yes. He defends his answer in The Moral Landscape.What is fairness? What are rights? How would I act if I cared for all life on the planet? How would I act if I considered both the short and long term outcomes of all my actions? How do we know when an authority should be followed? How do we know when it’s right to disobey authority? Is it right to keep a person alive artificially? Is killing always immoral and/or illegal? Should people be allowed to worship in any way they please? Is it right to allow children to determine their own gender? At what age should people be allowed to marry? How should we decide who gets to receive organ implants? How do we determine when death has occured?Religion

One of the fascinating aspects of religion is that people make truth claims about their chosen faith, yet all chosen faiths are under constant attack. As Mikel Burley has pointed out, this has put all religions on the defensive.

In some ways, this makes religion very similar to philosophy because neither of them are a science. Although philosophy and religion are not the same, they both exist to help us answer the questions that science has yet to address.

And as you’ll see from the following list, it is possible for some religious questions to be philosophical in nature. It basically boils down to looking at the philosophical questions that have come up in both the attacks against religion and the defenses various believers have mounted.

Does god exist?What are the reasons to believe that god exists? What is the nature of a god? Is god the ultimate reality? What is the relationship between an individual and a god? If a god does not exist, is there some other form of transcendent reality? Is it rational to believe in a god? Do you choose your faith or does it choose you? Can you be faithful and still experience doubt? If infinity is real, has god already reached it? If so, how is that possible given the definition of “infinity”? Does heaven exist?
Does hell exist? Is it right for a god to create and/or allow harm for any reason? If god exists, why is there evil in the world? Is god supernatural, or at one with the universe? Is religion philosophical? Does any scientific evidence validate any religion?Are all religions fundamentally the same? Why do different religions exist? How do we evaluate different religions? Why do so many religions rely upon stories instead of facts? If religion is real, why do atheists exist?Is it possible for an atheist to have a religious or spiritual experience? To what extent do moral positions have religious significance? Is morality pointless without religion?Do science and religion conflict with one another?Anthropological Philosophy

Anthropology has to do with people and their environments and how this relationship leads to the formation of thoughts, beliefs and behaviors. One of the greatest philosophers in this area was Friedrich Nietzsche, who sought to understand how humans create their own values. He was especially puzzled by how humans failed to see that they are the creators of their own values in the first place.

What are human beings?What is human hope? Desire? Belief? What is consciousness?What is a thought?What is thinking? How is it possible for the mind to represent the world? Can we really know anything? Is human nature inherently good or evil? Do you humans act out of free will, or are our actions determined? What is technology? When is our technology good? When is our technology bad? Who is ultimately responsible for the outcomes of using technology? Individuals, or the entire species? What is enlightenment? Why do some people think they have it?Does education improve people? If so, why do we seem to make the same mistakes repeatedly?Why do people limit themselves by giving responsibility to a god? Does free will exist? If free will doesn’t exist, why do I feel like I am in control?What is human evolution? How do humans evolve differently than other life forms? Why is there ethnic conflict in the world? Why do the behaviors of people differ based on where they are born? How do families form? How do individual identities form? Why do our personalities change over time? If your brain were transplanted into another body, would you still be you? How do social hierarchies form?Why are there different social classes? How do people learn languages?Why do some languages die? Do minds cause physical events, or does the physical body exclusively cause events in the mind? (Epiphenomenalism) What is it like to experience something? Why do humans pretend? How do I know that other people think and feel in the same ways I do? How do I know I’m not dreaming?Happiness Is happiness the product of chemicals flowing through your brain? Or is it more? What is the good life?Can people be happy? Do they actually want to be happy? Should people pursue happiness?Can you legitimately achieve happiness without making others unhappy? Is it selfish to want to be happy?Is it wrong to not care about being happy? Do we need goals in order to be happy? Does life have a meaning?Can meaning be found or does it have to be invented? (Existentialism)What is suffering?Is it rational to donate to charities?How do you describe happinessHow do you measure happiness?

Some people have thought that you actually can measure happiness. Jeremy Benthem’s felicific calculus is one strategy.

How do you control your own happiness?For whom is happiness possible?Is the pursuit of happiness self-defeating? When does seeking happiness make you unhappy?How do you find happiness with others?

Philosophy of Art

Can art be defined?Do artists, consumers or institutions like galleries and museums get to define the meaning of art? What media belongs to art and what doesn’t? (Film, literature, cinema, etc.) Why do certain artists resemble one another while others couldn’t be more different? What is it about art that causes a response in humans?What are the different kinds of responses to art? Is the value of art in the work or in the mind of the beholder? Does art have a purpose, or is it an end in itself? What is an authentic performance of a musical piece?In Philosophy: The Basics, Nigel Warburton wonders how we could ever experience Bach authentically without a time machine? Is a high quality forgery still art? What is an artistic style? How do we know one when we see it? What do the cinematic arts teach us about the nature of time?Political Philosophy

Plato believed that societies can be harmonized through political philosophy. He suggested an aristocracy would be best, and had some ideas we might think crazy now. For example, artists and poets would need to be expelled altogether because their representations bent reality.

Ironically, one of Plato’s stories, the Allegory of the Cave (found in The Republic), forms the basis of The Matrix, one of the most popular movies of all time.

Here are some of the most compelling questions from political philosophy.

What is equality?What is freedom?Are equality and freedom reasonable goals? How can they be achieved? What can justify the limits on freedom enacted by the state? Should money be equally distributed? What does it mean to “deserve” something without having “earned” it? Why do different people have different needs? Why does discrimination arise? Since voters typically cannot become political experts, is their voice really valid? Is there a right to freedom of speech? Should people be allowed to lie and/or misrepresent the truth? How can we protect the innocent from punishment?Philosophy of Science

As James Ladyman points out, many aspects of life do not change. Most people still work very hard just to survive. Yet, we’ve never had more access to technology than ever before, all thanks to the advancements of science. 

It’s not just that science has given us miraculous tools like phones that take high quality photographs. Science has also helped us figure out how to ship them around the world and link them to satellites flying above our heads.

It’s questions like these that have made it all possible.

What is science? What is an experiment? How do we know if the results of an experiment are valid?What are the limits of science?How far might science actually go given enough time and resources?Are there any limits to the problem-solving capacity of computers? Will progress continue on into infinity? Are there any problems with the empirical method? What is the nature of information, data and evidence? How do we know that our tools of detection provide accurate and precise information? Was math discovered or invented? Is a final “theory of everything” possible? If scientists determine that something should be done but people reject it, is it right to impose science upon them? Are there a finite or infinite number of questions for science to tackle? How should we understand universal cosmological time? What is life? What is the nature of a living system? What is the difference between a living system and the matter described by physics? Does life have a goal? If science shows that something is true, are we obliged to use the result? What should we do when scientists break the law or lie?Can you really increase your IQ?How to Remember Good Philosophical Questions

I hope you’ve enjoyed this list, even if it includes some unanswerable philosophical questions. That’s just the way it goes with many intellectual questions, and it’s great brain exercise to at least try and answer them.

One problem people face, however, is that they come across good philosophical questions, only to forget them.

If you’d like to continue enjoying the benefits of deep thinking, learn now to memorize as many philosophical questions as you wish with my FREE Memory Improvement Kit:

Many of the best philosophers and deep thinkers have used the techniques I talk about in this course to reflect on deep philosophical questions about life.

And because of how the techniques work, they remembered their answers too.

Want more incredible philosophical questions? Check out the 20 best philosophy books great thinkers must read. These suggestions will give you even more questions to ask and enjoy pondering.

How Will Australia’s Best Memory Champ Memorize The ENTIRE Dictionary? Anastasia Woolmer Reveals All

Anastasia Woolmer is currently the most impressive memory competitor in Australia.

She’s also a whizz when it comes to extending memory techniques to goals with practical meaning.

Not that being a memory athlete is empty in any way.

But she’s keenly aware that most people aren’t going to learn how to memorize thousands of digits.

That’s one reason why she came up with a different project, one that gives her great brain exercise and teaches her practical and interesting information.

Information you can actually use.

What’s on the menu for memorization over the weeks and months to come?

A dictionary.

That’s right.

The entire thing.

Including the page numbers.

https://youtu.be/tNw1oVbYKqk

Can You Really Memorize The Entire Dictionary?

As a matter of fact, yes.

Last time Anastasia Woolmer and I spoke on the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast, we discussed the memorization of movement.

In case you haven’t seen it, she uses movement as part of her mnemonic strategy, something you can witness yourself in her incredible TEDx Talk.

When it comes to committing an entire dictionary to memory, there is precedent for such a task.

Years ago, Ed Cooke tested an impressive mnemonist named Dr. Yip, a.k.a. The Man Who Learned the Dictionary.

There’s also the case of Nigel Richards, who memorized the French dictionary and wound up winning the French Scrabble World Championship.

You might also be interested in Matteo Ricci, who could reportedly recite entire books forward and backward.

But ultimately, Ricci’s was a very different project than memorize prose because Anastasia’s involves core vocabulary, definitions and numbers.

The Real Memory Skill Needed For Such Monumental Learning Tasks

Sure, you’re going to need memory techniques. Lots of them.

And, as Woolmer readily told me, she’ll need lots of Memory Palaces too.

But according to Woolmer, it’s “holistic memory” that she focuses on the most.

By making sure that she’s physically flexible, taking care of her diet and getting lots of sleep, she has the mental clarity needed to memorize the entire dictionary.

I feel that this is exactly right.

Yes, we need high-powered mnemonic strategies.

But the functioning of mnemonics is reliant upon mental sharpness above all.

Enjoy this interview, and be sure to visit her website for more information about her courses and live training events.

Here’s a post about her upcoming workshop for more info. Hope you can attend!

The Importance of Philosophy: 7 Life-Changing Reasons

Why study philosophy?

After all, aren’t philosophers just a bunch of people who use big words in unreadable books?

I mean, think about it…

Half the time it seems like they’re preaching to us about how we should act in the world while they bumble through their personal lives.

Although that assumption can prove true more often than I’d like, the importance of philosophy is not owned by philosophers.

It’s also not necessarily the “love of wisdom” as people often translate it from the ancient Greek, φιλοσοφία.

As Emmanuel Levinas put it, we might do better if we think about philosophy as “the wisdom of love.”

I find Levinas’ formulation useful because it reveals how better thinking can help us discover what’s truly important in life. 

And when we focus on allowing the love in wisdom to guide us, we will almost certainly respond to our fellow citizens from an elevated position.

Sure, it might not involve “love” as such in a personal way, but it will certainly involve much higher levels of care.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oU2Z9...

Why is Philosophy Important? 7 Life-Changing Reasons

In What is Philosophy? Deleuze and Guattari suggest that opinion is chaos.

When you look at social media sites like Twitter, you almost feel like they must have had the ability to peer into the future when they wrote this book back in 1991.

But if there’s one reason above all that makes philosophy important, it’s the reduction of random, chaotic influence. The more you develop yourself philosophically, the more you can avoid being yanked around by the chaos of opinion.

With this point as our governing theme, let’s explore a few more reasons philosophy is so important.

Systematic Analysis

As different views and opinions flood the news and social media, instead of taking them at face value, you can use philosophical tools to pick them apart.

How? There are at least 9 critical thinking strategies you can use. The more of these tools you have in your mental toolbox, the more you can overcome barriers that impede your thinking.

By practicing this kind of analysis, you’ll also be better at perceiving systems as such. They are everywhere and being able to spot them has a lot to do with our next point.

Thinking philsophically helps you perceive and then remove the barriers that hinder your life.

Know When You’re Being Influenced

Unfortunately, we’re all gullible from time to time.

But the more we analyze the world around us, the more we can steep ourselves in positive influences while draining out the bad.

And it’s important to note that even useful sources can sometimes deliver unhelpful ideas. We need to be able to spot influence as such. That way we can properly evaluate it.

These critical thinking books will help you develop the ability to seek top quality influences in your life and weed out the poor performers.

Interpret & Respond Optimally

Events in the world create all kinds of emotional responses. 

But when you’re well-versed in philosophy, you’re equipped with a kind of “science of emotions.” You’re better able to perceive when you’re being irrational and use abstract thinking to pull away from your gut response.

Now, you might be thinking, “Hang on, people keep telling me that I need to listen to my gut response, not ignore it.”

True, there are some cases where you want to listen to your gut. Gavin de Becker’s The Gift of Fear has been personally helpful on that front.

Following your intuition is great – but only in certain contexts. Thinking philosophically can help make sure you’re using the right tools at the right times.

But in many areas of life, listening to your gut just doesn’t stand to reason. In fact, in Decisive, Dan and Chip Heath share research that strongly demonstrates going with your instincts is all-too-often one of the worst things you can do. Their W.R.A.P. technique is a fantastic little philosophical tool that helps you avoid irrational decisions so you can respond to life optimally.

Evaluate Ideas

A large part of thinking rationally involves knowing the value of various ideas.

For example, take two people, John and Cindy. They both buy the same book.

John says, “It was $20 dollars, but I only got one idea out of it. I went on to buy five other books and ultimately never did anything with that original idea.”

Cindy says, “I only got one idea out of the book, but it was only $20 and even though it was just one idea, I managed to put that idea to work in my business. It increased profitability by thousands of dollars.”

Albeit simplistic, this example shows that Cindy evaluates ideas differently than John. Keeping our principle of philosophy as a form of active thinking in mind, she gives the idea life by using it.

She also makes it valuable by putting it into action.

As you explore philosophy, you’ll find that you can better evaluate many ideas. You’ll also reduce the kind of judgmentalism that causes you to dismiss ideas that could be extraordinarily valuable if you put them into action.

Understand the Law

Many people do not realize that the laws governing them were arrived at based on philosophical thinking.

The more you learn about philosophy, the more you’ll be able to see how philosophical ideas shape the rules of your society. And this means you’ll be able to participate in how they are crafted in a more integral way.

You can also start to see how governments lead heavily on mimetic behavior, which means shaping your desire based on the desires you see in others. This process is the basis of all propaganda, but it starts with philosophical ideas we can see in some of the earliest philosophers.

For example, Confucius talks a lot about imitating not just what the ancients did, but also to desire what they desired. Likewise, Mozi advised kings to promote certain kinds of behaviors so that others in society would imitate them. See Readings in Classical Chinese Philosophy for these references.

Spot and Resolve Contradictions

The human species is incredibly complex.

And our success on the planet is difficult to understand because we contradict ourselves all the time.

Yet, thanks to the mental tools we’ve developed using philosophy, we’ve managed to thrive.

In many ways, the technological projects we’re engaged in are trying to resolve human contradictions. From memory implants to AI, it often feels like the human species is under attack.

By the same token, we’ve always had this relationship with our technologies. Plato worried about how our technology might be able to copy itself and run rampant. Mary Shelly imagined Frankenstein’s monster taking vengeance on his creator for neglect and there are many other fantasies that philosophize about our inadequate human behaviors. They ask questions like:

Although we clearly no better than to damage ourselves and our entire planet, why don’t we do better?

Although we still rarely find consensus on the answers our philosophizing helps us produce, we’re lucky to have the thinking tools more available than ever before. We can consult all the major philosophers, often for free, just by searching Project Gutenberg and Youtube.

Understand Your Thinking Style

In Ecce Homo, Nietzsche tells us that Heraclitus was essentially his hero. During what appears to have been a period of great discomfort for the philosopher, Nietzsche seems to have taken great solace in this connection.

As you read philosophy, you’ll encounter multiple styles of thinking and learn more about yourself as you’re drawn to some and have a harder time relating to others.

This does not mean that you reject those who don’t resonate with you as invalid. It just helps you gain perspective on who you are and gives you a basis for reflecting on how and why you came to be that way.

These perspectives will sometimes challenge and even destabilize your self-perception. But as we know from the example of Nietzsche, finding points of comparison can be tremendously stabilizing too.

All the more reason to keep reading a wide variety of philosophers from multiple cultures and time periods. The ability to compare multiple perspectives is personally rewarding and provides great brain exercise.

Why Study Philosophy?

I think the number one reason to study philosophy is that we all practice active thinking each and every day to solve our problems.

Why wouldn’t we want to get better at it?

Philosophy is unique in that it is the one field of human endeavor that still makes sense to read historically.

Here’s what I mean:

It might be a novelty to read the earliest books on chemistry. But it won’t help you use contemporary chemistry very much, if at all.

But when it comes to philosophy, it’s possible to gain tremendous value from going as deep into history as possible. We learn as much from the oldest philosophical books as we do from the new ones.

Indeed, in many cases, we cannot understand many books of philosophy without knowing at least a little about the earliest philosophers.

Sure, you can read Plato and get a great deal out of it. But you get even more out of it if you’ve also read and put some thought into the Pre-Socratics to whom Plato was responding.

And this feature of philosophy means that you stand to receive endless rewards.

The study of philosophy is deeply pleasurable. And all the more so when you can remember the philosophy that you read.

To help you out with that, please register for my FREE Memory Improvement Course:

This exclusive program teaches you the Memory Palace technique with key exercises that help you excel in using it.

That way, when you come across the names of philosophers in articles like this one, you’ll be able to remember them. You’ll also be able to remember the names of their books and key concepts too.

As a result, you’ll be able to put their ideas into action. Again, action is essential. Without it, you cannot craft your own personal philosophy. You’ll struggle to increase your personal delight with the quality of your mind each and every day.

So what do you say?

Do you agree that philosophy is one of the most important mental activities in the world?

And are you ready to deepen your relationship with it?

I know I sure am. As a practice with no end in sight.

Beyond Mnemonics: Exploring the Road to Enlightenment With 3x USA Memory Champ John Graham

Believe it or not, using mnemonics can make you feel so great, it’s almost like your head is going to explode.

On the one hand, it sounds obvious.

When you can remember more, boosts in mood completely make sense.

But what about feelings that are even more intense.

Such as experiencing an “awakening”?

Or even reaching a state of enlightenment?

Not only do I believe it’s possible.

I’ve read many accounts of such experiences in the memory improvement literature.

I’ve even had mystical experiences myself.

That’s why I jumped at the chance to talk with John Graham about it when he asked me about strange occurrences I’ve written and talked about a lot over the past few years.

The only question is…

What do we believe about our experiences?

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZcObj...

That’s what John Graham and I discuss in this episode of the Magnetic Memory Method Podcast.

Who Is John Graham?

John is an incredibly accomplished mnemonist. In addition to being a memory athlete and memory expert, he’s extremely knowledgeable about focus and concentration – especially for business professionals who struggle with anxiety.

John also have some next level memory training concepts that explain why he performs so well when it comes to winning at memory events like the USA Memory Championship.

Why Talk About Enlightenment?

The simple answer is…

I don’t know.

Free will – and its absence – is one of the key ideas that come up around topics of awakening and enlightenment.

In fact, abandoning the sense of self is a hallmark of how many people talk about these experiences.

We’ve seen it in the memory tradition from people like Ramon Llull and Giordano Bruno. Indeed, in On the Shadows of the Ideas, Bruno says he has light bursting out of his eyes thanks to his experiences with using memory techniques.

You also find similar themes in St. Augustine’s work on memory. It’s a thread in Yates’ infamous Art of Memory. And in a very subtle way, the concept shows its face in Moonwalking with Einstein when Joshua Foer meets Tony Buzan and learns about becoming a “Warrior of the Mind.”

I’m grateful to John for holding the conversation. Thinking critically through experiences like these is important.

What do you think about memory training leading to states of enlightenment?

Have you had similar experiences?

Why Is Critical Thinking Important? 5 Compelling Reasons

If you’re wondering why critical thinking is important, you might be tired of the same old explanations. 

The economy needs smart people…

Critical thinkers are more creative…

It makes you sound smarter…

Well, yes. All of those things are true. 

But most posts only scratch the surface.

On this page, we’re going to go much deeper into the topic.

And we’re going to use critical thinking to do it.

Ready?

Let’s go!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TS7BZ...

What Is Critical Thinking?

Technically speaking, critical thinking boils down to two things:

Objective analysisAccurate judgment

Once you have those two things in place, you can make better decisions. Predictably. 

But a number of skills have to be in place before you can rely on this ability. You need:

Care and concern for the truthAnalytical thinking skillsInterpretationAbility to judge the credibility of sourcesAbility to ask questions that clarify the issue at handInferenceOpen-mindednessSelf-correction and the desire to improveAbility to defend your decisions

Historically, we can look to thinkers like Confucius and Plato. They looked not only at how individuals think, but tried to balance each self against entire societies. 

A true critical thinker is not trapped in his or her own mind, after all. They’re able to see the big picture and realize that individual minds are not merely influenced by other minds. They are constructed by them. 

According to Jonathan Haber in Critical Thinking, Aristotle is the first great critical thinker because he categorized and organized his thoughts about the world in the context of what others thought. 

In this vein, Aristotle worked on biology, politics, drama, logic, rhetoric and other thought processes. These categories still serve as what Haber calls “the building blocks of education.” 

Why Is Critical Thinking Important?

So if you want to know why critical thinking is important, it really boils down to exactly Haber’s point:

Because we have learned to think critically, we have those building blocks. We’re able to educate ourselves and others so that societies around the world can experience progress. 

Another way to look at it is like this:

When humans weren’t capable of thinking very well, we suffered a lot more. But as our thinking abilities have grown, our suffering has decreased. Stephen Pinker is one of many thinkers who have demonstrated the validity of this point in books like Enlightenment Now.

But we’re still just scratching the surface. Let’s look at some more reasons:

One: Understanding Probability & Likelihood

A lot of human history has involved guessing. People literally had no way of knowing what the weather would be like tomorrow, let alone making predictions about the stock market that could potentially make them rich.

In today’s world, we learn to think probabilistically from a very young age. It’s a common part of mental strength that helps us avoid leading ourselves into traps.

I’m talking about traps like golden handcuffs, or its alternative, slave’s luck. These are contemporary terms for the old phrase “selling your soul to the devil.” 

Because more and more people use critical thinking to see how employers trap them with false incentives and can use research to avoid miserable jobs, the world gets better. 

The more people think through the probabilities of future happiness, the better everything gets for everyone. 

And it’s not just about the future. Reflective thinking helps you tap into your past for important context.

Context is important for our next point:

Two: Comparison and Contrast

Would you agree that eating a ripe orange is better than eating a rotten one? 

If you just said, “yes,” that’s because you know how to compare and contrast two different things. 

Critical thinking relies on this all the time for much more consequential issues in life. But this simple example demonstrates the importance of distinguishing between things. 

Three: Defining and Using Definitions

In Critical Thinking, Robert Ennis offered the FRISCO model to help define critical thinking:

 Focus: identify the focus or central concern Reason: identify and judge the acceptability of the reasons Inference: judge the quality of the inference, assuming the reasons to be acceptable Situation: pay close attention to the situation Clarity: check to be sure that the language is clear Overview: step back and look at it everything as a whole

There’s a reason that he starts this problem solving model with identifying the central issue. That’s because we need to be able to define things in order to make effective decisions. 

And once we can define things, we need to be able to compare and contrast various definitions.

Four: Putting Solutions Into Action

Have you heard of “analysis paralysis”?

Too many people fall into it, but it’s not the fault of critical thinking. It’s coming from a lack of having effective critical thinking strategies.

This criticism is valid because true critical thinkers must take action once they’ve decided what to do. 

If you don’t take action, you rob yourself of data. You cannot analyse results you haven’t produced, which prevents you from thinking at all. 

Everyone has the cognitive capacity to take action once they’ve made a decision. So if you’re getting stuck, try these critical thinking exercises.

Five: Metacognition

Remember when I said at the beginning we were going to use critical thinking itself in this post?

We’re going to use it now because I was tempted to raise this point and define it very simply as our ability to think about thinking.

According to Julianna Benson in Metacognition, we have to go beyond “cognition about cognition” as the definition of this term. 

Metacognition is definitely that, but it also involves:

Perceiving that thinking is taking placeMonitoring the thinking process without losing perception

This is why critical thinking skills are important. We can’t rely on simplicity to get ahead in life. We need to dig deeper into complexity.

Nothing new about that. 

For example, critical thinking practices blended with meditation have been around for a long time. Advaita Vedanta, Chan and Zen use various means of helping you perceive your thoughts and maintain the ability to monitor them without interruption.

Developing these abilities lead to better pattern recognition, which can help you learn a language faster. 

It can also help you avoid the “groupthink” issues researchers have proven come from poor learning techniques like rote learning. 

One simple technique can use to start practicing metacognition today is covered in Gary Weber’s Evolving Beyond Thought. I discussed its impact on my own life at a TEDx event:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kvtYj...

When You’re A Critical Thinker…

We’ve covered a lot today. And we’re not even scratching the surface of what’s available in these critical thinking books and examples. And that’s not to mention the value of learning how to use abstract thinking.

Nonetheless, we’re off to a strong start. I’ve shown you how to remember critical thinking principles, and memorizing has been scientifically shown to help you reason at a high level even during your senior years.

But you want to know what I feel is the most important and most beneficial reason we all need to be critical thinkers? 

It’s this:

When you’re a critical thinker, you’re never alone. 

That’s right. 

Loneliness disappears completely because you have joined a group of people who care about the truth. 

Not only that.

This group of exclusive individuals is also always preparing to take action based on the truth. 

That’s fantastic company indeed. 

But if you’re still struggling to develop critical thinking skills, it might be a memory issue.

To fix that, please consider grabbing my free memory improvement kit.  It will help you remember everything we discussed today, and become a person of action.

At the end of the day, action, and taking the right actions consistently is what success is all about.

 

 

The Zettelkasten Method Unleashed: Enjoy Better Note-Taking Fast

I’ve been using a Zettelkasten system since 2000 when I learned it in grad school.

However, I’ve noticed that many people make the approach way too complicated!

That’s a shame because the Zettelkasten method is about maximizing flexibility and increasing comprehension and recall.

So on this page, I’ll share with you the interesting history of the Zettelkasten note taking approach.

And I’ll share the incredibly simplified version I’ve used ever since it helped me earn my PhD. It’s helped me learn languages, write books and give talks from the top of my head.

Better:

I’ll also show you how you can combine the Zettelkasten approach with the Memory Palace technique.

That way, you’ll enjoy much more high-powered results even faster.

Ready?

Let’s dive in!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OrN0k...

What Is the Zettelkasten Note-Taking Method?

Directly described, “Zettel” means note and “kasten” is the plural for box in German. So a Zettelkasten method is a means of gathering small note together in boxes. This is done not only for organizational purposes, but also to optimize a spaced repetition process that helps form memories faster.

There are many benefits of using this approach:

Flexibility and Interconnectivity: Zettelkasten notes are not isolated entities. Instead, you’re actively interacting and interconnecting the building blocks of knowledge. You are literally building a web-like network of ideas in your mind. As a result, you’re much more likely to experience holistic thinking and enjoy new insights.

Enhanced Retrieval: Zettelkasten enables efficient retrieval of information. With interconnected notes and a well-organized structure, you can easily locate specific notes, follow trains of thought, and access related concepts. This promotes effective learning and idea synthesis.

Creative Sparks: The Zettelkasten method nurtures creativity by encouraging the emergence of unexpected connections and patterns. As you interlink different ideas, innovative insights can arise, leading to novel perspectives and unique solutions to problems.

Knowledge Expansion: By actively engaging with your notes and continually adding to them, the Zettelkasten method promotes deeper understanding and comprehension while reading. It encourages active learning, visualization while reading, reflection, and the expansion of knowledge over time.

Resilience against Information Overload: The Zettelkasten method helps combat information overload. It provides a structured framework for capturing and processing information, helping you filter, prioritize, and make sense of vast amounts of knowledge.

The History of the Zettelkasten

Usually, people trace the Zettelkasten method back to the early 20th century, particularly to the sociologist and information scientist Niklas Luhmann. Luhmann sought a system that could help him manage and connect a vast amount of knowledge and accomodate random ideas.

However, it’s a misconception that Luhmann came up with the idea out of nowhere. To take just one source, Luhmann was inspired by the note taking method used by the renowned polymath and philosopher, Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz. Stephen Wolfram has shared some images he took of Leibniz’s notes:

A Pre-Zettelkasten Example from the philosopher and mathematician Leibniz.

Other historical influences on Luhmann’s adaptation include Vincent Placcius‘s De arte excerpendi (the art of excerpting).

Placcius organized the notes he took onto slips for distribution in alphabetized slots in a series of wooden boxes. He was apparently legendary for having a prodigious memory.

And no doubt because using this simple note taking approach lends itself to neuroplastic changes to the brain so that it more closely resembles and operates like a dictionary or encyclopedia.

Luhmann’s Contribution to the Zettelkasten Method

Luhmann’s Zettelkasten consisted of index cards or slips of paper, each representing a distinct idea or concept. He meticulously organized and linked these notes using a unique numbering system and cross-references. This structure allowed Luhmann to explore complex topics, make connections, and more effortlessly navigate his intellectual landscape.

Over the years, Luhmann refined and expanded his Zettelkasten, ultimately creating a colossal knowledge repository that housed over 90,000 notes. The Zettelkasten became an integral part of his research, which was considered prolific. Apparently, this approach lead him to make groundbreaking contributions in sociology, systems theory, and communication studies.

The Mind-Blowing Efficiency of the Zettelkasten Structure

Now, rather describing how others have used this approach, let me share the simplified style I’ve used for two decades. I’ve cut out so much unnecessary meta-note taking and kept only the core idea. This has helped me use the Zettelkasten method faster and combine the approach with the Memory Palace technique much more directly.

But first, what are the meta-note taking structures I’ve cut out?

It’s little markers that identify what kind of note is on the card. For example, making a meta-note that says:

QuoteIdeaLinkEtc.

As you’ll see in the Zettelkasten examples I’ll share, quotes have quotation marks around them, so there’s no need to write out the word “quote.” If I want to note that one idea links to another, I’ll simple put “re” on the card, but not make that card special in any way. I’ve not found it useful to do so.

Alright, now that you know more about what I don’t do, let’s break down the exact steps I follow.

How to Use the Zettelkasten Process to Take & Memorize Your Notes

As we go through these steps, please note that there is always a certain amount of flexibility in my personal process. I’m giving you the way it normally plays out, but sometimes there are variations. For example, I might approach extracting notes from a podcast slightly differently than I would from a book.

With that in mind, everything begins with the most important step of all.

Step One: Make Sure The Source Is Worth Taking Notes From

A lot of people struggle to figure out the main points in the books they read. And no doubt. A lot of books are poorly written, which is one of the main reason it can be challenging to read as fast as you might like.

Now, there’s no perfect way to make sure a book is worth making notes from. But as a general process, I try to hit these steps in this order:

Check out book reviews from qualified scholarsRead reviews from the general publicRead the conclusion of the book first to determine the importance the author gives to their own topicRead the most interesting or obviously important chapters first

This simple process saves a ton of time because often the conclusion of a book reveals that the author did not discover anything truly epic.

Step Two: Have Your Cards & Other Tools Ready

As I share in my detailed tutorial on how to memorize a textbook, when I read a book, I have a number in mind.

There is no way I’m going to try and extract every single last detail from a book. Why would I? That would involve copying the entire book onto cards.

Instead, I decide that I’m generally going to extract 3-5 big points from each chapter.

And to make sure I’m ready to do that, I bring enough index cards or blank flashcards with me to the library.

Also, I bring a box of sandwich bags.

Weird, right?

Well, when I lived in North America, I used to use elastic bands to gather my cards together per book.

But now that I live in Australia, I’ve found that elastic bands melt and fuse with the cards. Using plastic bags helps keep the cards nice and clean and prevents the rubber from melting into the ink and making my handwriting hard to read.

All the Zettelkasten cards related to this book are behind an initial card with the book author and title information. This bag then goes into a shoebox of alphabetically organized cards gathered by book.

Step Three: Follow A (Mostly) Uniform Note Taking Process

Almost without variation, I start my first card for a book with the information from the colophon page: author name, book title, date of publication and publisher.

Although this information may or may not be “mission critical” to know in the future, it’s all part of knowledge and well worth recording and memorizing. Plus, facts like the publisher location and the publication date can help you rapidly assign mnemonic imagery.

For example, by noting that a book is published in 1999, I can think about Jean Chretien as the Canadian Prime Minister, and Bill Clinton as the US President. When I come across the first thing I want to memorize, I automatically have some associations to work with.

On the subsequent cards, I simply jot out quotes and big ideas. If it’s a quote, I put the quote in quotation marks. If it’s an idea or an observation, I don’t.

The bottom right corner of each card always has the book title and the page number from which I’ve drawn the quote or made the observation.

That’s it. Clear, crisp, simple and uniform.

The alternative is that if I’m taking notes from a podcast or video, there are no pages. In these cases, I’ll write out the time the point was made.

This Zettelkasten example reflects a quote drawn from a podcast. Note the time stamp near the bottom right. The speaker and name of the podcast is below the time stamp, a process I follow uniformly.

Step Four: Organize the Cards Alphabetically by Source

Some people like to get fancy. They buy or make wooden cabinets for their cards.

Apart from not having elastic bands melt into my cards, I’m not that fussy.

Instead, I organize my cards into shoeboxes and alphabetize them by title. So if my notes for a book called Nothing are in a plastic baggie, that will appear ahead of my notes from a book called One.

Now, you could easily organize your cards by author last name. I’ve done that in the past, but for some reason I now prefer to do it by title.

Alternatively, if I’m reading at home and the set of cards is very small, I will either:

Store the cards in the book itselfNot use cards at all, but write my own index on the inside cover

Either way, everything is accessible in the order of the information in the source, either by page number or by time stamp.

And it is very helpful that these cards are storable in a tidy manner. I don’t like to have random cards all over the place, except when I’m using them as part of a memorization or book writing project.

Step Five: Cull and Memorize with a Memory Palace

Let’s say that you’ve now got a bunch of cards that you’ve placed in one of more Zettelkasten. You know that you want to memorize the big details.

Go through the cards and separate out the ideas that seem most worth memorizing.

Then, start to place them in a Memory Palace. I often memorize ten ideas per Memory Palace to keep things direct, simple and as fast as possible. But sometimes I’ll use larger Memory Palaces.

The great thing about having the cards marked by title and page order is that when I’m done, all those ideas now go back with the individual bag of cards to which they belong.

Step Six: Revisit Your Zettelkasten Periodically

As you go about your learning life, you’ll keep adding more cards and memorizing the key points.

But it’s also useful to revisit the cards you’ve collected in the past from time to time.

If you prefer, you can use a dedicated system called the Leitner Box system. I’ve also shared how I use the Leitner system in detail.

The Leitner spaced repetition system helps you manage your exposure by placing accurate and inaccurate flashcards in boxes.

Basically, this approach applies the forgetting curve principle to the Zettelkasten system. Anki is generally based on this algorithm as well.

Personally, I don’t use anything as regimented as this, and that’s largely for two reasons:

I use Memory Palaces and this normally allows me to be more casual about when I revisit my ZettelkastenI’m always using active reading tactics, activities that create a natural form of spaced repetitionI use Zettelkasten in combination with how I complete courses rapidlyI write frequently about the topics I study

When it comes to writing, this topic leads me to share with you yet another powerful learning strategy.

Step Seven: Summarize by Writing and Speaking

Although it’s fantastic to have many big ideas distributed across your easy-to-find Zettelkasten, true synthesis comes when you put the information into your own words.

You don’t have to go to elaborate lengths like building a blog.

Just 250-500 words per book will do. This simple process will stretch your recall of what you read and understood. And it will reveal any gaps in your understanding where you might like to fill in the blanks.

In addition to writing summaries, having ample conversations will also help you engage in the active recall that forms memory and understanding faster. You can also practice memorizing what people say in response while conversing them for extra results.

The Most Powerful Zettelkasten Example On The Planet

On this page, I’ve shared my process for using this powerful learning technique.

But do you know what will make for the best Zettelkasten example you’ll ever find?

The cards you create for yourself.

My simplified method may be too simple for you.

If so, there’s lots of information out there about how to make it more complex.

Or, you might want to simplify it even further.

One way or another, taking action is the ultimate way to reveal just how powerful this technique will be for you.

And if you’re interested in going deeper with this method when it comes to using a Memory Palace Network, grab this free course now:

It will give you the full rundown on how to set up properly formed Memory Palaces so you can connect your Zettelkasten cards to them quickly, easily and efficiently.

So what do you say?

Are you ready to explore note taking in a completely new way?

Enjoy the journey and please let me know how it goes!