In Tony Buzan's book Use Your Memory he writes that the Greeks understood that there were two underlying principles for perfect memory. You must ASSOCIATE (link) whatever it is you wish to remember with a fixed location in your mind using your IMAGINATION throughout.

We now know that the upper part of the brain is divided in half and that each half specialises in different mental traits. In order to enhance your ability to remember and bring together the features of both sides of the brain, you should include the following when you ASSOCIATE and use your IMAGINATION to produce mnemonic imagery:

1. Synaesthesia/Sensuality

Most of the great natural memorisers blended their senses and introduced the following elements when they memorised:

1. Vision
2. Hearing
3. Sense of smell
4. Taste
5. Touch
6. Kinaesthesia (awareness of bodily position)

So the more that you involve your senses, the greater your ability to recall the information that you have learnt.

2. Movement

Ask yourself which of the two situations are you likely to remember the most? First of all consider an oak tree in a forest of oak trees. Now consider the same oak tree swaying violently while the trees around it are seemingly unaffected by whatever is causing the movement. The motion gives the mind more possibilities for it to 'link in' and thus remember.

3. Association

Association is one of the keys to a good memory. If you leave your coat in a cloakroom at a theatre, you will be given a ticket. When you return you expect to exchange the ticket that you were given for your coat. That is because the ticket you had was associated with the peg that held your coat. The same works with your memory. You will have a series of pegs in your mind which you associate with what you want to remember and when you recall, you go to that peg and the association will prompt the information stored.

4. Humour

Have fun with your memory and make all of your images funny, absurd and ridiculous. If you watch pedestrians walking past a lamp post in a crowded street nothing really stands out until someone does not watch where they are going and……….

5. Imagination

Einstein said "Imagination is more important than knowledge". Your imagination is vital to a good memory and the more you use it the better your memory will be.

6. Number

As Tony Buzan says, "Numbering adds specificity and efficiency to the principle of order and sequence".

7. Symbolism

A picture speaks a thousand words and so a more meaningful image that represents something boring or abstract will aid the memory process.

8. Colour

If we introduce the facilities of both sides of the brain into our memory techniques our overall performance improves - Colour is a feature of the workings of the right side of the brain. Also the more colourful the image, the easier it is to remember.

9. Order and/or sequence

By adding order and/or sequence it is easier for the brain to randomly access any piece of the information learned.

10. Positive Images

The more positive and pleasant your mnemonic images are, the more likely your brain will want to return to them.

11. Exaggeration

Exaggeration of size, shape and sound will enhance the image. If you saw a 10 foot high mouse wandering around your home town, I am sure that you would remember it!

So if you apply all of the elements above to your mnemonic imagery, then your are on your way to developing a good memory.

 托尼·布贊在他的著作《發(fā)揮你的記憶力》中寫道：希臘人很清楚完美記憶力的兩大原理，即想象力和聯(lián)想力，具體地說，就是要努力通過想象，把希望記住的任何東西與頭腦中的固定位置完全聯(lián)系在一起。

我們現(xiàn)已知道，大腦的上部可分為兩半，每一半都有不同的思維特征。為了提高記憶力，也為了把大腦兩個部分的特征緊密結(jié)合起來，在進行聯(lián)想和發(fā)揮想象力而在大腦中形成有助于記憶的圖象過程中，需要涉及以下途徑：

一、聯(lián)覺作用/感官作用

大多數(shù)天生的記憶高手都有把各種感官揉合在一起的能力，他們在記憶過程中都能夠發(fā)揮下列各種感覺功能：

1. 視覺
2. 聽覺
3. 嗅覺
4. 味覺
5. 觸覺
6. 體覺（對體位的感覺）

因此，發(fā)揮作用的感官越多，對所學(xué)知識的回憶能力就越強。

二、運動作用

可以問問自己，在下列兩種情況下，哪一種記得最牢固？首先想象一下一片橡樹林中的某一棵橡樹�，F(xiàn)在再想想一下，要你記住的這棵橡樹正在猛烈地晃動，而不管讓這棵樹晃動的原因是什么，這棵周圍的其他橡樹好象就是紋絲不動。（這樣一來，）樹的動感作用就會給大腦提供更大的記憶可能性，使它與要記憶的事物發(fā)生聯(lián)系，從而記住了這棵樹。

三、聯(lián)想作用

聯(lián)想是提高記憶力的關(guān)鍵途徑之一。如果去看演出，把大衣存放在衣帽間里，就會領(lǐng)走一張取衣票。看完演出回來，就能憑這張小票去領(lǐng)回你的大衣。之所以能夠取回大衣，正是因為手里拿著的這張小票已經(jīng)和存放衣物的掛衣間發(fā)生關(guān)聯(lián)。記憶也有同樣的規(guī)律。大腦中就有這么一系列的掛衣間，它們和要記憶的東西都發(fā)生著某種關(guān)聯(lián)。當需要回想所記憶的東西時，就會到相應(yīng)的這個掛衣間去，而聯(lián)想作用就會提示所儲存的信息。

四、幽默作用

可以在記憶力中融入幽默因素，讓所有要記憶的情景變得好玩、滑稽甚至荒唐。比如，你看著熙熙攘攘的街道上，行人在走動，他們經(jīng)過一根路燈桿，而街上也沒有什么向街心方向突出來的東西，這時候有人沒有注意到有這根路燈桿子，卻一個勁地朝它走過來，走過來……

五、想象力

愛因斯坦說“想象力比知識更重要”。想象力對于提高記憶力也是十分重要的，想象力發(fā)揮得越好，記憶力就越好。

六、數(shù)字

正如托尼·布贊所說，“數(shù)字化能夠使秩序和順序的原則更具特異性和有效性。”

七、形象化

一幅畫勝過千言萬語。如果能夠用一幅豐富多彩的圖畫來代替某種抽象、單調(diào)的東西，必將有助記憶過程的快速完成。

八、色彩

如果我們能夠把兩個腦半球的有利條件都變成記憶本領(lǐng)，總體記憶水平就一定能夠提高。色彩記憶正是大腦右半球的重要特征之一，因此圖象色彩越豐富，記憶就越容易。

九、秩序和/或順序

如果加上秩序和/或順序，大腦就更容易尋找到隨意掌握的各種信息。

十、積極形象

助記圖象越積極、越讓人感到愉悅，大腦就越容易且越喜歡去回憶它。

十一、夸張作用

對事物的大小、形狀和聲音加以夸張，也有助于增進對事物的記憶。如果你在家鄉(xiāng)看見一只高達10英尺的老鼠，在街上隨處走動，我想你怎么也忘不了吧？

如果能運用上面提到的這十一種助記手段來幫助記憶，就是在提高記憶力的道路上行進了。