
Have you ever lost your keys, wallet, phone, or other important item? Have you ever walked into a room only to entirely forget why you went there in the first place? What about reading a phone number only to forget it by the time you go to dial it? Most -if not all- of us human beings have had those kinds of experiences. Some of us humans with learning disabilities, ADHD, brain injuries, or other assortments of challenges experience this with almost predictable regularity. When we lose sight of information we were trying to work with, we are experiencing challenges with working memory.
What is working memory & why is it important?
Working memory is what we use to hold small amounts of information for immediate use, usually to complete a task. The scientific community hasn’t quite settled on the range of items we can hold onto while completing a task, but 1-4 items are common conclusions. From anecdotal evidence, it’s a fair assumption that that number may fluctuate a bit from person to person, or from moment to moment for any one person.
Working memory is inherently functional. Without it, we’d store the same information and never be able to access it, rendering that information useless. Perhaps one of the most common uses of working memory is to access the “how-to” memories we have learned about. In order to know how to drive a car, complete work, cook, clean, or use any technology, after the initial learning phase, every subsequent time we use that information, it is being brought out of long-term storage and into working memory to be used or manipulated as needed to get the job done! Therefore it is important for our careers, school, the learning process itself, hobbies, cooking, and connecting with others - the list goes on, but those are some of the prominent places in which we use it on a daily basis.
How is working memory different from short and long term memory?: The Library Metaphor
If you imagine a library, we can envision how memory works from a functional perspective. The stacks of books are like long-term memory. There’s tons of information neatly put away for later use. Some of our memories are archived in dusty long-neglected corners - like long term memories we rarely use but can still be plucked out and recalled when we’re reminiscing with friends, exclaiming “OH! I remember that now! Didn’t we go do this after too?” Some of our long term memories live in our favorites section - memories we frequently go back to read and re-read at our leisure.

Then there are the short term memories - very recent memories that are held for a very brief amount of time, a few minutes at most. Within a library setting, short term memories are on the cart librarians use to put away recently returned books. Those short term memories are sorted into those which will be kept and filed into long-term storage in that stacks or sorted into the discard pile if the information contained is no longer relevant. Unlike libraries, which (I assume) rarely dispose of books, we regularly discard unimportant and unhelpful memories. This is a good thing! We don’t need to remember every little detail of every little thing. Our libraries only have so much precious space, and only that which is deemed informative, helpful, or emotionally potent is held onto.
We also have working memories which are like those open books spread around a studying scholar. They’re being actively used to complete some task, whether that’s write a dissertation, dial a phone number, solve a problem, or track the 5 items down that you need before you leave as you walk through several rooms. These books or memories can be sourced from either short term memories [like a phone number or verification code; off of the librarian’s cart] or from long term memories [like a friend’s dietary restrictions when cooking for them; from the stacks]. You can even view the hacks mentioned below as study hacks used by the scholar, which in this case, is you.
When someone is experiencing difficulties with working memory, it can be quite frustrating. It may be that there are too many books spread out that it gets confusing: The scholar can’t remember where they put that one dang book in the haphazard piles of books on the table. Similarly, if we try to hold too many items in our working memory, we will forget something, it’s inevitable. For those with working memory deficits, it’s even more difficult to complete daily tasks when you have to put in extra effort just to hold onto the relevant information. In the library, it can seem like your table isn’t level and everything is sliding around, falling to the floor, and generally not staying where you put it. For those who’s working memory challenges are more intense, it can feel like all the books are on bungee cords, snapping them away from your work space the moment you let go - now you have to re-retrieve the book and hope you remember where you got it from in the first place! If you need a few pieces of information from different places, you also need extra strength to hold onto each of them and resist the bungee cord’s pull. If it sounds exhausting and frustrating… that’s because it is.

“Hacks” aka Strategies
Before delving too far into hacks and strategies for improving working memory function, it’s important to take note of what our scientists are telling us! Working memory research findings haven’t quite come to an agreement on the specifics about how many chunks of information we can have on our worktables, how long they stay there, or the best methods of ‘training’ our working memory. However, from what the scientific evidence has produced in combination with anecdotal evidence [people’s lived experiences], we know that training is possible and we know that some techniques provide functional improvements and produce a better experience in daily life. These are what I’ll share below!:
Encode information
Working memory uses chunks or packets of information to operate. If there are too many packets, it can be hard to hold onto all of them, so intentionally combining bits and pieces is one way to reduce the number of packets. This is often useful for strings of numbers or unrelated words.
For example, let’s say you need to dial the number 596-497-3658. You have options about how to remember it:
Five, nine, six, four, nine, seven, three, six, five, eight. That’s nine separate packets of information, and probably hard to recall in a few minutes from now.
Fifty-nine, sixty-four, seventy-three, sixty-five, eight. Now you have five packets!
Five-hundred-ninety-six, four-hundred-ninety-seven, thirty-six, fifty-eight, may be easier to recall as it flows with how we usually write them down, and is now 4 packets of information.
When encoding, you can imagine that library table. When we encode information, we bind loose leaves of paper into little books that we can freely read. The table becomes more organized and the packets are easier to move about in useful ways!
Take another example - using a random word generator, I got the following words: prize, plan, foot, brilliance, course, hunter. Remembering these six random words in 5, 10, or even 20 minutes from now would be challenging…unless I give them meaning! In this case, I might imagine a story about a dancer [aka foot] who wishes to win a tournament competition [aka prize]. So they come up with a brilliant [aka brilliance] [plan] or [course] of action involving hunting [hunter] down the competition to get in their heads before performing. Suddenly, those six unrelated words are related and therefore bound into fewer packets of information. In the library, this is like student study hacks with silly anagrams - taking hard-to-remember information and giving a context that is more memorable.
Simplify Information
On the other end of the spectrum is simplification. For complex tasks, there are steps and sub-steps which need to be completed for the overall task to be achieved successfully. As mentioned previously, anything that requires us to “know how-to…” is going to involve working memory: What the steps are, how to complete each step, and how to troubleshoot. All of this activates working memory and represents a group of packets of information, especially while we’re learning how to complete that task! To simplify the process, we focus on one step at a time. We do this for children regularly, and there is no shame in doing this as an adult. Identifying the next step and only the next step reduces those feelings of overwhelm, increases focus, and increases the chance of the task being completed well. Once the process is learned, it’s easy to slip into writing it off as a single task, as easy, or simple: but until that time, simplification may be a helpful strategy!
Not sure how to simplify it? Imagine explaining the nuances of what you’re doing to a young child or new trainee, someone far from detail-oriented. Break the task down until you don’t need to remember more than 4 pieces of information. That is a single step.
In the library, this is like taking notes on a chapter excerpt so you can focus on it and it alone until you’re ready for the next section or chapter. Textbook chapters are especially helpful in this metaphor because they have a narrower focus than the whole book but are still information laden. You can only read and comprehend one chapter at a time and yet you still need all the chapters to have read the whole book.
Repetition & Routines
Repetition and routines are a spin on encoding information. Taking advantage of the learning process, we learn to associate individual steps: Like binding loose leaves of paper into a chapter and then into a full book. As these individual steps are learned, they are associated with those before and after them until the many small steps of, say, doing laundry, are bound into a single book that you re-read or repeat whenever the job is called for.
Routines are like associations between books, perhaps several in the same series as a continuation of “what to do next”. Before bed, you may first read the book “drink water”, then “brush teeth”, “wash face”, “use bathroom and wash hands”, “pajamas”, and “get cozy”. They are all part of the “bedtime routine series”.
Repetition and routines are helpful for working memory because the associations help automate daily processes so it takes less mental effort to complete the task(s): A.k.a You no longer need to dig out dusty books from neglected corners of the stack, but rather whole series get shifted into the favorites section of the stacks for easy and quick access.
Cueing
For those with working memory challenges, cuing can be an effective means of reducing the mental effort it takes to recall important information. Cues take many forms: post-it notes, alarms [especially with labels], checklists in useful locations, conversation or reminders from others, bodily sensations, items strategically left in your line of sight or even in your way, agendas, etc. Essentially, anything that triggers a memory is a cue. For example, you’re out of toilet paper upstairs. Placing the paper at the bottom of the stairs -getting in your way- will help get the job done next time you go upstairs. Alternatively, you have a tendency to forget your wallet in the mornings, but you can’t go very far without your car keys. Placing them side-by-side may reduce how often you forget your wallet.
Most of us naturally cue ourselves into completing the million little tasks we have to do on a daily basis. For those with working memory challenges, sometimes one or two cues aren’t sufficient to drag memories out of long term storage and into our working memory, especially when they’re more subtle in nature. Is there anything you tend to forget? Is there any way to cue yourself more regularly?
We witness this process of cueing and remembering when we reminisce: When we bounce somewhat-related stories back and forth! We can also see a challenge when one person remembers and the other person -who was there- doesn’t initially recall the story. The person who remembers will get into details about what the day was like, what happened before and after, and provide whatever context cues they can until hopefully the forgetting person suddenly remembers it and offers up other relevant details, proving they are remembering the same thing accurately.
A nice bonus to regular cueing is that it speeds up the recall process by bringing the relevant books closer to the part of the library we visit frequently. Neurologically speaking, it literally speeds up the neural connection to the story by making the path more efficient.
Reduce Distractions
Working memory is prone to interference. Distractions replace what is on our work table with something else and requires us to re-find the initial item all over again. Therefore, anything we can do to reduce distractions and increase focus [maybe through environmental changes], can increase how effectively we’re using our working memory.
In the library, this may look like removing nic-nacs from the table top, asking friends to wait a moment until you can finish your tasks, or making sure you have water nearby so you’re less tempted to leave your desk to address the distraction of thirst.
Exercise
Exercise is an undeniably healthy activity. You are likely very aware of the physical health benefits it can provide: Heart health, visceral fat reduction, muscle tone, and more! Yet the un-sung benefit of physical fitness is improvements in working memory. Cardiovascular exercise [those which get your heart pumping] is frequently pointed to in the scientific literature on improving working memory. There is also some evidence for bilateral exercises [those which require movement on both sides of the body, i.e. lifting a bar or balancing] as a means for improving working memory as well. I’ve included three links [one google search and 2 articles] at the end of this article for the curious reader.
In the library, think of exercise as making sure your scholar has good mobility - that they can walk with ease about the stacks. The quicker they are on their feet and the clearer the paths, the quicker and more efficiently they can retrieve relevant books, and the sooner the task gets done!
Export, Outsource, Externalize
When all else fails, recording the information elsewhere and putting it somewhere easily or regularly accessed is a valid strategy for working memory challenges! Lists, notes, reminders, alarms - these are ways of taking a task’s steps and literally putting them outside of your own body and brain. We touched on these in the section on cues. There is some definite overlap. It’s also a means of simplification: Putting steps 2-8 on paper allows you to focus on the how-to part of step 1 instead of overwhelming your workspace with what the steps are. Alternatively, it may allow you to skip intentionally encoding a verification or phone number. You can record it, bring it where it needs to go, and then use it. Think of externalizing as a means of expanding your workspace, spreading out the clutter into organized sections of “actively using” and “up next”.
Applying this in your own life
My hope is that this article provides enough information and a clear enough metaphor that you, dear reader, can take these words and apply them as you see fit. I certainly encourage you to do so. More than that, I hope you take them and play with the application! Customize these strategies to suit your own unique needs.
However, I also recognize that the ‘hacks’ above are not expressed in great detail, so if you find you are struggling to apply them in a way that works for you, please reach out to a psychotherapist or counselor.
Professionally, I work with motivation, memory, and behavioral changes with many of my clients. I have found that creating a custom toolbox of strategies that effect long-lasting beneficial change takes time, some motivation, a willingness for trial and error, and some emotional regulation skills to help deal with frustration. A guiding hand and place to talk about behavioral changes in detail can help clarify and possibly speed up the process of closing the gap between where you are and where you want to be. If this sounds interesting to you, I invite you to reach out using the contact or services sections of this website!
Links:
Google scholar search: https://scholar.google.ca/scholar?hl=en&as_sdt=0%2C5&q=working+memory+cardiovascular+exercise&oq=working+memory+cardiov
A 2013 meta-analysis of cardiovascular exercise on memory:
A 2016 study on exercise and working memory in children: https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Henning-Budde/publication/288629976_Effects_of_motor_vs_cardiovascular_exercise_training_on_children's_working_memory/links/57755b0e08ae1b18a7dfde98/Effects-of-motor-vs-cardiovascular-exercise-training-on-childrens-working-memory.pdf
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