Retain Information: 10 Science-Backed Ways to Remember More

Forgetting something you just read, heard, or watched is often enough to make you think you have a bad memory. The real problem, however, is usually not forgetting itself.  Our brain is not able to store information efficiently because of ineffective encoding. So, in fact, many people who are struggling to retain information need to improve how they encode what they learn. 

Studies on the Ebbinghaus Forgetting Curve clearly prove that forgetting is an extremely fast process. Up to 70% of information can be forgotten in one day if there is no review of that information. It is unfortunate, but this also shows that change in the process of learning is more important than studying.

This guide explains 10 scientifically proven ways to retain information. Unlike traditional approaches, which depend on such things as motivation or inherent skills, these techniques influence processes of encoding, reinforcement, and recall of memories. Although none of them can guarantee rapid success, lots of individuals start experiencing significant changes after 1-2 weeks of using them.

Why You Forget So Fast (The Real Reason)

Forgetfulness is unlikely to be a sign of low intellect. Most likely, information was never transferred into long-term memory from mere exposure. Your brain continuously processes new information, trying to decide what to store and what to discard. Passive learning will send a relatively weak signal in the processing stage, whereas active learning signals to the brain that the information is important.

Let’s look at two examples of common study techniques. First, a student re-reads the same paragraph five times, underlining some of the sentences. The information seems familiar, but mere familiarity does not translate into memorization. In a day, this student remembers nothing since the brain had no chance to retrieve and reconstruct information.

Compare that to another student who reads the paragraph once, then closes the book, and tries to explain what was just learned orally from memory. It may seem like a little thing, but it forces the brain to retrieve, organize, and reconstruct information, creating a powerful memory imprint. This example is called active recall, and it is one of the learning methods with the strongest scientific backing. Karpicke and Blunt (2011) discovered that retrieval practice significantly increases long-term retention.

This is precisely why the combination of review and spaced repetition is so powerful. Reviewing the material at specific intervals strengthens the memory before it fades. 

10 Ways to Actually Retain Information

Enhancing your memory is more related to developing good learning skills than it is to discovering some kind of innate potential that you may have. Research in cognitive psychology has revealed repeatedly that small shifts in how you learn can lead to huge improvements compared to simply putting in extra hours. 

The following tips help improve your encoding, retrieval, and retention. There is no need to incorporate all ten tips right from the start; you can begin with one or two and use them on a regular basis for a few weeks before moving on to another one.

Use Active Recall, Not Re-Reading

If you find yourself wondering, “Why can’t I retain information?”, this is probably because your study strategy is inefficient. Rereading is a comforting experience since one feels familiar with what is being read; however, familiarity is not the same as recalling something. If a person does not engage in the process of retrieving information without seeing the source itself, it turns out that the memory is fragile.

One of the simplest techniques can take less than five minutes. Read one passage once, close the source, and write down everything you can remember. Do not strive for perfection. Afterward, check your notes against the source, find out what you have forgotten, and repeat the same procedure later using another passage.

It is called retrieval practice and is known to be highly effective due to numerous experiments done within the field of cognitive science. Karpicke and Blunt, in their famous experiment, showed that students employing retrieval practice had retained the information by 50% more effectively than those who repeated rereading the same passage.

Space Out Your Reviews

There comes a time when many of us ask ourselves, “Why do I struggle to retain information?” despite spending a lot of time studying our notes. However, the problem does not lie in the number of repetitions of information but in the timing of such review.

Our brains solidify knowledge during the process of its repeated visits before the loss occurs, not by repeating it over and over again in one day. That is why short review periods, which occur throughout several days, tend to be much more productive than all-day study sessions.

If you are unable to retain information in the long term, then discovering how spaced repetition works will completely transform your approach to learning. In contrast to constant repetition of the same information, in the spaced repetition system each review takes place at the very moment when you are going to start forgetting.

Build a Memory Palace for Anything Sequential

If you keep asking yourself “Why can’t I retain information?”, it could mean that your memory is okay, but how you structure information isn’t. The best way to overcome this problem and learn how to retain all the information you need is to use the ancient memory palace technique.

Let’s imagine moving around in your home. In the entrance, there is an extra-large piece of bread that blocks the entrance to the apartment. In the hallway, there is a large container of milk placed on a chair. There are apples floating in the water in the kitchen sink. And in the living room, there is a box of eggs placed on the sofa. Walking around your apartment again, the sequence of locations will remind you of the items from your shopping list.

This approach can be used for speeches, presentation outlines, timelines, etc. You simply create a sequence of locations and put your ideas into them. Then you just walk around these locations in your mind.

It is not merely an intelligent ploy, but a reflection of the brain’s innate way of processing information. Legge et al. (2012), in an experiment in the journal Memory & Cognition, found that subjects using the traditional memory palace method were able to recall lists about 35% better than those who used verbal repetition.

You do not have to create an elaborate imaginary structure for this exercise to work. Simply pick a familiar setting, such as your apartment or your commute, and mentally put five to ten distinct images in that order along the path. This process will take around five minutes and show you how much more memorable information becomes when it is linked to places rather than words. If you are struggling to retain information, then this is a very quick way of feeling the difference.

Teach It Back (The Feynman Technique)

One of the simplest techniques to find out what you truly know about a particular topic is to explain it to others. When you can provide an explanation without checking your notes, you have managed to understand the topic well. If not, then it helps you identify exactly what you lack in knowledge.

The process of applying the Feynman technique goes as follows: you should study the information first and then try to explain it as if you were a teacher explaining it to a curious twelve-year-old kid. You shouldn’t use any technical terms.

In its nature, this approach includes the application of active recall and self-reflection. As a result of this practice, you will be able to reconstruct the material in your mind rather than rereading all the information. This is an excellent technique since you don’t rely on visual cues.

Chunk Large Information Into Groups

As our working memory can keep only a small quantity of data at one time, long strings are hard to process. There is an effective way to deal with it, called “chunking”: creating groups of the smallest units.

For example, try to remember the following series of numbers: 149217761945. Twelve individual digits seem hard to recall. However, it turns out that it becomes much easier when the digits are regrouped to 1492 – 1776 – 1945, as it is the years in history. The quantity of the information does not change, but the way it is organized does.

The psychologist George Miller referred to this feature as the “7 ± 2” rule, saying that people could actively handle only a few independent items. Grouping related data, dates, vocabulary, and concepts makes it easy to retain information.

Combine Words With Images (Dual Coding)

Reading triggers just one pathway in the process of learning. By combining words with drawings, symbols, or images in your head, you provide your mind with two pathways back to the same knowledge.

The above statement is the essence of Allan Paivio’s theory called the Dual Coding Theory, which suggests that verbal and visual stimuli can be complementary. Since there is more than one way to retrieve the information, it makes recall easier compared to working with just the text.

No special artistic skills are needed to utilize this technique. A simple chart, a quick sketch, color-coding your notes, or creating a mental picture can make abstract information much easier to learn. Even better, use the power of visualization together with spaced repetition and active recall.

Interleave Topics Instead of Blocking

Most students spend an hour on a subject, then switch to another one. It sounds effective since each revision gets easier thanks to constant repetition. However, it does not necessarily translate into learning.

The interleaving technique uses the opposite method, switching to related subjects within the same studying session. Instead of solving twenty problems on algebra and then twenty on geometry, one solves ten problems each in the same session. The brain learns to distinguish which technique should be used to solve the task at hand, gaining understanding instead of developing a mechanical approach.

Initially, this technique will be slower and even irritating. It happens, but it is the additional work of your mind, and it helps in learning. If you have ever asked yourself, “Why do I struggle to retain information? “, perhaps your problem lies in the predictability of studying sessions. Manipulating different concepts forces the brain to become flexible when recalling information in the future. For better effect, it is advisable to combine interleaving with spaced repetition.

Protect Your Sleep the Night You Learn It

Your studying does not have to end with the closure of your notebook, as your brain continues to consolidate the information that you acquired during sleep by solidifying some of your memories. This phenomenon is referred to as memory consolidation and is probably one of the most proven findings in cognitive science.

This implies that the period right after your studying might be just as important as the study process itself. You should try not to stay up until late hours studying and sacrifice sleep because of it. Your mind will likely retain your knowledge better when well-rested rather than tired.

Should you not be able to remember the information regardless of proper use of study techniques, your sleeping habits might deserve the same amount of attention as your studying process. Try to have an adequate night’s sleep after acquiring new information, particularly before any test, speech, or interview. Nothing beats good sleep, as without it all other methods become ineffective.

Cut Multitasking While Encoding

Attention is where memory starts. If your mind is not focused when you are studying, it will have less capacity to build up a solid memory from scratch.

Glancing at notifications between paragraphs, shifting from your studies to social networks, and leaving videos playing in the background might not seem like a problem, but every distraction takes time for the brain to adjust. This makes the encoding process worse, leading to more difficult recall.

If you cannot retain information, think about reducing the number of distractions rather than increasing the duration of your studying. Don’t let unnecessary notifications distract you; use just the necessary materials and focus on one task for twenty minutes straight. It may work better than spending an hour jumping from one thing to another. 

Track and Test Yourself With a Memory App

The methods discussed above prove more effective when they turn into a habit rather than an experiment once done. This is where a properly designed memory app proves highly useful because it will track your results and motivate you to practice consistently.

The memoryOS app combines a lot of these scientifically proven approaches in one app through visual learning, active recall, and scheduled repetition. Learning becomes an engaging process instead of a repetitive one, which facilitates the formation of long-lasting habits after the first week.

In case you are looking for the best free study apps, then remember that quality features prove much more important than marketing messages. The most effective apps not only let you save information but also motivate you to recall it repeatedly and see your results.

Similarly, free memory games could be a fun means of testing yourself, but what makes the difference is consistent effort and not sporadic practice. Regardless of whether you use memoryOS or any other good software, the idea is to create a system in which you can consistently return to learn your content before it gets lost.

No app would suddenly give you superhuman memory; therefore, you must keep the expectations real. Yet, after one to two weeks of using the tips in this guide consistently, you will probably realize that memorizing content becomes more of a skill and not just about luck. 

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