Hi,
I’m new to all this and am looking for some good memory techniques to apply to my studies. Essentially, I’d like to retain more of what I read so I can retrieve it for dialogues around these subjects.
Thanks,
Markus
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You came to a good place to learn how to improve your studies. Getting a degree of any kind requires all sorts of information to be retained and there are many different types of mnemonic techniques that can assist you in recalling that info. If it’s theology you want, I’ve had some experience with that having attended a seminary and then teaching at an undergraduate school of another seminary.
My first recommendation would be to find a way to memorize verbatim many of the scriptures of your favorite translation. Then you have all sorts of lists of kings, prophets, and other important people. Concepts will be important to convert to keywords that create images and can be associated with what you need. Foreign language words are popular to memorize. Authors’ names and people’s faces are good to know also. And if you get good, you might even consider memorizing as you hear lectures spoken or the reverse of having a memorized outline which you use for a speech yourself. There’s several techniques for each of these types of information.
Since you’re new, check out the basics here on the site under Resources, especially the free PDF on memory techniques. Use the search function to look for specifics or just start a new topic yourself and ask away! And most of all, start trying one technique and see how it works for you. Get good at it and then learn another.
Doug
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Markus,
I would learn the following memory techniques:
The link (basically association but with a twist)
The Major system (to remember #'s)
The Peg system (a combination of Link & Major system)
Grid memory system (You use an Excel table or Checkerboard table to place things on to remember)
My recommendation is to pick up Harry Lorayne’s Memory power after you’ve used the resources on this site. 
Stefos
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Hi Markus,
I would highly recommend the book “Memorise the Faith! And Most Anything Else: Using the Methods of the Great Catholic Medieval Memory Masters” by Kevin Vost. It’s actually a great and really practical book on memory, even for general use, e.g. if you were to use it to not memorise theology. He gives a lot of examples so you can start using all the techniques right away.
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