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Blog No 6

Working memory is our ability to hold information in mind while performing complex tasks by drawing on past experiences. Those with strong working memory can easily remember details and commitments, while those with weak working memory are more forgetful. There are several strategies to improve working memory, including modifying one's environment with reminders, chunking information into smaller pieces, developing routines, saying no to multitasking, and using mindfulness and mental rehearsal to sharpen memory.

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17 views

Blog No 6

Working memory is our ability to hold information in mind while performing complex tasks by drawing on past experiences. Those with strong working memory can easily remember details and commitments, while those with weak working memory are more forgetful. There are several strategies to improve working memory, including modifying one's environment with reminders, chunking information into smaller pieces, developing routines, saying no to multitasking, and using mindfulness and mental rehearsal to sharpen memory.

Uploaded by

iqra.naz
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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Defeating Forgetfulness by Improving our Working Memory

Can we imagine a life where we do not remember how to do all the tasks we do in a usual day?
To make it more complex, let's image ourselves in situations where we cannot even use our prior
knowledge to deal with the present situation. Almost everything we do is guided by some prior
learning. Our mind has the power to mold the present situation using the experiences from the
past and this ability is known as working memory.
Working memory is essentially our ability to hold information in memory while we perform
complex tasks. It includes the ability to draw past learning or experiences to use in situations at
hand or something in the future.
People who have a strong working memory; face no problems keeping track of things, or the
promises/commitments they have made. They find it easy to remember details from
conversations and important information. On the contrary, people with a weak working memory
tend to be forgetful. When they are focusing on a particular thing, they lose focus of any other
competing information or cues from their environment. For instance, they may forget minor
obligations or miss the steps to completing a task etc. Teenagers often overestimate their extent
of remembering information.
Most of us, do not even acknowledge this as a weakness until we absolutely have to depend on
lists and written reminders to keep track of the important things. While you struggle with this
skill on a day-to-day basis, it still does not have to impair your functioning. Here are a few
strategies that can help improve our working memory.

1. Modification Strategies
Sometimes structuring our environment to build in as many environmental cues as possible can
be a very effective strategy for improving working memory, since forgetfulness is a major
problem. Creating visual and auditory reminders for important tasks and obligations can help us
in performing the task on time. Moreover, if you are good at organization but weak in working
memory, you can learn to organize your information in a way that the chances of you forgetting
something are minimum. For instance, you may organize a specific place for your keys so that
losing them is least likely.

2. Soliciting Help from Others


Everyone who has a weak working memory usually knows someone who has a good working
memory. You can always ask those around you with a good working memory to remind you of
important things that you need to do, as long as you do not blame them for not reminding, this
could be beneficial for you.

3. Chunking Down Information into Smaller Parts


The last thing that a person with a weak-working memory needs is an overload of information.
Information overload can be very overwhelming for a person who struggles with remembering
things. In such cases, chunking down the information into smaller bits can be very helpful to
remember things. It makes focusing on information as wells as retaining it much easier.

4. Making Use of the Checklists


Most of us underestimate or feel repulsed by the use of checklists in our day-to-day lives because
we think using checklist makes us dependent on external cues for remembering the basic things,
or that having a checklist is another obligation we need to fulfil. You can always make your
checklist as friendly as possible, keeping realistic standards of performance in mind and
customizing it around your needs.

5. Developing Routine
Building a routine simply means building a time schedule to address the problem you are
struggling with. For instance, you can set up a time in the evening where you can gather
everything you will need for school the next day so you do not forget. Eventually, it will become
a part of what a usual day looks like for you.

6. Say ‘NO’ to Multitasking


When we are multitasking, we are maxing out our brains potential to handle complex task. An
inability that it inherently possesses. Multitasking might get you to finish the task faster but it
reduces the work efficiency and the quality of work, not to mention how taxing it can be for a
person who has a weak working memory. We are providing more sensory overload to ourselves
than is feasible when we’re working on more than one thing at a time, which is why it becomes
next to impossible to remember every detail of a task or information.

7. Mindfulness to Sharpen Memory


Mindfulness is a very effective exercise, which can be very beneficial for those struggling with
weak memory as well as weakness in sustaining attention. Since a big part of working memory is
based upon attention and retaining information, using mindfulness can help with improving
working memory. Working memory can be significantly enhanced if we learn to self-regulate
ourselves. Through mindfulness, we learn to make a conscious effort to visualize or form mental
images of what we need to do.

8. Mental Rehearsing
Mental Rehearsing is another way of improving working memory through visualizations. If we
picture everything we need to remember or keep recalling it to ourselves, it’ll be much easier to
retain that information because we’ve elaborately thought about it. To put it simple, we’re trying
to form connections between what we know well and what we’re trying to remember.
Author: Iqra Naz
Clinical and Counseling Psychologist
Family First Institute

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