How to Make Your Memorisation Unstoppable: The Secret of Building Bigger Stories
If you’ve ever tried to memorize something, maybe it was a person’s name at a networking event, a set of numbers for work, or even a whole speech, you’ll know the frustration of forgetting at the worst possible time.
Your mind goes blank. You fumble. You feel that heat in your face. And the harder you try to force it, the worse it gets.
The truth is, forgetting isn’t a sign that you have a bad memory. Forgetting usually means the story you built around the information wasn’t strong enough. Weak stories = weak recall. Strong stories = strong recall.
And the way to create strong recall is simple: make your mental stories bigger, richer, and more detailed.
This is the difference between someone who forgets a name seconds after hearing it, and someone who remembers it weeks later with ease.
Let me show you how.
Why Most People Forget
Most of us are taught to remember through repetition. You hear something, then you say it back to yourself. Again and again. And again.
That’s what rote learning is, grinding repetition. The problem is, it’s like trying to nail a flimsy post into the ground. No matter how many times you hit it, it doesn’t go deep. It wobbles.
So when you try to recall, the post isn’t there anymore. It’s faded.
That’s because your brain doesn’t remember abstract words or numbers very well. It remembers stories, emotions, exaggeration, movement, and context.
So instead of hammering the same post into the ground, what if you built an entire structure around it. A fence, a house, a whole neighbourhood? Now, even if you forget one part, there are dozens of other cues to bring it back.
That’s what building bigger stories does.
The “Circle of Memorization”
When I teach this concept, I often draw it as a simple diagram on the whiteboard. Imagine a circle, that’s your memory story.
Inside the circle, you’ve got your starting point: the piece of information you’re trying to remember. It could be:
A person’s name (John)
A number (3742)
A foreign word (“chien” in French)
A key point in your presentation (“customer trust”)
That’s your starting image.
Now, the strength of your recall, whether you remember it or not, depends on how big and detailed you make that circle.
A small, thin circle = weak recall, easily broken.
A larger, layered circle = strong recall, hard to forget.
So your job is to keep feeding the circle, keep adding details, exaggerations, emotions, and questions until the story becomes unforgettable.
Example 1: Meeting John
Let’s say you’ve just met John. That’s your starting point. A lot of people would just repeat it: “John, John, John.”
That’s a tiny circle. Weak.
Now let’s expand it. John loves golf. So you picture John holding a golf club. Good start, now the story has some shape.
But it’s still not strong enough.
Let’s exaggerate it. John isn’t holding a normal club, he’s holding a club the size of a tree. He’s swinging it at St Andrews, the most famous golf course in the world.
Better. The circle is growing.
Still, let’s push it further. How did he get to St Andrews? He received a golden invitation, personally handed to him by Shane Warne. He’s standing there with Shane, the crowd is roaring, the grass is impossibly green, the golf ball explodes into fireworks when he hits it.
Now we’ve gone from “John = golf” to an unforgettable movie scene. And when you recall later, you don’t even need to force it. The story pulls John’s name back instantly.
That’s how you turn fragile memory into powerful recall.
Example 2: Remembering My Name
People often mishear my name. I’ve been called Tinsel, Tonsil, and even Utensil.
If you only hear “Tansel” once, there’s a good chance you’ll forget it. That’s a weak circle.
But if you turn it into a story, suddenly it sticks.
Imagine me wrapped in shiny Christmas tinsel, standing on top of a Christmas tree. Maybe I’m swinging like an ornament. Bells are jingling. There’s laughter. That ridiculous image is unforgettable.
Add another layer: imagine me coughing like a tonsil problem, or someone trying to stir soup with me as a giant utensil. It’s silly, but that’s the point. Silly = memorable.
Now, when people go to recall my name, they don’t have to reach. The story does the work.
Example 3: Numbers
Numbers are usually the hardest to remember because they’re completely abstract. That’s why memory athletes (myself included) don’t memorize numbers directly, we convert them into images first, using systems like the Major System or simple rhyme/shape associations.
Let’s take the number 3742. On its own, it’s meaningless. But once we translate it into images, it comes alive.
37 in the Major System could be “Mug” (3 = M, 7 = G).
42 could be “Rain” (4 = R, 2 = N).
Now I’ve got mug and rain. Easy.
To make the story memorable, I connect them in an exaggerated way: imagine tipping a giant mug into the sky, and instead of coffee coming out, a torrential downpour of rain floods the streets. People are swimming in coffee-flavoured rain. The scene is bizarre, funny, and impossible to forget.
If you prefer the rhyme/shape method, you could do:
3 = “Tree” (rhyme)
7 = “Hook” (shape)
4 = “Sail” (shape, looks like a triangle sail)
2 = “Shoe” (rhyme)
Now the story could be: a tree with a massive hook pulling up a sail, and at the bottom a giant shoe is kicking it over. Again, exaggerated, colourful, and unforgettable.
That’s the trick, once numbers become images, they’re no longer abstract. They’re stories, and stories stick.
Example 4: Languages
Let’s take the French word chien, which means “dog.”
If you just repeat chien, chien, chien, it won’t stick. The sound and meaning aren’t connected strongly enough.
So here’s how we do it:
First, connect the sound: chien → China.
Then connect the meaning: chien = dog.
Finally, anchor it in context: it’s a French word, so bring Paris into the scene.
Now build the story:
Picture a dog dressed in traditional Chinese clothing, but he’s sitting at a small café in Paris. He’s munching on a croissant while the Eiffel Tower looms in the background. Every time he takes a bite, people point and say, “Look at the chien! Look at the chien!”
To exaggerate it further, make the croissant comically huge, the dog slurping café au lait, and the accordion music in the background turning into a bark-rhythm beat.
Now you’ve got a layered story:
Dog = meaning
China = trigger sound link
Paris = French context
That combination locks the word into memory. Next time you see chien, the whole scene floods back.
The Brain Science Behind It
Why does this work? Because your brain is wired for survival, not for lists.
Thousands of years ago, remembering where the berries grew or which plants were poisonous wasn’t about memorising words. It was about connecting sights, sounds, smells, and emotions.
That’s why your memory is strongest when it’s tied to stories, movement, exaggeration, and feelings.
Rote repetition ignores this. Story-building embraces it.
The Power of Questions
One of the best ways to expand your circles is by asking questions:
Who else is involved?
Where is it happening?
When does it take place?
Why is it significant?
How does it feel, smell, or sound?
Each question forces your brain to add another layer, making the recall stronger.
When I used the John example earlier, notice how I kept asking questions:
Where was he playing? St Andrews.
How did he get there? Shane Warne invited him.
What happened when he swung? Fireworks exploded.
Those questions are like fuel. They keep feeding the story until it becomes too big to forget.
From Short-Term to Long-Term Memory
Here’s the best part: bigger stories don’t just make recall stronger in the moment. They also push memories into the long-term.
A weak story might fade in a day. A strong story can last weeks, months, even years.
That’s why you still remember random scenes from your childhood, because they were packed with emotion, exaggeration, and sensory detail.
The same principle applies to the things you want to learn today.
How to Practise
Here’s a simple way to build the skill:
Pick something small — a name, number, or word.
Create a first image.
Add exaggeration.
Add colour, sound, movement, and emotion.
Ask questions — who, where, why, how?
Try recalling it after an hour, then a day.
Do this regularly, and your brain starts doing it automatically. You’ll build stronger recall without even thinking about it.
Final Thoughts
If you want unstoppable memory, don’t settle for weak stories. Build bigger ones. Add more layers, more exaggeration, more senses.
Because memorization isn’t about working harder. It’s about working smarter, and building stories that your brain can’t forget.
And if this lesson got you thinking about your own memory, the best way to understand where you stand is to take the Memory Performance Assessment.
It’s a short reflection that highlights your strengths and pinpoints where you might be struggling. Many people find it eye-opening, and it often sparks the first step toward real, lasting improvement.
