Yet there’s a better way. If you want the Energizer Bunny of memory improvement, go for “productive engagement.” Here you experience a novel idea and actively, even aggressively, engage it. The best exercise is to find people with whom you do not agree and regularly argue with them. Productive engagement involves experiencing environments where you find your assumptions challenged, your perspective stretched, your prejudices confronted, your curiosity inspired. Productive engagement is one of the clearest ways to keep your memory batteries from draining.
