David Maister’s Passion, People and Principles

post # 118 — Monday, June 26, 2006 6:00am — a Managing, Client Relations, Careers post

Write it Down

When I was in college, and had to prepare for exams, I found that I could make things stick in my memory if I actually copied them out from the textbooks or otherwise wrote them down. If I didn't actually go through the manual task of writing things down, it was rare that I remembered them well.

I think there has been some recent research proving all this - I'm sure each generation of students rediscovers the principle at exam time.

So what's the lesson for the rest of us? Keep a journal! Keep a diary! Sit at your computer late at night or early in the morning and transcribe what people said you to that previous day.

Transcribing and recollecting the day's events will help you understand your experiences better - just like it used to help me understand my math or english studies. It forces you to slow down the mental processs and reflect on what you are writing or typing, not just pretend you understand it.

And people - clients, subordinates, colleagues, spouses - will be very flattered that you later remembered (and thought about) what they said.  They won't mind if referring to notes is what helped you do it - they will just be grateful and impressed that you can do it at all.