John’s Blog

Have you every played the Memory Matching game?

You know, the one where you have to turn over tiles and try to match the images. Like this…

These are the rules:

1. Mix up the cards.
2. Lay them in rows, face down.
3. Turn over any two cards.
4. If the two cards match, keep them…and go again.
5. If they don’t match, turn them back over. Now it’s another player’s turn.
6. Remember what was on each card and where it was.
7. Watch and remember during the other player’s turn.
8. The game is over when all the cards have been matched.
9. Whoever has the most matched pairs, wins!

Want to learn how a USA Memory Champion would use memory techniques to win this game? Memory techniques that you can do too…

Today, I try to help you master this game. 
I’ve been waiting for this question for a while now…

Reader Question:
My daughter is beating me on Memory Game (where you turn around cards and have to find identical pairs). Any suggestion to help me recover my dignity? 

My Answer:
Obviously, the more tiles you play with, the harder it is to remember all the tiles you turn over. Also, if you play multiple games back-to-back, that can get tricky for your memory too. Since previous games (and the image/tile locations) will all mix and blend together.

I have 4 tips that will help you win this game:

1) Mental Imagery, Actions, and Stories

In the picture, you can see ducks on the cards.
If you turn a duck tile in the top left corner, create an image and action to remember that that card is a duck.

Example: Imagine a duck walks up to that tile in the corner and starts pulling it away. 

Other examples:
If the tile is a tire image, imagine a tire burning rubber on top of that tile.
If a tile is a balloon image, imagine that tile floating away.

Of course, tiles that are on the corners and edges will be easier to remember than ones in the middle of a large grid.
To remember ones in the middle just create a simple story to remember the exact location.

For example: a ball image that is located 4 tiles down and 3 tiles across. Tell yourself a quick story, like: “the ball was thrown 43 yards”. 4 down + 3 across = 43.

2) Speed of Play

Making images and stories quickly takes some practice. Imagining ducks and balls being thrown 43 yards is slow at first, but you will get the hang of it…especially the more you play your game. You’ll learn all tile images really quickly.

So…

Until you’re proficient, play slower.

Flip over a tile and stall a bit as you make the image/story.
Pretend you’re really trying to think hard about the next tile you’re turning over…to buy some more time.

3) Strategy

MOST people who play this game will try to get lucky and take a guess on their 2nd flip.

I think this is sometimes a mistake.

Let’s say 1/3 to 1/2 of the tiles have been turned over. (That is plenty of information to play with!)

Flip over a new card for your first flip. If you know where the match is, flip the match over.
BUT, if your first flip reveals an entirely new card, DON’T guess on your second flip. Instead, flip over a card that has already been shown.

The reason you shouldn’t guess at this point in the game is because a) chances are you won’t get lucky b) the card you flip over 2nd will give your opponent new information that might lead to them getting an easy match.

Let your opponent guess and reveal new cards to you.

4) Sit in new spot

If you play multiple rounds of this game, the images and stories will start to blur together.
The best tip I have to combat this is to sit at a different angle each new round.
Example: Sit on the right side the first round, then sit to the left, then sit below…for each new game.
This will help you connect your stories to your specific vantage point for each new game.

Be sure to use these 4 tips to beat your daughter for a couple of games, then be a good sport and teach her what you’re doing too 🙂

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I received these reader questions on cards and numbers memorization systems:

QUESTION – 1 – FOR YOUR CARD MEMORIZATION – DO YOU USE PAO? (3 CARDS AT A TIME, OR BIGGER JUNKS?)

QUESTION – 2 – FOR YOUR NUMBER MEMORIZATION –  DO YOU HAVE IMAGES FOR 0 THROUGH 1000? 
DO YOU USE PAO FOR NUMBER MEMORIZATION TOO? 

I LISTENED TO YOUR YOUTUBE CREDIT CARD PRESENTATION (THANKS – I’VE JUST BEEN USING THE MAJOR SYSTEM WITH A CREDIT CARD PALACE BUT I JUST HAVE IMAGES FOR 0-100 AND DON’T USE PAO; SOUNDS AS THOUGH YOU MAY BE ADDRESSING THESE QUESTIONS IN THE NEXT FEW MONTHS.

My Answer
I answered a similar question a while back, but I have a lot of new readers so I’ll share it again 🙂

For those wondering what PAO is…it just means that each of the 52 cards in a deck is assigned a unique Person, doing an Action, using an Object. PAO = Person Action Object.

For example: the King of Hearts could be your Grandfather drilling a hole in a block of wood.
P = Grandfather
A = drilling a hole
O = block of wood.

The 2 of Spades could be Michael Jordan dunking a basketball
P = Michael Jordan
A = dunking
O = basketball

8 of diamonds could be Madonna singing into a microphone
P = Madonna
A = singing
O = microphone

To remember the order of cards (in groups of 3), you “mesh” the Person from card 1 with the Action of card 2 plus the Object of card 3…all into 1 mini story.

SO, to remember this sequence:
King of Hearts + 8 of Diamonds + 2 of Spades…
the story would be Grandpa singing into a basketball

I started by learning PAO in 2014 and used it for the first 2 years. It’s a GREAT system for beginners and advanced.

When I used PAO, yes, I did it in chunks of 3. Some people do 2 cards at a time in the form of PA (Person Action) or OA (Object Action).

Then, 2 years ago I “upgraded” to a bigger 2-card system. 
My 2-card system is the same system as my friend Alex Mullen (another 3x World Champ). It’s a combination of the Shadow System (innovated by Lance Tschirhart) and the Block System (Johannes Mallow).

The 2-card system consists of 1,352 premade images. Like my numbers system, it is based on the Major System phonetic code. Fellow USA national team member Lance Tschirhart wrote a detailed description here (https://forum.artofmemory.com/t/a-new-2-card-system/28633) (my system is Part 1 of his system). My system uses a variable number of loci each deck. 

Alex Mullen also does a really good job explaining it on his website. Here is his explanation (link: https://mullenmemory.com/alex-mullen-memory-sports): 

…and also in an interview with Nelson Dellis, (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2P1JnSbTGs&feature=youtu.be&t=17m11s).

If you don’t fully understand it, that’s normal. I had to reread that post MANY times to understand it before I made it.

For my numbers system, yes I now have 1,000 premade images.
One image for each number from 000 to 999.
It is made using the major system (a phonetic system where each digit has a different phonetic sound.) 
For example:
1 = T
2 = N
3 = M

So the number 321 = M+N+T 
I combine the sounds to make a word.
For example: MNT = Mint
Then I use that image (Mint) to remember the number 321

992 of my 1000 number images are the exact same images as  992 of my 1352 card images. 

I used to have a PAO system for numbers. I changed my number system to 1000 images at the same time I changed my card system.

Number PAO is the same idea as card system PAO. 

For example: the number 83 could be your Grandfather drilling a hole in a block of wood.
P = Grandfather
A = drilling a hole
O = block of wood.

The number 23 could be Michael Jordan dunking a basketball
P = Michael Jordan
A = dunking
O = basketball

The number 70 could be Madonna singing into a microphone
P = Madonna
A = singing
O = microphone

SO, to remember this number 837023
the story would be Grandpa singing into a basketball

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Question from a reader:
I was curious how many memory palaces (or journeys) memory athletes have. How many memory palaces do you have? Thanks

My Response

I write down all my memory palaces in spreadsheets each year. Every year I make a new spreadsheet to track my scores that year and to prepare for that year’s competitions.

So I was able to go back and see how many memory palaces I’ve built over the years.

I started competing at the end of 2014. By spring of 2015, I had 21 memory palaces that I used for training and competition.

In 2018, I had 50 memory places for training/competitions.

By early 2019, I had 68 palaces.

THEN, by the end of 2019, I had 139 total memory palaces for training and competitions.

The reason I needed more and more each year (and especially for the end of 2019) was because my memory abilities and scores were getting better and better…so I needed more storage space for competition events.

I calculated that I needed 130+ memory palaces for the 2019 World Memory Championship…that’s why I built so many last year.

Another important note is that almost all (90%) of my memory palaces for competition have exactly 20 loci each. I started doing it that way early on and it worked well for me (consistency). The other 10% have 17 loci or 23 loci for different disciplines.

I also have 3 or 4 LARGE memory palaces that consist of 120 to 300+ loci each. These were used for the 2018 USA Memory Championship event “Long Term Memory”.
You can read about that event here: https://memoryjohn.com/2018-usa-memory-championship-recap/

So, in total I have between 3,000 to 3,500 loci (among 140+ memory palaces). That’s a lot!

To answer your first question about how many memory palaces other memory athletes have…I honestly don’t know. It depends on their level of ability. But I do know that most memory athletes do not have as many memory palaces or loci as I do.

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I received this question from a reader the other day:

Hi sir John,
I am your biggest fan and I read all of your mails but this time i am wondering how to really apply the memory palace in a specific way where you are studying theory.
I already know how to memorize lists. In fact, I have a record of memorizing 40 random numbers under 1:30 seconds but memorizing something like a book is difficult for me.
Here is picture of what I want to memorize:

I’m from Philippines by the way and I really love your mails. This picture is all about Philippine history. Thanks for reply I will really appreciate it and Godbless sir. 

My Answer

Thanks for your question. The Philippines is one of the few countries I have not yet been to in Southeast Asia. I would love to visit one day.

Using a memory palace to remember theories/facts from books isn’t too difficult. Here are some tips for how to do it.

1. Read 1 section or chapter at a time.

2. Highlight/underlinekey things you want to remember

You can do this as you read the first time through…or as you re-read a second/third time.

Simply highlight the parts you want to store in a memory palace.

Looking at your picture, it looks like you underlined a few facts:

• “Cry of PugadLawin”
• Supremo (leader) Andres Bonifacio
• August 3, 1896

3. Choose a memory palace that you want to use.

A memory palace is simply any place that you know well (your home, a friend’s home, a place of work, etc.) and can visualize walking through. 

Just pick a place you know well and “warm it up” by imagine you are walking through it a few times. Visualize the general layout of the place and all the rooms you know.

This process won’t be crystal clear in your mind. Just having a general understanding of they layout/furniture/rooms/decorations will be all you need.

4. Create a mental image(s) / story(ies) to represent each highlighted fact.

Get creative. Turn the information into an image or simple story. Use the first thing that comes to your mind. 

For example:

• Andres Bonifacio = a mental image of the San Andreas fault line cracking a bony face (Boni facio)
• August 3 = an auger drilling into a triangle (3)

You can use images that remind you of the word/information…or things that rhyme with it or sound similar to it.

These images will represent your information and help remind you of what the information is when you “see” it all in your memory palace.

5. Place these mental images/stories in different locations inside your memory palace. For example:

If you wanted to remember a book in chronological order, you would create a logical path (have a start and end…for example start at the mailbox, walk into the house and all the rooms. Then end at the back door) through your memory palace and place the images in order along this logical path.

That way when you want to remember the order of the book, you simply “walk” through your memory palace in your mind…in the same path/order…to remember the sequence of events.

If you don’t need to remember the book in order, but want to separate facts into different groups…you can separate your images into different rooms.

For example: Parts of the book that relate to names of historical figures you can store in the kitchen/dining room area of your memory palace. Parts of your book that relate to names of battles you can store those images in your basement. Etc..

6. Review

In order to retain this information long term, you need to review the images you made (and what information the images relate to). Spaced repetition is the most effective strategy here.
I made a video on spaced repetition you can watch here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yUqcuJt8u3c&t

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How do you get back into something that you took time off of? How do you start something new from scratch?

After the World Memory Championships last December, I stopped memory training for 2 months. 

Mostly because I went home for Christmas and after that I got sick.

These things knocked me out of my daily training routine. I stopped training for 2 months (which is rare for me).

The thought of jumping back in wasn’t easy either.
I thought of ALL the things/disciplines I needed to train for….for my next competition – the USA Memory Championship.

Thinking about all the things I was behind on made me a bit overwhelmed. 

The thoughts in my head put me down:
“You lost all your progress”
“Your training scores are definitely going to regress”
“You’re behind”
“You have SO MUCH to catch up on”

And guess what…
This overwhelm kept me from training for another few weeks.

This made me more anxious and put me into a state of OVERTHINKING.

I believe overthinking is one of the worst things for any human being. Most of us have been in this situation: We think way too hard and way too much about something…and ultimately convince ourselves to not do anything. So no progress happens. Making no progress induces more anxiety and it’s just horrible.

So, what’s the solution?

Teeny tiny steps.

Like….really teeny steps at first.
Small actions over a few days leads to momentum.
Momentum leads to slightly bigger steps.
Bigger steps over time get us back into a routine.
Routine creates habit.
Habit of action is where you want to be.

Here’s what I did to get back into training every day:
I picked 1 discipline to do the first day.
I only had to do 1 minute memorization of that discipline. EASY.
*I realized my progress and scores hadn’t regressed like my overthinking mind had convinced me*
I did another 1 minute training the next day.
Then on day 3, I did a few disciplines for 1 minute each.
By day 7, I was up to 15 minutes a day of practice.
I feel so much better now. 
I also realized most of my “overthinking” thoughts were false or overblown.

The moral of the story is:
If you find yourself overthinking, realize that you’re stuck in your thoughts. Get out of your head. Do something small. Tiny even. Keep doing small actions until it builds.

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This post is all about the North Korean memory team and their unprecedented success at the 2019 World Memory Championship in Wuhan, China.

Disclaimer (because some people might misinterpret this information): I am not a supporter of the North Korean government and their regime. I am simply a proud, peaceful American and world traveler who is also fascinated to learn about and meet people from other countries and cultures. I will never apologize for that. North Koreans interest me since there is little known about them to the outside world or about their country and way of life. I admire their 6 memory competitors and their hard work. I have no idea what conditions they live and train under. The information in this article is meant to be informative.

I’ve been getting tons of questions from friends and fellow competitors about what I know about their historic performance.

If you weren’t aware, a North Korean is the new World Memory Champion. The North Korean team won the team event and several world records were SMASHED by North Koreans. 

Fellow competitors that were at this championship (and many who weren’t at this championship) believed these scores to be highly suspicious. 

Was there cheating? 

How could they memorize so much in an era when we thought memory scores were closer to reaching their peak?

This is what I learned…

Before the Championship

Before the 2019 World Memory Championship (WMC) even started, North Koreans were the talk of the town. As you register for the WMC, you are required to submit all your decks of cards for the Hour Cards event on day 2…that way they can be shuffled and prepared ahead of time.

Competitors can submit as many decks as they like. It’s a sign of how many decks a competitor can memorize, so everyone is trying to figure out who brought the most decks.

The world record (WR) for this event going in was 37 decks of cards. So, I would suspect the top competitors to bring in around 40 or more decks of cards. I was quickly informed by my Vietnam team that the North Koreans had brought 50-60 decks. 

I couldn’t believe it. I kept telling everyone that I genuinely thought it was an intimidation tactic. “There’s no way you can memorize that many decks and write them all down in order in the recall phase.” I believed the North Koreans were great memory competitors, especially after seeing their scores for the first time at the 2018 WMC, but I didn’t think they could do that well.

Sure enough, I checked the sign-in paper and all 6 of the North Koreans had brought between 50 and 55 decks each. Their top competitor from last year Pang Un Sim (who finished 2nd place) had a blank entry. I learned later that she was sick and couldn’t attend this year. Would their scores and WRs be even higher if she had come?

Another sign of things to come was the fact that the North Korean team requested 5,000 digits for the Hour Numbers event. Just for perspective, the WR going into this event was 3,260 digits by Zhang Ying of China. The thought of someone even getting to the 5th page during memorization (each page has 1,000 digits) was unbelievable. Again…I thought this was just an intimidation tactic.

The Championship

I’m going to just jump in and show you the highlights from the North Korean team.

First of all, I was wrong about the intimidation tactics. Most of their scores were unbelievable.

*You can search all the 2019 WMC results here:
http://wmc-asia.com/wechat.php/pc/ach_obj/match_id/35
and soon on the official site here:
http://www.world-memory-statistics.co.uk/competition.php?id=wmc2019

*You can see WRs at these links:
WMSC (recognized as Guinness WRs):
http://www.world-memory-statistics.co.uk/disciplines.php
and IAM: https://iam-stats.org/records.php

30 min Binary
Previous Official WR was 5597 digits (Lkhagvadulam Enkhtuya – Mongolia)
Unofficial WR was 6270 digits (Munkhshur Narmandakh of Mongolia at an IAM event in 2017)

2019 North Korean highlights:
1st – Ryu Song I: 7485 digits!!!
2nd – Kim Su Rim: 6805 digits
3rd – Jon Kum Phyong: 6585 digits
4th – Jon Yu Jong: 6495 digits
5th – Kim Ju Song: 6155 digits 

One thing most people don’t know is that all the competitors who requested more than 6,000 binary digits (all the North Koreans, Wei Qinru from China, and a few Mongolian competitors) had to RE-DO this discipline on the 4th day.

Apparently, the organizers accidentally duplicated one of extra binary sheets (so 2 pages were exactly the same). The top competitors noticed this during memorization and told the organizers afterwards. So, the organizers decided to redo the event for these competitors…meaning all of them either REUSED their journeys or had to choose new journeys to do this event on day 4. That makes these scores by the North Koreans even more unbelievable.

Hour Numbers
Previous WR was 3,260 digits (Zhang Ying – China)

2019 North Korean highlights
1st – Ryu Song I: 4620 digits!!!
4 of their 6 competitors broke the previous WR
Their lowest score was 3220 digits (8th place)

This was the first announcement that spun everyone’s heads. Since the Binary results from Day 1 weren’t official (due to the retest), the scores from Hour Numbers got everyone buzzing about this team. Imagine everyone’s shock after hearing that the WR was shattered by 1,360 digits (42% increase). 

Hour Cards
Previous WR was 37 decks (Munkhshur Narmandakh – Mongolia)

2019 North Korean highlights
1st – Kim Su Rim: 48 decks + 34 cards!!!
2nd – Jon Yu Jong: 45 decks + 4 cards!!
3rd – Kim Ju Song: 44 decks!!
4th – Ryu Song I: 43 decks + 28 cards!!

Munkhshur finished 5th with 41 decks + 9 cards.
The “worst” score from North Korea was 35 decks.

Note: The recall time for this event was increased to 2.5 hours this year (previously only 2 hours).

Spoken Numbers (hearing 1 digit spoken per second)
Previous WR was 456 digits (Lance Tschirhart – USA)

2019 North Korean highlights
1st – Ryu Song I: 547 digits

Here is what’s unbelievable about this score. There are 3 trials (attempts) in this event. The first trial you hear 200 digits. 2nd trial you hear 300 digits. The last trial you hear the previous WR + 20% (so this year = 547 digits). So, to beat a WR you only have 1 chance…on the last trial.

Ryu Song I got a PERFECT score in each trial! 200, 300, 547. Not a single mistake. This has never happened before.

Final Overall Results
1st place – Ryu Song I (North Korea): 9533 points!!
2nd place – Wei Qinru (China): 9091 pts
3rd place – Jon Yu Jong (North Korea): 8913 pts
4th place – Kim Su Rim (North Korea): 8812 pts
5th place – Ri Song Mi (North Korea): 8523 pts
6th place – Munkhshur (Mongolia): 8491 pts

For perspective, the previous highest ever point total in a WMC was 8,647 points by Alex Mullen in 2016…which is now equivalent to 8,149 points (standards and point totals are adjusted every year with the increase of scores).

Also, for perspective on the top 6 overall:
-Wei Qinru was the 2018 Champion.
-Munkhshur was the 2017 Champion.

Suspicious Scores

I admit I was suspicious of their scores during the competition. I never really suspected cheating, but I kept thinking “how can they do that!?”

I wasn’t the only one. Dominic O’Brien, 8-time World Memory Champion and world famous memory author & speaker, called for the all the World Record breakers to be spot checked (quizzed after the fact) on Hour Cards and “re-tested” on a few events (Spoken Numbers, Numbers, Binary) to uphold the validity of their scores.

This is standard practice for anyone who smashes a record or is suspected of cheating.

One of the arbiters who was present for this retest told me that the North Koreans seemed overly excited and confident during this process.

Everyone ultimately passed with flying colors. They were legit.

How Do They Do It?

If you’re a memory competitor, this is probably the section you want to read the most.

This is what I learned about the systems that the North Koreans use. 

Just for disclosure, most of this information was told to me by other trustworthy competitors and arbiters. I didn’t realize that one of the North Korean competitors spoke English until day 3. I had assumed it would be hard to communicate with them. So, I didn’t talk with them until the last day.

General Info

This is probably the most unbelievable thing of all…
The new World Memory Champion, Ryu Song I, started memory training THIS April. She said that she trains 5 hours per day. Very hard to fathom how she learned systems that fast, created all her journey locations, and improved that quickly. It really is otherworldly. She is only 19 years old. Incredible all-around. 

Most of the other North Koreans have been training for 3 to 8 years.

I assume they have national competitions within North Korea and many other memory athletes who train. I’m guessing they only bring their best to the WMC. This is only their 2nd year competing. Only 2 of the 6 that came this year were at the WMC last year (Kim Su Rim and Ri Song Mi).

North Korea has no internet access in their country. Their government blocks all outside access. They’re isolated from the outside world.

Imagine never having a cell phone. No Facebook, Twitter, Instagram…No candy crush, no notifications, no technology anxiety…

Basically, what life was like 40+ years ago.

Now, imagine the advantage they have over the rest of the world in areas of focus, patience, concentration, and the ability to sit in training for long periods of time.

I believe this is their biggest advantage against the rest of the world.

• I heard a rumor that if one of them won the WMC, that they would get a house.

• I heard that their best competitor in speed cards was in tears when he failed to get the WR (he memorized a deck in 15.562s. Official WR is 13.96s). 

Numbers 

Most of them use a 3-digit system (1,000 images. 1 for each number between 000-999). 

One or two of them use a 2-digit system since they started training more recently.

They HAND DRAW lines on their papers for the Hour and Speed Numbers events. They don’t use a transparency sheet. I’ve never heard of this.

For those with a 3-digit system, they draw vertical lines between every 3 digits…for 13 rows.
13 lines x 3 digits = 39 digits
This leaves 1 digit at the end (since each row has 40 digits).
They memorize the last row separately (horizontally).

I got conflicting info on how they review for Hour Numbers. Possibly because they each do it a little differently. I heard one of them reviews after each page and then doesn’t review a 3rd time.

I heard the champion, Ryu Song I, reviews the first page 4 times in total!…and that she also reviews other pages 2-3 times each. 

Their pace/speed is incredible here to be able to encode and review that much. I heard that in training they are able to memorize and review a total of 800 digits in 5 minute Speed Numbers.

Binary

They don’t use the same system. 
Some have 64 images for binary (2-digit system). 
Some of them have 1,024 images (turn 10 binary digits into 1 image).
Others have 512 images for binary (3×3 grids possibly). 

Cards

They use a 2-card system…meaning 2 cards together is 1 image.
They have 2,704 images total (52 cards x 52 cards = 2704 possible images).

For Hour Cards, one of the North Koreans shared that she memorizes 20 decks, then reviews 20 decks, memorizes the next 20 decks, then reviews those 20 decks, memorizes 10 more decks (possibly reviews), then reviews the first 40 decks again.

Spoken Numbers

For spoken numbers, all of them use a 2-digit system (images for 00-99) and put 4 digits per location in their journey. 

This is really smart.

The downfall of using a 3-digit system in this event (like I do), is that it is very hard to find any gaps (missing images) that you might have. Since 3-digit has 1,000 images, it’s impossible to search thru all your images to figure out what’s missing. By using only 100 images, with a 2-digit system, you are able to search easily through your images to find any gaps.

The Hour Disciplines (Hour Cards and Hour Numbers)

I was told they train so that the hour events feel short.

To me, this means that they train longer than 1 hour for these events. Imagine training 2 Hour Cards or 3 Hour Numbers at home…just so 1 Hour Cards and Numbers feels like a cakewalk. 

Unbelievable…

My Experience

I didn’t meet their team until the awards ceremony on day 4.

To my shock, one of them (Jon Yu Jong) spoke great English. I was amazed just for the fact that North Korea is known for their government’s hatred of America. They’re also isolated from the rest of the world, so why would they learn English…or be ALLOWED to learn English?

I assume since these competitors are given permission by their government to travel to international competitions, that they were allowed to learn English.

When I approached them for the first time (carrying my American flag), I asked if they would take a picture with me. I was told “we need to ask first.” They asked the official that was with them and they returned with their DPRK flag. 

I’m pretty proud of this picture. How many pictures in the WORLD exist with North Korean(s) and American(s) with their flags TOGETHER??

L to R: Me, Ryu Song I (champion), unsure his name, Kim Su Rim, Jon Yu Jong, and Ri Song Mi.
*The other male competitor was cut off in the photo. Between the two guys, I don’t know who is Kim Ju Song and who is Jon Kum Phyong.
Out of curiosity, I shook all of their hands. I just wanted to see their reaction to meeting an American.

Most of them happily shook my hand. One complimented me and said “you are very good.” Two of them gave me uninspiring, weak handshakes and looked unsure of how to handle the situation. Maybe I intimidated them 😉

I asked Jon Yu Jong if it was ok for them to meet with an American. She said yes. 
I asked about the relationship between North Korea and America. She said it is still not good yet.
I told them I admired their achievements and wished them well. 

Here’s our selfie afterwards:

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I just got back from Vienna for the 2018 IAM World Memory Championship.

I’m happy to say that I finished in 5th place this year!
Wow…even I’m surprised by this result.

Just for context, I finished in 23rd place last year in Jakarta (but there were more people).

The Championship consists of 10 events over 3 days.

I broke my personal competition record in all 10 events. Consistent training and pushing my limits is what took me there. It’s been a great year of improvement and training for me.

DAY 1
15 min Names & Faces
30 min Binary Numbers (1’s & 0’s)
5 min Random Images
60 minute Numbers

DAY 2
5 min Speed Numbers
15 min Words
60 min Cards

DAY 3
5 min Dates
Spoken Numbers (#’s spoken at a rate of 1 digit/sec)
Speed Cards (fastest u can memorize deck of cards)

My results:

5th place overall!
I also finished with the silver medal in the 5 minute Images event. I tried for the World Record, but came up 18 points short. I scored 395, which is the 3rd best score ever.

Full competition results here: https://iam-stats.org/competition.php?id=WMC2018

This is a sample of what the Image event looks like (memorizing rows of images in order):

I also memorized:

• 120 international names & faces in 15 mins (4th place).
• 22 decks of cards in 1 hour (4th place).
• 1830 digit # in 1 hr (5th place).
• 282 digit # in 5 mins (6th place).
• A deck of cards in 42.4 secs (4th place).
• A list of 193 words in 15 mins (6th place)

This is me concentrating before the spoken numbers event (one of the hardest events). Your score ends when you make your first mistake. I memorized a string of 97 digits spoken at 1 digit per second, but when I was writing them out I made a mistake and switched 2 numbers…so I scored 66.

Vienna was such a beautiful city. 
Lots of historic buildings, churches, palaces…

And everywhere you looked, there was a Christmas market.
I think I saw 8 different ones. 
December is a good time of the year to visit this part of the world…

Like everyone else, I drank Glühwein (which was basically hot red wine with a taste of rum and spice) out of a festive mug. I enjoy red wine, but not so much rum. But it tasted better simply by being in a different culture.

With German friends, and fellow memory competitors, at the Schönbrunn Palace (it has 1,441 rooms!)
Meeting and competing with people from all over the world is a very enriching and unforgettable experience. If you haven’t traveled the world…you must do it in your lifetime. 

After the 2014 World Championship in China, I ate at an Indian restaurant with British, a German, a Mongolian, a Costa Rican, and Americans.

After this year in Austria, I ate at an Italian restaurant with French, Germans, a Scot, and Brits.

Fun global experiences 🙂

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The 2018 IAM World Memory Championships are coming up in 2 weeks in Vienna, Austria.

It’s obviously a huge event in the memory community, so I wanted to give you a look inside (what it entails, the techniques used, how I train, etc.)

The 10 Events (and time limits)

These are the 10 events (it’s a lot) that take place over 3 days:

1. Names and Faces (15 minutes) – memorize international names and faces, spelling must be perfect
2. Binary Digits (30 minutes) – as many 1’s and 0’s as you can memorize in order
3. Random Images (5 minutes) – similar to clip art images, memorize each line of 5 images in order
4. Hour Numbers – how many digits you can memorize in order
5. Speed Numbers (5 minutes) – as many digits you can memorize in order in 5 minutes
6. Words (15 minutes) – random words memorized in order
7. Hour Cards – as many decks of cards you can memorize in one hour
8. Historic Dates (5 minutes) – “fake” dates and events (fake because otherwise you could study dates beforehand)
9. Spoken Numbers – numbers are spoken by a computer program at a rate of 1 digit per second. You have to memorize as many in order as possible. 1 mistake and your score stops there.
10. Speed Cards – fastest you can memorize 1 deck of cards (5 min max)

**Each event has a winner and a cumulative score crowns the overall winner.

Techniques Used

The main technique that is used by competitors is the memory palace / journey method.

It involves turning “places” you know well, like your home and office, into a mental journey where you store information. Information is stored by turning it into a mental “image” or “story”.

It’s an incredible technique if you really think about it.
You can read more about the technique here:
https://twitter.com/MemoryJohnG/status/1041732142168891400

For these events, a memory palace is not used:
-Names & Faces
-Historic Dates

A number system, like PAO or the major system, is needed to memorize numbers in these events:
-Hour #s
-Speed #s
-Historic Dates
-Binary Digits
-Spoken #s

A card system, like the PAO or 2-card system, is needed for the cards events (Hour Cards, Speed Cards).

4 years ago, I started learning basic PAO (person-action-object) systems to memorize numbers and cards. These, anyone can learn pretty quickly.

Now, (I’ve gone overboard and) I learned a complex 1,000 image system for numbers using the major system. The major system involves “reading” numbers as different consonant sounds (each digit has a different sound) and spelling words with those sounds.

That means I have a different image for every 3 digit number between 000 and 999. For example: 357 = milk, 497 = Rubik’s cube.

For cards, it’s even crazier. I now memorize 2 cards at a time, so I have a different image for 1,352 combinations. (It’s too complex to explain here. Maybe I’ll explain it in a separate email one day.)

Both the number and card system I use now took about 3 months just to make (creating all those unique images), then about another 3 months to learn and get comfortable using.

IT’S A LOT, I get it. 
I realized that if you want to be one of the best at something, you have to take it to another level. That’s what I did…and it’s paying off.

Scores

Last year, in Jakarta, I finished in 23rd place.
This year, I hope to get top 10.

For perspective, here are a few scores I got last year VS. what I am attempting this year:

	Last Year’s Score	This Year
Digits memorized in 1 Hour	1,318 digit number	2,100 digit number
Decks of Cards memorized in 1 Hour	12 decks	24 decks
Digits memorized in 5 minutes	192 digit number	300 digit number
Time to memorize 1 deck of cards	65.9 secs	32 seconds

How do you improve your memory at this level?

Answer: Memorize faster. Push your limits when you train. Learn how fast you can turn information into an image and store it in your mind.

I recommend trying MemoryLeague.com.
See how many names or images or cards or numbers or words you can memorize in 1 minute.

Well, I better get back to training…

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I’ve been getting asked a lot about how to study/memorize optimally.
Basically, how to study in less time, with no cramming, and being able to retain the information long-term.

Below are 5 steps. #3 is the most important one.

#1: Understand It, First

You must understand the concept…or memorization won’t help.

Identify if (and what) you don’t fully understand.

To fully understand a hard concept, you either need to re-read several times, immerse yourself in videos that explain it, or ask someone to explain it to you (like a professor, expert, or classmate who knows understands it).

#2: In Class

Here’s, what I think is, the optimal way to learn in a class setting (you can tweak this to apply to similar things, like: reading books, a work conference, learning a skill/sport).

Take handwritten notes during lecture (I prefer handwritten over typed because if forces you to condense & write less). It’s important to simplify.

Highlight or take notes when reading from a book.

Notes should be on main/important/new points and concepts…and anything else you want to learn.

Engaging with the teacher and asking questions helps cement information into your memory.

#3: Review (How to do it optimally)

Most people wait to study or review the night before the test.
Obviously that’s crazy. You’re overwhelmed and you forget the information very quickly.

Here’s what to do instead:

Review the evening after each class.
Scan through your notes and highlights FROM THAT DAY…this might take only 5-10 mins.

Since the material is fresh, it will be easier to review…saving time. 

Review is what locks information into your memory.
It is the most important memory concept learned by memory athletes, like myself.

Use a Spaced Repetition Schedule to review your notes.

The Anki app is a great tool that automates flashcards using spaced repetition.
Spaced repetition counters your natural “forgetting” curve. The spaced review allows you to retain the most info for the least amount of work.

Look at your notes 2 days later, then 4 days later, then 8 days later (rule of thumb: double the days between reviewing).

This seems like a lot of work, but it’s actually saving you time and locking everything into memory.

You don’t realize how quick these review sessions will be until you do it. After a review session or 2, you might already know 90% of the info…so you can breeze through it.

Review reinforces what you learned…maintaining it long-term.

#4: Locking it in for Years

If you’re a medical student or someone who needs to MAINTAIN a lot of specific information for a long-term period (months, years, for life)…use the Memory Palace Technique.

It’s like having a filing cabinet of notes…downloaded into your brain.

I made this easy “How-to” on my twitter page
(Click the picture below to read it)

Simplify the information into images and store them in your memory palace.

*You still need to use a long-term spaced repetition schedule for this too.

#5: Trouble Remembering / Not Sticking

If you have difficult or boring concepts that aren’t sticking for you, the best memory hack is to create mental imagery for those concepts.

Imagine a story containing the information. Make it “mentally visual.”

For example:
Rhino- (as in rhinoplasty) in medical terms means “nose”. (Rhinoplasty is surgery to modify the nose).

To remember rhino = nose, just imagine a rhino’s horn is actually it’s nose with nostril. A weird mental image.

Corny, but extremely effective for your mind.

Bonus Tip:
Teaching someone else the material you’re learning cements the information in your mind. Another reason why study groups and mentoring is beneficial to you.

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