I wonder if its harder for pastors to remember things on Monday than any other day of the week?  Most of us are a little ‘cloudy’ on Monday’s due to fatigue from our weekend obligations.  So if that’s you, here’s five Monday memory tips for you

(full disclosure – I’m a sucker for memory tips – it’s a little known fact but when I was a kid I once used my parents credit card, without their knowledge, to buy a “How to Remember Anything”-type kit from a late night infomercial.  Now there’s a lesson I’ll never forget!)

FIVE WAYS TO IMPROVE YOUR MEMORY

1- Write it down and schedule it as soon as you think of it. I heard long ago that ‘Pale ink beats the best memory.’  Have a way to capture every thought and then schedule it on your calendar or in your to do list.

2- Connect first names with physical characteristics. Most of us meet tons of people and we struggle with names.  Let’s say you meet Rita and she had red hair.  Remember her as Red Hair Rita.  Note sure how that would work my my name?  Oh well, it works some of the time.

3- Keep common things in the same place, always! Always put your keys in the same place.  Always put your stuff to take from home to the office (or vice versa) in the same place.  When I travel I always put my wallet and keys on the top of the TV (note to hotel thieves) but it works . . . I haven’t forgotten anything in a long time.

4- Use a password manager on your computer.  The best way to improve your memory is to ‘not have to remember it at all.’  Since I’m on a Mac I use 1Password.  There’s similar password managers for all types of computers, even for those of you still using TRS-80s.

5- Repetition, Repetition, Repetition, Repetition, Repetition (ok, enough!).  There are some things that you should repeat over and over in your mind so they become part of your long term memory and you don’t have to look them up every time.  Jason (Worship Arts Pastor at The Journey) challenged me a few years ago to memorize my credit card numbers and its not only been a huge time saver its been a great exercise for memory.  What are key things you need to memorize?  Whatever it is repeat it over and over for 7 days and most likely it will become part of you.  This is why we have a weekly memory verse card each week at The Journey.

What else do you do to improve your memory? I’ll continue this list of tips sometime in the future (if I don’t forget!).

Nelson Searcy

P.S. This post was inspired by a classic Top 10 Post at LifeHacker entitled “Top 10 Memory Hacks”

Photo Courtesy of Flikr

© Nelson Searcy. All Rights Reserved.

About Nelson Searcy

Nelson Searcy is an experienced church growth strategist, pastor, church planter and coach, consulting with churches around the world. As founder of Church Leader Insights and the Renegade Pastors Network, he has personally trained more than 3,500 church leaders in over 45 denominations through live events, seminars and monthly coaching. Nelson is also the Founding and Lead Pastor of The Journey Church, with locations across New York City and in Boca Raton, FL. Nelson and his church routinely appear on lists such as “The 50 Most Influential Churches” and “The 25 Most Innovative Leaders.” He is the author of over 100 church growth resources and 18+ books, including The Renegade Pastor: Abandoning Average in Your Life, Ministry and The Difference Maker: Using Your Everyday Life for Eternal Impact, and At the Cross with the People Who Were There. He and his wife, Kelley, have one son, Alexander.