Remember Anyone’s Name
Alum News
Published September 13, 2016
SAY IT AGAIN. And again. “Get into the habit of repeating the name when you hear it,” Green says. “If you meet Rebecca, say, ‘Hi, Rebecca, it’s nice to meet you. Oh, Rebecca, that’s such a pretty name.’ ” If you feel awkward saying it out loud, you can repeat the name to yourself.
MAKE A CONNECTION. Link the name to something you already know. “If I were learning the name Seymour, I might think of my Uncle Seymour. If I were learning the name Jill, I might think of Jill Ker Conway, who was the president of Smith when I was there. If I were meeting Florence, I might think of the city Florence,” Green says.
CREATE A SNAPSHOT IN YOUR MIND. If you meet someone named Robin, you might get a picture of a robin, the bird, in your mind’s eye. The more realistic that image is, the better.
ONLINE: totalbrainhealth.com
This story appears in the Fall 2016 issue of the Smith Alumnae Quarterly.
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