Memory Palace (Loci Method) with Jim Kwik - James Altucher Show

How do you specifically store things in your brain and then remember where you stored them? Like, what's the technique?

I mean, the technique is, and this is, you've heard this, I mean, this is called the location method or the loci method, and it's short for location, and it's attributed to a Greek orator named Simonides, and it's about 2,500 years old. And the urban legend goes that he was giving a poetry reading in a building, and when he was done, he leaves and something really tragic happens. The building collapses and kills everybody in the room there. He had the responsibility because he's the only survivor to come back and help family members identify their loved ones because back then buildings weren't made of sheetrock and wood. It was made of stone. He was able to remember where each of them— who each of them were based on where they were sitting around the room. We could all do that. We store information in our environment all the time because back then, as hunter-gatherers, we didn't need to know through survival what words meant or long numbers and stuff like that. We needed to know where things were, like where the clean water was, where the enemy tribe was, where is the clean soil, fertile soil. soil and where the food was, and that was our— that was how we're going to survive. And so we've learned through that process of evolution to store information in our environment. And so the technique, this location technique if you will, is taking an environment that you're familiar with and storing important information around your environment. And when you want to retrieve it, go to those locations. So I can actually take everyone through a really quick exercise. It'll take just a few minutes.

Sure.

I can demonstrate this. And I'm going to take you through a visualization journey, just something very simple. I'm going to imagine you're flying to Westchester, New York, and it's just a suburb of New York City, a little north of New York, where my office is. And I want you to imagine you land in Westchester Airport. You land and a car picks you up and you're coming to my office to learn speed reading or whatever. And you're in the backseat and we're in suburbia, lots of, lots of trees and houses. And we get to my building and I'm going to identify 10 places in my office and I'm going to show you how to use these. So we get to my building, in the back is the first place and it's the parking lot. So say to yourself out loud, parking lot.

Parking lot.

So number 1 is what?

Parking lot.

Good. And then number 2, uh, it has like a waterfall and it creates like a moat around the building, so you have to cross this bridge. So the second place is bridge. So what's number 2?

Bridge.

Bridge. Good. And then you cross the bridge and then you go into the building. The third place is the elevator. So see yourself get into the elevator. What's the third place?

Elevator.

Elevator. So third place, the elevator. You get out of the elevator and the fourth place is waiting for you right there. It's the hallway. See the carpeted hallway? What's number 4?

Hallway.

Hallway, good. And you open the door to my office. Immediately to the left is the 5th place, and it's the closet. Look at the closet. Open the closet. Number 5 is what?

Closet.

Closet, good. And then you go over to the 6th place.

I'm feeling like I'm doing well on the test.

Good, good. You're doing great, James. And then everyone also, you're doing great. Go to the 6th place. The 6th place is the receptionist. So see the receptionist there. 6 is what?

Receptionist.

Good. Behind the receptionist is the 7th place, which is a fish tank. Fish tank. And you see these tropical fish inside, Nemo and everybody. 6— that's the 7th place. 7th place is what?

Fish tank.

Good. So you go over to the 8th place. The 8th place is actually the door to the classroom. You're about to take speed reading. The 8th place is the door. What's the 8th place?

Door.

Door. Good. And then immediately open the door, immediately up front is a whiteboard. Is the whiteboard. That's your 9th place. What's your 9th place?

Board.

Yeah, good. It's the whiteboard. And then finally, the 10th place is, um, I have all these bonsai trees, like these Japanese plants on the side of the classroom. So bonsai trees. That's number 10. What's number 10?

Bonsai trees.

Bonsai trees, great. And so in your mind, you have these 10 places here. And what we're gonna do now is we're gonna take 10 pieces of information and put them into 10 places. So we started this conversation with having, you know, people having a fear of public speaking. And so like, imagine you now, you need to give a talk. And this is what I train a lot in Hollywood. This is like one of the, you know, dozen-plus methods I train here in Hollywood. Actors, teach them how to memorize their lines or speed read their scripts and give speeches without notes. Imagine now you are on stage and you need to give a speech and you don't need to know verbatim, but you need to know the order of the things that you need to talk about. Let's take the 10 keys for a superhero brain that we talked about earlier. What we're gonna take is each of those keys and put 1 in the first place, 2 in the second place, third thing in the third place. And so let's do it together. Take a deep breath, exhale. If it's safe, close your eyes. If not, do it with me. And, and just imagine now you're going to the first place. The first place is what?

Park lot.

Park lot. I want you to get out and you see the first brain tip is good diet. You almost see a big buffet of good diet foods. You know, you see your avocados, your walnuts, Your fish, if you like your fish oils and stuff. You're eating all that, you're gobbling it up. And then go over to second place. Second place is what?

Bridge.

Bridge. The second brain chip, killing ants. I want you to imagine you're killing and stepping on ants. Automatic negative thoughts. But imagine little insect ants. You'd never do that, right? Stepping on all the ants. And then go to the third place is what?

Elevator.

Elevator. And I want you to remember exercise is good for your brain. So just get in that elevator and you start doing your favorite exercise with your favorite exercise equipment. Exercise, your personal trainer. You're doing P90X, CrossFit, yoga, whatever it is, you're doing it with your favorite coach there. Get out of the elevator, immediately in front of you is what?

Hallway.

A hallway, and I want you to remember brain nutrients. And that's a funny one, brain nutrients, but brain vitamins. Imagine big bottles of brain vitamins coming at you, and you have to be Donkey Kong, and you're jumping over the big bottles and barrels of brain vitamins. Go and open the office, immediately to the left is what?

Closet.

Closet, excellent, Jim, this is amazing.

I'm gonna go hang up my coat.

Yeah, and you open your closet, and then The 5th thing that was good for your brain is positive peer group. I want you to see a big— you open the closet and all your positive peers, all your happy friends are in there. See all your positive peers, positive peer group in the closet.

That's great. You can picture them all being hung up.

There you go. Perfect. Then you go to the 6th place. We're halfway there. It's what?

The receptionist.

Perfect. She's cleaning the environment.

She's very beautiful, by the way, in my imagination.

She's in a clean environment. Clean environment. She's OCD, bleaching everything. Everything out of its place, cleaning the desk, clean environment, see it. And then behind the receptionist is the 7th place, which is what?

Fish tank.

Good. And I want you to remember the 7th tip, sleep. So remember, I want you to look at the fish tank and something funny, all the fish are sleeping. They're in their pajamas, they're in their bunk beds, they're snoring. Look at Nemo with a Z. Good. And then after that, in 8th place is what?

The door to the classroom.

Excellent. And the door is locked. And the 8th tip, it reminds you, is brain protection. So you put on a helmet, the helmet reminds you of brain protection, and you headbutt the door open and it shatters and splinters everywhere. And that's how you remind brain protection. Immediately up front, number 9 is the 9th place, which is what?

Uh, the board, the whiteboard.

Good, the whiteboard. And I want you to see there, new learnings. Remember we talked about new learnings? And you see me up front, you know, there, and I'm writing the word new learnings. I'm teaching speed reading. I'm writing new learnings. See it in your favorite color. I'm writing new learnings. And then finally, 10th place is what?

In the classroom, you have bonsai trees.

Yeah, all the bonsai trees. That's the 10th place. And you want to associate that— you want to put in this location, this memory file, stress management, because that's the 10th tip that you need to talk about on stage. Stress management. So what's stress management for you? Maybe you're doing yoga. Just imagine you're getting stress management out of it. Maybe you're doing that, you're cutting the bonsai trees, you're getting a massage on the bonsai trees to manage your stress. So now those are the 10 tips for unlocking your superhero brain. And we put them all in the 10 places. So now you're on stage. Now you're the memory expert. You need to talk, give a talk on these 10 tips. What's— forget about the places. Walk around my office. What's the first tip you need to talk about?

Diet.

Diet. Perfect. And then walk over to the second place. What's the second tip? And do this as you're listening to it, everyone. Do it out loud with me. You walk over to the second place and then what's there?

Oh, I gotta remember. Killing ants.

Killing ants.

Stepping on ants on the bridge.

Automatic negative thoughts. Great, James. And you go to 3rd place is what?

Exercise, because the E is for the elevator.

Good. You're in the exercise elevator. Good. Get out of the elevator and then into the hallway. And what's there?

The hallway, and I'm jumping down with brain nutrients.

Brain nutrients. Take your brain vitamins. Good. You open the door to the—

I've got all my friends hanging up in the closet. Good.

All your positive friends, your positive peer support.

The receptionist is cleaning the environment all over the place.

Good. Good. It's there. After the clean environment is what?

The fish tank. All the fish are asleep.

Sleep. And so that's reminding you to get a good sleep. And then you go over to the 8th place, the door. How do you open the door?

I butt my head against the door. Brain protection.

Brain protection with the helmet. And immediately in front of the room—

You're teaching new learnings on the whiteboard.

Remember new learnings. And finally, the 10th tip to unlocking your superhero brain is what?

Ah, bonsai trees. I fold stress management.

You got it.