Every outstanding man in the field of sports has a trainer, whether he be boxer, swimmer, or distance runner. Every day, however, you can see in sports arenas young men who attempt to compete without the advice of a trainer or a manager. The winner, they would probably tell you, is merely the man whose legs work the fastest, and that is all there is to it; aside from this, there is little to know about foot racing. But every adult knows that this is faulty reasoning. Nurmi would never have been the runner par excellence without the help of good trainers. And why is this true? Because the trainer knows that racing is not merely a matter of putting one leg ahead of the other as fast as possible, but a matter of correct breathing, proper arm movement and posture, good pace and a dozen other details.

The trainer, in other words, has made a careful study of how the body functions naturally in running. He knows, consequently, in what respects it may fail to function and how such failure may be corrected.

To take another illustration: the invention of spectacles, opera glasses and the telescope was not possible until men had discovered how the human eye is constructed and how it functions in its natural state without the aid of glasses. Only with a complete understanding of the normal working of the eye would it be possible to correct vision, and remedy the defects which cause near-sightedness or farsightedness. When one knows how the eye functions normally it is then possible, and only then, to grind glasses which will correct its shortcomings.

We know, then, that before we can make any improvement we must first know how the body or the particular organ under consideration operates in its natural, normal state. And this applies with equal force to the memory. Our first step must be to learn why we remember some things and forget others. No doubt, you have paid little attention to this uncertain quality of your memory but it will pay you to get to the root of it now.

Call to mind the last walk you took (it may be your walk to and from the office) yesterday or today. Please try to give definite answers to the following questions—and I would like to repeat here that only by attempting to answer the questions and practise the exercises which are given you can you expect this book to be of practical benefit to you.

1. Did you meet any acquaintances?

2. Can you describe the clothing worn by these acquaintances?

3. Did you talk to anyone during your walk?

4. Did you pass many shop windows?

5. Can you remember any displays shown in these windows?

Do not pass over these questions in a casual fashion, but answer them as definitely as you can. When you have done so, go over your answers a second time. You will doubtless wonder: Why have I remembered this and that and why have I forgotten the other? It is a well-known fact that we always remember a part of what we have seen and heard and forget the greater part. This applies not only to the walk which we have just tried to remember but to our whole lives—starting in childhood and school days. But it is possible that you are wondering for the first time why this should be so.

All external impressions are received by the brain and registered in the brain cells. Why does our brain arbitrarily retain some of these while it forgets others after a shorter or longer time? To be sure, the passage of time plays a certain role, but it is not, obviously, the determining factor. The questions listed above, dealing with the very recent past (today or yesterday), prove this, as the short intervening time could not have affected your replies.

You may say that you have forgotten much that you saw in the walk because you only glanced at it once. But repetition of observation is not in itself a determining factor in remembering. If you would like to check this statement, ask an acquaintance what the 6 on his watch looks like, the watch which he consults many times daily. You will discover that most people, in spite of frequent observation, do not know whether their watches have Arabic or Roman numerals on the dial. A large number of them are unaware, until you call their attention to it, of the fact that the 6 is usually missing from watches, because the second hand takes its place.

We see, therefore, that neither the passage of time nor repeated observation can in itself explain the differences in "remembering" and "forgetting." The solution of the riddle is to be found in another phase of our minds.

Assume that we meet three friends who have just returned from a business trip together. One is a merchant, the second an architect, and the third a modiste. The three have visited a foreign city and have not parted company during the length of their stay. Therefore, the trio have seen the same sights and received the same impressions. Yet what happens when we ask each in turn to tell us what he saw?

The merchant will talk about the shops and stores he saw, and probably will describe window displays accurately, or store fixtures and furnishings. The architect, on the other hand, will not refer to these things, but will devote a large part of his conversation to churches, monuments and public buildings. He will talk about Doric and Corinthian columns and give us an excellent description of this or that fine doorway. The modiste, however, will overlook the things which attracted the merchant's attention and pass over the things discussed by the architect. Instead, she will describe in detail the costumes she saw in some cafe, and she might even be able to tell us about certain oddities in hats which she observed but fleetingly on passing strangers.

No doubt, you anticipated this difference in the impressions brought back by the three travelers because such cases are common to the experience of all of us. Yet this illustration has brought us much closer to the heart of our problem. Each of the three travelers remembered the things which lay in his particular province, and we conclude, therefore, that human memory retains, from the countless impressions received during the day, only what touches on one's circle of interests. Whether one's interests are wide or restricted, whether they are great or petty, depends upon the individual and need not concern us. But the following conclusion is important:

As soon as a man's interest is aroused, he takes notice, that is, he turns his full attention to the object in question. This intensification of his attention we call concentration and we have discovered this principle: Careful observation and concentration lay the foundation for good memory, and their application is easiest when the object of observation can be made interesting to the individual.

Turn back to the five questions regarding your last walk. I think you will find that your answers are in accordance with the principle just stated.

For instance, you remember only the things of most interest to you in the conversation of your friends, don't you? You listened to these things with greater attention and concentration because they were of greater interest than the rest of the conversation, which you have now forgotten. In the same way, you will find that you remember some articles of clothing which your friends wear because they either especially please or displease you, but that you forget the rest.

To go back to your walk, you retained in your memory only those window displays from the hundreds you passed and looked at that particularly interested you, whether you were thinking of making a purchase or merely window shopping.

Through these illustrations and the simple test which you have just made of your own memory, you have discovered the most important principles on which the retention and forgetfulness of the human mind are based. Now that we have seen how the normal memory functions, we are better able to correct the weaknesses which we find. We have a clearer idea of how to adjust the lever in order to lighten the load on our memories and to strengthen them so that they will function better both in quality and quantity or subject matter. Our three objectives are:

1. To heighten our attentiveness and powers of observation.

2. To increase our ability to concentrate.

3. To draw hitherto unnoticed matters into the circle of our interest.

Rathenau once said the most difficult part of any task is to set a definite goal. But if one has a clear picture of his goal in mind, it is not too difficult to lay a straight course to it. Our three objectives are definitely set before us. Now we shall lay our course to reach them.

Are You Ready To Move Onto The Next Lesson? Click Here...