The Key to Remembering Something is to Draw It

The next time you need to remember something, try drawing a picture of it. Researchers at the University of Waterloo in Canada recently wanted to figure out the best way to enhance your memory.

They had one group of people write certain words over and over again, like "apple" or "chair." Then they had a second group draw them instead. Neither group were told to remember the words.

Researchers then made them all listen to different musical notes. Which didn't have anything to do with it, the music was just a distraction.

Both groups were told to write down as many words from the list as they could remember. The group who drew them remembered more than twice as many.

The best part? It doesn't matter how well you draw. It even works for people who still draw like five-year-olds, which is probably most of us.

So if you want to remember to pick up your dry cleaning, try drawing a picture of a shirt or the building where the dry cleaner is.