THOUGH YOU may not have realized it, you have already learned the fundamental principle of our memory system. You are now ready to put it to work. The first five key words are ready in your mind to help you remember something else entirely. Let us start with something fairly simple--say, the five biggest cities in the world. In order of size, the five biggest cities are London, New York, Tokyo, Berlin, Moscow. Filing each one on its proper hook, we get:
1. Alarm clock - London
2. Trousers - New York
3. Chair - Tokyo
4. Table - Berlin
5. Newspaper - Moscow

Our object is to associate each of these cities vividly with its key word and therefore with its number. Let me explain at once that the following associations are offered merely as suggestions, to help you get started in forming your own mental images. If some other picture occurs to you which you feel is a stronger association, don't hesitate to use it. Every mind is different, and the best association is the one that works best for you.

1. London (alarm clock).
Towering over London is the biggest clock in the world, Big Ben. Picture yourself climbing up the tower in order to wind up the clock for the night, setting the hands to one o'clock. The word London is written across the dial of the clock in Old English letters. London--alarm clock.

2. New York (trousers).
How are you going to associate New York with trousers? Well, you bought your new trousers in New York. The trousers are made in New York by a New York tailor. (Although in general it is better to try to associate the item to be remembered with the key word rather than the number, in this case you can further strengthen the image by remembering that New York is two words.) New York--trousers.

3. Tokyo (chair).
See a Japanese in a toque sitting on the chair. His big toe is stuck in the neck of a bottle of Tokay wine, and he is yelling, "Oh, my toe! It's in the Tokay--oh!" His toe is cut off and lying on the chair, but his toe is OK. Tokyo--chair.

4. Berlin (table).
A group of burly Germans are sitting about a large German table, with a swastika painted on it. They are drinking German beer and singing songs written by Irving Berlin. Berlin--table.

5. Moscow (newspaper).
Your newspaper, the Five-Star Final, is covered with moss, and a cow is lying on top of it, chewing at the moss and eating up the paper. This is a moss-cow. The headline on the newspaper reads FIVE-YEAR PLAN FOR MOSCOW. Moscow--newspaper.

Reread these associations, adding to them any details that make the images more vivid. Then reach for your pencil and fill in the following spaces.

Third city is _______________
Second city is _______________
Fifth city is _______________
First city is _______________
Fourth city is _______________

If you hesitated over any of the cities, go back and concentrate on that image until the picture is perfectly clear in your mind. When pictures tend to elude you, it is because they are not sharp and definite enough. The picture of yourself setting the hands of Big Ben and the moss-cow pun on Moscow must have seemed pretty ridiculous when you came across them. But as I have pointed out, exaggeration will help you remember the images. The sillier the better. If you happened to be looking out of your window and saw a man playing a harmonica while he balanced an egg on the tip of his nose, you would never forget the picture.

The more ludicrous, gruesome, or farfetched a picture is, the longer it will stay in your mind, and the easier it will be for you to recall it. This fact is most important to advertisers. They often take shrewd advantage of it to capture your attention and interest. Don't you have vivid associations of Sinclair Oil with a picture of a hideous prehistoric monster, of the insecticide Flit, with Dr. Seuss' drawings of fabulous mosquitoes fleeing from the menace of the Flit gun, and of the Chesapeake Railroad with a kitten sleeping cozily in a comfortable sleeping-car berth? All of these pictures are highly improbable and exaggerated, and in this lies their very appeal to your memory.

Now test yourself again to see how thoroughly you know the five largest cities. This time, write the number against the name of the city.

MOSCOW is number _______________
NEW YORK is number _______________
BERLIN is number _______________
LONDON is number _______________
TOKYO is number _______________

It was decidedly faster this time, wasn't it?

Part 3 of this article is about how to use metal images to further enhance your memory. For more information on how to develop a good memory, go to http://goodmemory.funhowtobooks.com/.

About the Author

Liza Othman manages an ebook website. Find self-help, food & recipes, and hobby ebooks at http://www.FunHowToBooks.com/