Anna
I do not know my parents birthdays. Absolutely pathetic, I know. Writing on my arm has worked for me (until the marking fades away) I'm always afraid to throw post-its away, so curse those things, they end up everywhere! Maybe I should look into getting a tatoo. Hmm, I will be back with more on this idea and what it will include...
Nick
I do ALL these things, with the exception of setting an alarm on my watch, as it doesn't have an alarm but all the others, yes. I use other things too but this is probably the one I use most.
vitor
very useful, indeed.I have used it for years. Things I can't do today are postponed to the following day, on a desk calendar where only today and the future matter.
mary
I find putting things by the front door VERy useful for taking them with me. The trouble begins when a wellmeaning partner tidies up the peculiar items lining up in the hallway.
Peg
Very useful - I could not manage without lists. When I know there is something I need to remember, I change the finger that my ring is on and only move it back when I have remembered to do whatever it was. I also put bedside things in a different place to remind myself about something I need to do when I get up.
fran
essential. I use all the cues given to try to organise daily life - and not foget things.
Amanda
I use many external aids but find I become too reliant on some things e.g. diary to the extent that I have to check a number of times. Although this helps me to remember things, I do not think it helps to develop the memory.
penny
Really useful - my favourite it writing things done and always leaving notes in the same place! I'm very good at remembering the Archers!
Janet
Useful in not forgetting something, but does it aid memory as such?
Pauline
This is my mainstay method and logging information also proved at times invaluable for reference purposes
N+S
Its really power full Tool to remember..me and my Wife will start today TODAY!
hrc
it is not very useful.i always forget the external aids.
Philip Brown
I hate this one. I find I end up stressing over lists and losing the things. I take the obverse view. Trust your memory and let it do its job stop nannying it! We have even got rid of alarm clocks and trust our inner alarm. It works!
Libby
If I am in bed at night and remember something I need to do or get for the next morning, I leave my bedside drawer open. That way, I see it as soon as I get out of bed and can always remember what it is I need to do.
Julia
External aids are no use at all to me. The process of writing a shopping list will help me remember it, but so will looking in the cupboard. I use my diary, calendar and alarms, but these only work for something that happens the same time each day, month or week (or I have to look every day or week). I can remember important people's birthdays (between 6 and 9 which is all the brain can hold). Otherwise, i have to form an emotional connection to something e.g. if a meeting is on a different day I will visualise the people in that meeting and what they might say. I file it in the "Tuesday" part of my brain, for example, and then Tuesday will feel different.My boyfriend constantly puts things on the floor, moves his keys, puts my keys back on the hook (i can remember where I left them; he can't), writes notes to himself and sets alarm which he ignores. It drives me mad! The usual effect is that I will remind him of whatever it is because he has made me make a connection! I can revise like this as well, but it's less successful!!!
Naeem
yes this really works. when you put alarm on your cell or alarm clock once it starts ringing you know that you were suppose to do some thing and then you remember it. Good thing it even works when you are half dead :) ( sleeping)
Deepak
Yes, this technique only looks helpfull to me...I always tell my wife to remind me the things.. :)
lynn Henry
Definitely the best way to help you remember something
George
I've always said the more things I write down to remind me, the less I need to refer to them. Funny that!
Jean
I think this depends on the type of person you are. I've always worked in an academic, structured, workplace, where writing and reading are key. I couldn't survive without the written word! My husband, however, is a practical, hands-on person, who never writes things down, but has a good memory for measurements etc.
Jo
writng things down seems helps me to remember everything i need to do, leaving the list or oject by the front door also helps as i cant walk past without seeing it - but i dont think it helps my actual memory. i would like to be able to remember to do stuff without having to write it down. Lists do make your mind lazy..
lydia
i write important dates and appointments on my calender then check each morning if there is any thing i need to remember for that day
Vijay
Writing things down in my diary I find very useful but there are times, when I even forget to check my diary as well.
Liz
These are all good forms to help remember various things
Ruth
I dont know what i would do without my diary!
Diane Lovelock
Calendar is always useful. If I have to do or take something out with me the following day I try to put it somewhere obvious so that I don't forget. But sometimes I bring it back with me in my handbag - forgotten!!
S Davidson
When worried about getting too involved in a project to remember to do something else later in the day, I set the microwave or oven timer to come on an regular intervals until the appointed time.
M.C.
All these things help.
Hilary
Use cues all the time, sometimes two or three about the same event! Couldn't function without them, especailly the front door.
Sue D.
This is also useful, as you don't have to actually keep the "thing to do" in your memory - it's a way of offloading it till needed, so you can think about other things in the meantime
Tracy
I buy diaries at the beginning of each year and tend to throw them away unused at the end. Lists are best for me, so I do find this technique a helpful one.
mk
I find the best wat to remember things is to write it on the back of your hand.You never lose it and can change the messages daily.If I didn't I would forget everything.
Elaine Gibbs
I can happily ignore notes I have written to myself but the front door routine works with me every time.
Iain
Sorry to say I use external aids all the time, partly because I feel it saves me overloading my brain unnecessarily. Also I can think and plan ahead what I need to remember!
Harry Haward
In my experience using a diary or a sticky pad is a very good idea for recording important information. Especially when your brain has reached it's full capaity and is overloaded with other information.
Holly
This I find very handy. I will often go to bed and as I am trying to go to sleep, I will suddenly remember something I HAVE to do the next day. So, what I do is this: There is always a tiny cusion about the size of your hand next to my pillow. So I just think of what I want to remember, and then throw the cusion on to the floor (I sleep on a bunk bed). Then in the morning when I see the cusion I remember what I have to do.
Jeppe
I have good experiences with setting the alarm clock on my mobile phone when I have to remember to do something specific. Then I chose a time to do it, and when the alarm goes off I know I have to do something, and I instantly know what it is.
Dave M
I find that the more I use an external aid the worse my memory gets, as I learn to rely on them.
June
Very useful to write things down. if I forget my shopping list I can very often visuallize the list when I go round the supermarket.
carole
Providing the pen, diary, alarm clock etc are handy at the time I am remembering and that I do not forget the moment I get the pen in my hand, which occurs more often than not! Post it notes in the car to get petrol or go to the shop. I find all the above userful including putting the swimming kit in the middle of the floor or better still keep putting essentials in the car as they are remembered (even at 2am depending on how important).
diana
i always try to write things down and allways have pen and paper by the telephone.i also place little notes in cupboards when i have had a tidy up so that i can find things if i have found a nrw place to put them.i have a calender that has lots of room on it to put reminders.
caroline
tried writing shopping lists but that doesn't really work I usually lose it and end up spending money on stuff we don't need. I write things in my diary and on the calender but don't check them regularly. Have taken to putting appointment slips on the fridge door - that helps a bit
aileen
I make shopping lists and forget to take with me. - But I usually remember everything I've written down!
Bernice
Use them all the time - written , visual , audio. Most useful for the regular activities of life.
Jenny
I move my ring to a different finger when I need to remember to do something. This annoys me, so keeps reminding me. I just need to remember why I've done it.
alice hogan
I always put car and house keys on a hook in the kitchen. When I put down something like my reading glasses I find it helpful to say out loud I am putting my glasses here on.......... rather than just put them down without thinking about it as then I have to search the house for them.
Emer
I use external aids all the time, eg before a maths exam I wrote all the formulae on trhe back of my hand and read over them before every class to learn them (I did rub them off before the exam)
Michelle
I always use Post It notes and I put them on the wall next to my bed so they are the first thing I see when I get up every morning. I always have a shopping list pad to write items down and that is by my bedside table because I go back into the bedroom to change into decent clothes before going out and pick up the shopping list there and then. I always keep my front door keys hung up on the key hanger near the front door so they are in the same place all the time. I always write down dates on my calendar.
Bogwell
yes .. it is the back of the hand in the absence of post its, as the hand travels with you but they dont travel well in full sight. I forget them if put in handbag.
Ian
I am 50 and need to do this daily!
Rhiannon
I find it very useful to write down lists and write on calendars and in diaries especially when it comes to important thing such as doctors' appointments etc.
jack
something that always works for me is to swap a ring on my finger to a different finger. If, when I'm not in a position to right a reminder note to myself, and I think of something that I have to do I just swap my ring over. Don't ask me why it works, but the thing (or even things) that I have to remember just come to back to my mind when I am able to action them. You have to have faith that this will work and it will!
dc
I find I'm using my mobile phone calendar a lot more lately. Trouble is I don't know if it's making my memory worse because I rely on the phone more!
Mike
Organisers nearly always work (to ensure nothing forgotten) but have made me mentally lazy i.e. I don't bother remembering what I am doing I just allow systems to prompt me at the right time. As a result I achieve more but have less conscious involvement which must be worse for sustaining memory muscle I would have thought!
Marie
I use lists every day and find them very useful
James
I put letters I need to post at the front door to remind me to do so. Just make sure other members of the house look who the letter is for before opening.
Julie
I cannot be without my note book at work as I see a number of people and they are all asking for different things, I would not be able to remember them all so have my note book in my pocket at all times ( I also use it when it's my turn to do the tea run!)
James Mason
Humans remember extremes of emotion, and everything connected with them. We remember better extremes of traumatic emotion. This is because all the stupid things that are going on in your head at any one time stop, allowing whatever you're experiencing to be impressed on your mind as it would be if we knew how to think properly - perfectly!
Annie
I also remember numbers by their sound and rhythm like some people said too. If it's a car registration I usually use rhythm and a pattern if poss and the intitials as words eg my own car has a YH in the registration so that's "yahoo" to me. Any letters to post go straight in my bag or on the table by the door. I also write all appointments in my diary but I wish I could just remember them instead of using my diary as my brain. I guess I should get over it!
Jorge Davalos Johnson
This is the best way not to forget anything,I practice it always
Mandy Winter
I do write appointments in a diary but then never look at it, for some reason I remember all my appointments and times and rarely forget any.
Laura
Yes, writing stuff down is a really helpful way of remembering, but I find I collect lists and lists of things and writing stuff down isn't always helful if you can't remember where you wrote it down.
Sam Asusual
Every time I put the petrol pump in my car it reminds me that I need to fill up with petrol
Richard
Writing something down doesn't sound like a way of memorizing it, but an alternative to doing so.
Sue
I agree the putting by the door method works for me, or I put a yellow sticky on the door so I see it when I go out, my partner used to laugh, but has stopped as he now sees how will it works. I also use my mobile for my reminders along with my iPAQ which links to my work computer so I always have my calendar/diary and address book it's great.
neeta
work for complicated things.. link fincancial information.. or educational subject..
donna
Yes, works all the time - providing you read the notes and don't find them too late, which has happened to me
Peter Balfour
I find jotting down pieces of information useful, but it can upset other people.
Francisco
As I spend a lot of time on my computer I use its calendar to save all my appointments. I set it to remind me at a time that I know I'll be receptive to its message.
Sam
Essential in work for me to note things in my diary, meetings, training etc. I do so at home if there's something important I've got to remember to do or to bring with me. I'll write a note before going to bed and leave it prominantly displayed - or sometimes just leaving an item in view will act as a reminder for the next day.
Convarjus
I can never commit myself to any routine like a diary - but for the uncommon thing I need to recall - putting things in unsual places, - or putting unusual things in places in full view does help.
Dr Narinder Kapur
For the information of those who may have memory problems following a brain injury or brain illness, or know someone who has such difficulties, and may be interested in memory aids - in Cambridge, we run a Memory Aids Clinic in the Neuropsychology Department at Addenbrooke's Hospital, and we accept funded referrals from consultants and GPs.narinder.kapur@addenbrookes.nhs.uk
N+N
At primary school we learnt this rhyme for the days in the month, I still use it. 30 days have September, April, June and November, all the rest have 31, except February has 28 unless it`s a leap year which has 29. I have never forgotton this.
David
Writing down important facts, not just once, but several times is a very useful way to remember crucial facts.
Feargus
I use a list which I develop on a regular basis from a review of my priorties.
Alice
I check my diary every day and write in new appointments as soon as I get them. I then transfer the information to another diary and the kitchen calendar. If there's extra stuff to remember, then I write a list and put that in my diary too. I never miss an appointment!
Pam Dudley
I do All those tips and couldn't function without them!!
Gail
I'm rubbish at this - I can easily walk past something sat by the front door that I'm supposed to take with me! I find it easier when I sit something there to picture it huge and imagine myself having to climb over it to get out the door, then when I get to the door I'll remember my silly memory of it. Works for me!
lester
Writing lists and putting objects in places to trip me up works every time for me.
Su
I use lists but find with shopping the making of the list is enough I do not usually need to refer to it once written. I also leave things by the front door if I do not want to forget them especially if this is for the next day
Rachel
The two that I use are: my alarm clock on my mobile phone and putting things in conspicuous places like near the front door, these nearly always work.
Kate D
I put things ready for where I will remember to use/ take them but sometimes go looking for them where they are usualy kept, so think they are lost.
jill frankel
I have always used these types of external aids. Sometimes I leave the list behind but because Ihave written it down I still remember nearly everything on it.
valderie
diary notes, lists, and physical objects work for me.Alarms dont as I remeber the instant they go off - but if im in the middle of doing something that I need to finish, I then forget very quickly so that technique is only any good if I respond the instant the alarm sounds. Not always practical to do this, so I dont use it.
Andy
Putting my running trainers next to the front door works every time.
nia
i use putting stuff in places where i know i will see them alot it works! athough sometimes i foget what i was ment to do with it somethimes though!
james brown
i once saw people train other people not to do something with their hand by grabbing their hand, squeezing it, and repeating instructions to them harshly. the hand seemed to remember. it works. it's a mild form of negative punishment. (skinner? i think?)it's a military technique.
James
Having aquired a brain injury through 16 brain operations and resultant memory issues that I now have I find the site contains many of the tips and strategies that I am continually having to use to make my life run smoothly, (or as smoothly as possible), either consciously or sub consciously!
vsl vearncombe
tried most of these methods,but they don't always work, I forget to take the list with me, or who exactly I asked to remind me ,of what ? but getting this laptop to send me e-mails seems to work.
mark
diarising things becomes a habit. So does looking in your diary. But other things have to be routine as I get older (49) otherwise they dont always occur to me!
Peggy.
Absolutely essential - but I have to remember to look at the calendar.ToAnita: if you put your hands side by side July and August have two knuckles next to each other - it does work. Many years teaching children with learning difficulties has taught me that this sort of physical aid can boost morale as well as memory.
Naomi
It is very common to take a note not to forget things we have to remember. But I don't think this way will work for everyone since I have seen my mother is always running around our house looking for the paper before she goes shopping. Even if she successed to keep the note with her for shopping, she is unlikely to remember where she put the note in...
Jon Player Special
This only works for me when trying to spell something. If i dont write it down i can't spell it, but if i write it down i can spell pretty much anything.
Tanya
It is useful, but only if I write it down immediately AND put it somewhere I can see it. My wallet is the best place.
Mysturji
This is the only one that consistently works for me... Now, if I could only remember where I put that piece of paper. I'm pretty sure I wrote something important on it.
David
Note to Anita: for the knuckle rule, you need to use both hands. Make two fists so that the knuckles of both forefingers are together. Then counting from the knuckle of your left little finger (January), all spaces between knuckles (the space between both hands doesn't count) are months with less than 31 days, the knuckles are 31-day months. Your left hand counts January, March, May and July on the knuckles, your right hand counts August, October and December.Interestingly enough, I first learned this rule from reading War and Peace, and the character in the book (who of course I have completely forgotten) also made a mistake when using it!
Eve
FAO Anita (No. of Days in Month)Make two fists and put them side by side - you end up with two knuckles next to each other which represents July & August. Sorry in advance if someone has already answered this for you!
Joyce
External aids are very useful. Apart from writing on my calendar hanging in the kitchen, I stick "post-it" notes to myself all over the house - doors, draw fronts, mirrors and even on my pillow!
Rachel B
I have never really needed to do lists, but maybe I am forgetting things? I am now 35 and I am finding I now have to have appointments in diaries, mind you I have more to do now. However previoulsy I could remember what I needed to do and most the time I@d even remember a specific date in three months time, now no chance unless I write it down.
Vicky
When I was ill, I suffered with a horrendous short-term memory. (Due to stress apparently). I managed to ask my Consultant the same question three times in a ten minute space (to the amusement of his colleague who started to laugh). Realising I did need some help to remember things, I wrote *everything* down, and this helped lower my stress levels and enabled me to reassure my worried friends and family. Suffering from such a horrible loss of memory really gave me more empathy towards others suffering this way.
Alec
I do this quite a lot - but agree with Jude - isn't this just wimping out of improving one's memory?
Barbara
useful I find using a note book with the word boldly written REMEMBER on the front
pram
I use every one of these.......... I also notice if I ask someone to remind me I then remember it myself. But writing things down is my main mode.
Richard Eves
Tried and tested - they work but never rely on anyone else's memory - do not sub-contract out your responsibilities after the age of 16
janet stiles
using a food timer that rings loudly to remind you to remove items from the tumble dryer so they don't crease up and necessitate ironing.I find this very useful.
Simon Berrisford
I've always relied very heavily on these kind of external aids even though my incessant list making causes much amusement to my partner! I find that these are the most effective memory prompts/aids.....unless I lose my list of course!
Kath
Very useful way of using your younger friends! I use it all the time - if its important I ask two people to remind me. Actually the repetition of asking others then reinforces the memory for me.
Ciaran Gallagher
Yesterday, somebody phoned and left a message for another member of the family. I wrote down the message but I still forgot about it until the phone rang later I only remembered then.
Anita
Note to Vaso:Since July and August have 31 days each, where does your knuckle and dent rule apply there?On the subject of lists though, I've always been a list writer. In work and outside of work I write lists of things I need to do and tick them off as they are done - very satisfying.
Jude
Increasingly i write things down either in my diary or on a scrap of paper next to the kettle, such as "must feed neighbour's cats". But is it a way of improving memory or just a lazy way out?
C Clowe
Very useful
Muriel
This can help to make sure meetings etc. are not missed, but I find that writing it down seems to tell my brain that I no longer have to remember it! Therefore if I lose the written note, or forget to look at it, Imy brainwill not bring it to my attention!
Maria D
Post-it notes are my saving grace. I have some in the drawer of my bedside cabinet for those moments when I'm nodding-off and suddenly remeber what I have or haven't done. Diaries are great if you remember to look in them!I like the knuckle reminders for days of the month but I am very familiar with the rhyme "30 days......List are another useful tool.
Viv Howard
I use 'post it' notes - this method works every time, unless I lose the note!
SuzyQ
External Aids: I find this the best method of not forgetting, I put things by the front door and it works for me! Occasionally I may step over it, but as soon as I have closed the door I remember!
SuzyQ
Cues: I find this the best method of not forgetting, I put things by the front door and it works for me! Occasionally I may step over it, but as soon as I have closed the door I remember!
Sandra
Of the above list I tend to use my calendar and list making but interestingly once I've put the thought down on paper I rarely have to go back and look at it. Just by writing it down it helps store it in my memory, again I think it has something to do with visualising it.
James
Yes, this is absolutely vital for the busy person - for anyone really.I use a 'do it now' system. For example, to avoid forgetting to take with me the shopping list I have painstakingly made up I will go and put it in n the car the night before.
Lucy
Would be lost without the diary and calendar to write down all the additional activities that children add to the week. Here in Australia the children all have school diaries even at a primary level - a great idea every one should have one!
Alice
love the idea about putting your keys where you need to remember to take something eg. in the fidge with bottle of wine to take to a friends. I think I am a bit obsessed with my diary, I look at the 'week ahead' all the time and get sent into a mild panic when I think I might have lost it.
Norman
I find by writing a yellow sticky note and attaching it to the inside of the front door it will remind me I have to go to the Post Office /Return a book to the library/ go to the dry cleaners Etc
Melle
these methods are great as usually just the act of writing things down hepls you retain the information a lot easier . Replay and recall
Gillian
We started a "Where is it?" book in which we listed, e.g., what was in the attic, or where we'd put something away. But we often forget to use the book, and sometimes cannot even find it. We need a "Where is the 'Where is it?' book". Or just better memories.
sleep-over queen
it's useful but the door one not working 4 me i'll just walk past
Nigel C
... and do I remember to look in my diary? Seems a routine is essential.
Alexandra
External aids are very useful, because the visual element connects with the memory immediately.
Derek
I am self employed & when I am out and get some information that I need to remember I phone home and leave a message on my answerphone. When I get back I put all messsages on a book.At night when I am settling to sleep I will sometimes remember something I wanted to do in the day. Rather than get up and go to the diar to write it I throw my bed side tissue box over by the door. Next morning it is there as a reminder. Though sometimes I spend an hour or two trying to remember why I threw it there !
Vaso
Try another external aid to remember how many days has each month. Use your fist. Start saying the months and place them in turn on your knuckle and on the dent next to the knuckle. The months which have 31 days are placed on the knucle and the months which have 30 days are placed on the dent. Interesting ? Did you know this ?
julie
I have an old roller black-board on my kitchen wall, next to my dining table. Each evening I write whatever I have to remember on the board, then when I eat breakfast each morning, i read my list for the day. I also write everything I have to remember on my calendar on the relevant date just to double check that I don't forget. As for my work diary, I write everything in it. If I lost my diary I wouldn't know where to start in the morning.
Tony
I se my diary or my watch which has a memo section that gives an alarm and details of tthe appointment.
Mags
This was installed in me at university. Keep a diary, keep a diary. Only problem was that I forgot to look in the diary. I found it much easier to remeber lessons week to week and keep the worksheets/ essays with te dates pinned up on my wall. In the long run this technique helped me more than the diary becuse in the 3rd year the timetables could be disrupted at any time due to scheduling clashes. So I was always on top of things.
shanaz ahmed
useful tip but i tend to misplace the list or forget to read it!
Jim
Keeping a long list of things to remember to help play good golf and reading before each game is a must.
Sheba
This is a useful tip but if you ask someone else to remind you to do a task then they might forget.I find writing lists very useful though!
Christine
Lists are most useful....the very act of writing helps me to remember
kim
very useful method but i forget to look at diary and move things in front of the door out the way and walk straigt past them...
Margaret
We have a large weekly diary which is left open on the current week. In the hallway,all appointments are written in. Usually phone calls also
hipmummie
I live by this method. I have diaries, journals, calendars that go back to grade school. And once I write it down I remember, I can even remember which side of the page and what was above and below it!
Ljn
Lists are invaluab le and the sense of achievement when you cross things off even if it is something mundane but has to be done like vacuuming. Never ask anyone else to remind me. My brain crosses it off and then we all forget
Gill
This is a must for me. I look at the kitchen calendar every morning - if it's on there I do it - if not - forget it! I always encourage the children in my class to do their homework & leave it by the front door -my own children did this; they either fell over it or picked it up. They never forget their school work.
mc
Very Useful, I find it helps if I'm going out to Actually stop at the front door and think--Where am I going and what do I need.
Eva
yes, I do this for important stuff. What about the endless and annoying search for car keys, reading glasses??? Any tips here???
diane
writing to do notes may seem boring but it works . Also writing dates to remember on the calender and in my diary-must do both.If I leave the shopping list behind I can visualise it in the supermarket.My father regarded me as a scatterbrain.
Pat Drake
Essential for me to use a diary & a calendar supplemented by notes and lists...I'd like some alternatives though, as what happens if when I get older I lose my sight & can't read & write, as has happened to my step-father. He's lost his memory & it isn't surprising as he used a daily log for years and years which he referred to all the time. Now he can't see he's had all his props taken away - and he's very depressed not surprisingly.
CAROLINE WELSH
Fridge magnets are the answer! I use the fridge front and side,next to my kettle to organise everything.The front has next months things stuck up and the side has this month's and any urgent notes. If I have a not to be forgotten thing for the next morning then I place it in front of the kettle.This works like a dream even when I am very stressed or tired. Try it!
Lemon
I write lists by the dozen, so after a while they kind of lose significance...I write lists in my head. They are always lists of three..dunno why, three just works out well in my head..Its a bit annoying sometimes because i have to compromise to fit stuff into three catagories or ideas. sometimes i have a further three things branching off each one..
niki
my memory is so bad, even my boss has bought me a note pad as a birthday gift. However i write the notes or prompts to remind me to do something, and then forget to look in the bloody note book when i need to!!!
Lynn
I also write reminders on my pc of where I have put "special" items in a special folder. The act of documenting it does actually help. I also use the "notes/tasks" function on my mobile for short-term reminders. When I am trying to relocate a misplaced item at home, I walk through the house, physically or mentally, at the time of placing the article. This nearly always works and sparks a link to remind of where I have placed things.
Mobile
I use a site called www.eventprompt.co.uk to record important reminders to my mobile phone. As I always carry my mobile. This is very useful.David
P
To get the number of days in each month correct, I just make both hands into fists, then all the knuckles represent 31 days and all the hollows 30. All you need to remember is that February is awkward & only has 28 days most of the time - except when it doesn't - so don't worry about it! It certainly prevents you needing to learn long-winded rhymes!
Angela
I often write on my palm to remind me to do something or I leave clear notes on my mantlepiece, which I can't miss. I find this particularly useful for remembering appointments or specific tasks.
Anne
Yes, very helpful .... but another tip. Don't just write in diary or whatever and read it, but say it out loud to yourself or anyone else around.That gives it three different entries into the memory, or conscious and subconscious mind. And it works even better.
Sandra
A calender on the wall with a brightly coloured pen to record dates times on it is very useful, but I also need a presonal handbag size diary to also record the same info to make sure I don't double book myself because I am not at home when someone asks me to do something.
Red Queen
Yes, this is the method I live by - if I didn't do these things I couldn't function in my job at all. Every day is completely different - no chance of remembering what I have to do on Friday unless it's in my diary - or whose birthday is coming up unless I make a reminder on my phone!
Jane
These are very useful methods. However, its success does depend on nothing tampering with your external trigger. Like someone moving your keys to another place, or the person forgetting to remind you. So the success rate may be variable.
david
Very important. Anyone who has a varied and busy life must record important dates/appointments/tasks in either a note book, diary. palm or computer.
Wendy
I do have a problem with rememebering where my diary is - haven't seen it for weeks - was good when wearing jeans all the time as had back pocket it fitted in but in skirts in hot weather no pockets!If important like a dental appointment tend to write a huge note and leave on my bedside table so I know first thing in the morning
Muriel Price
I find that if I have written something down, it helps because I rarely have to look at what I've written.Putting an item you need to remember by the front door is invaluable.
Deanna Pini Waldenberg
Too much which adds to the confusion.
anon
Very useful, as it is very easy if you are in the habit of using these 'external aids', but I can imagen it would be very hard to write in your diary, for instance, if you do not do it normally. Still, after a while, it would beautomatic.
Bid
I'm in a busy job where lots of different issues place a demand on my memory. I couldn't manage without lists. I write them up in a a record book where I also keep summary notes of meetings and actions I have agreed to undertake. I'd be lost without that book!
Sue
External aids are the ONLY means I can get to work consistently for me or for any other family member - but I seem to be the one everyone asks to do the reminding for them as well - post it notes are seriously unfriendly for the environment - but useful - so I use things I've previously forgotten and torn up. At least that way I get some virtue out of the loss.
bhasker
i use my mobile phone calender and alarms to organise my life. Indispensable. I just need to remember to carry it around!
Varley
I do use placing items I want to take with me by the front door. I have developed a method of finding objects that I seem to have lost. I try to clear my mind and then go back to the last time I had or used the item. Very often I get a picture in my mind of the place that I left it. For instance, my keys on the tank behind the toilet!
martin
we're always in and out of the kitchen so1 all appointments go on the kitchen calendar2 I use 'post it' notes on the cabinet door we have to open to get our cups for tea or cffeeThis beats having to get your diary - and copnsult it!
Jan
I have external aids EVERYWHERE - a "to do" list by the computer, rubbish by the door where I have to move it to get out, post-it notes on the bread board! And if I'm charging my mobile phone, I place it in my handbag by the charger, so I won't forget it next time I go out!When I was working I used to leave myself phone messages for the next day, and would quite often call my office extension in the middle of the night with, as I called them, "memos to me". That worked VERY well.
Jacqui Anderson
If I'm downstairs and remember something I need to do, or fetch from upstairs; I just place a small object on the bottom step (in a corner). Occasionally, I can't think why I placed it there, but most times it works as an effective trigger.
Jane
There you are, John Jeff and Jane, three names I'll be able to remember! I write lists but usually forget to take them with me, but having written them down enables me to go through them mentally
Peter
Yes, a used method which I tend to use but it's only as useful in proportion to the amount of time and effort i put into updating my diary. Again it's a matter of making a cue become a part of everyday life, habitual and therefore memory jogging.
val kwaan
These are acts of pure desparation- I'm quite able to walk past the thing by the door. I have to put it front of the door so it blocks the way. Its very, very hit and miss and if it does work I'm so wired about remembering whatever it is , I don't need it anyway.
Patricia
Put a 'To Do' list on my computer.Use a recording device to record things I need to do or remember as they arise.
Sandra
I put something stupid in a prominent place, eg a kettle by the door, to remind me to do something. It works for me.I like Angela's idea
Rupert
If I really need to remember something (keys / phone etc.) I tend to put them in my shoes, that way they have to have been in my hand at least once - and I have no excuse!
David Ashby
I write on my hand but don't always notice it until too late. I walk past things placed conspicuously. I never look at the calendar until days after the event.
lyn wood
very useful but hard work
jen
a post-it sticker on the kettle is our method never fails as we never miss our morning cuppa
Ed
Of course this is useful, but I try to avoid it when I can, rather trusting my memory. Of course this has its pitfalls, but I think these external devices make our memories lazy.
Trevor
Apart from the last suggestion, I've found all these useful. Asking someone to remind you lets you off the hook: you're delegating the memorising to another - that's just lazey!
Ken
Yes, writing it down and leaving the note in a conspicuous location works for me.
Victoria
In reply to John, can I just say that if the plot lines of the Archers were more exciting, then this wouldn't work - you'd be too busy thinking about [Sid and Jolene in the shower], that everthing else would go out of your head. So maybe not such a reliable way of remembering anything!!More seriously, I keep a pen and pad on my bedside table so things that float into my head at night get remembered in the morning. I also have a 'special' pocket in my jacket and bag where I put things like keys, video store card etc. Otherwise I tend to put them down anywhere and can never find them.
Frank Reinelt
I put my keys in the refrigerator if I am trying to remember to take something to someone's house amd lists work also
Warwick
I'm awful at this. I set it all up, then ignore the alarm cause I'm in the middle of something else and completely forget to come back to it. I routinely walk past and over things that I've put beside the front door. I have to do things 'now' or never. (like put them in my bag, not by the front door!)
Liz
We have a shelf by the front door. On it goes anything that has to come into the office with us. Works a treat.
Alexandra McLeod
I write on the back of my hand; make lists on paper when I have a lot to do and I put things near the front door so that I won't forget them in the morning. These usually work.I've tried writing in a diary but I forget to look in it; I've asked other people to remind me but they forget.I've never tried alarm clocks.
Chris
Ask someone to remind you to put a note by the front door so that you remember to set your alarm to make a list on the back of your hand while you are knotting your handkerchief so you will not forget to make an appointment in your diary...now what was that thing you were trying to remember in the first place...
Val
Works for me: post and anything that has to go with me are dumped at the front door. An MDA accompanies me everywhere: has reminders, alarms, calendar, contacts. Panic at the thought of losing it!
Jeanne
If you write on a calandar or in a diary you have to remember to look each day. Writing on hand is one I do but tend to wash it off before I do it. You cannot expect anyone else to remind you although the dentist may ring the day before an appointment you still have to remember the next day.
Angela
If you need to take something out and you are travelling by car, put the car keys with the item in question. I find this particularly helpful if the item needs to be kept in the fridge - eg a packed lunch
Katy
I thought i was the only person who left things by the front door!
John (site producer)
Use 'Cues' - every time you hear the Archers it's time to update your diary.
Jeff
Usefull, but who will remind me to write in my diary?
