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How to remember birthdays
Memory is our best friend and can be our worst enemy.
No matter how hard we try to remember, or how hard we try to forget, it always turns out the mind has a mind of its own. From false eyewitness testimony to losing a wallet, the shortcomings of memory are painfully obvious. And even the memories we do keep are often tainted by time, and by nostalgia.
Absentmindedness or benign forgetfulness is something all busy people can relate to. Sometimes we forget things because we're overloaded with work and family concerns, stressed or overtired. Ask anyone who works at a computer all day if they have ever forgotten to add an attachment to an email! Sometimes we forget appointments, birthdays or the name of someone we've known for a while.
You sit at the kitchen table enjoying a cup of coffee when a rush of panic shoots through your body. You have forgotten your sister's birthday. So you rack your brain for excuses; your daughter is sick, work is crazy, you forgot the postage and her card was returned.
Birthdays offer a particular problem. It can be more than a little bit difficult to remember birthdays. Even if you have everyone's birthday listed in a book or on your computer, it can still be easy for someone's special day to skip past before you realize it. It is so easy to end up cursing yourself when consulting your birthday list and finding out how many friends birthdays you have forgotten. It can be a constant battle; and if you have this problem, you are certainly not alone.
Here are several tips to help ward off forgetfulness:
Reduce stress
Stress can affect parts of the brain that process memory. Reduce stress, and you may find yourself remembering more. If you are under a lot of stress, take time to relax; buy a relaxation tape or book if you need ideas about how to decrease stress.
Keep active
Keep mentally active by pursuing hobbies and interests that are intellectually challenging (such as playing bridge or chess, taking courses, doing crossword puzzles, or playing a musical instrument).
Get good sleep
Fatigue can adversely affect your memory. Get enough sleep every night to combat overall forgetfulness.
Mark the date
At the start of the year, go through your calendar and fill in all important dates. Hang the calendar in a prominent place at work or in your home. Then check it weekly.
Try a software solution
Download a software reminder program to help jog your memory. These applications live on your computer and will remind you when important dates are coming.
As well as implementing the above strategies to reduce your level of forgetfulness as a whole, try a number of different methods for reminding yourself of specific events like birthdays; like putting sticky notes on the computer monitor, or placing a small piece of tape on your watch. The most effective tactic for many however, is as mentioned in the last point in the list above; the software solution. There is a software program called Info Manager at www.portawhiz.com. It's a simple but very effective program specifically written for people who need help to orgainze their information; and who struggle to remember important dates such as birthdays.
The program enables you to store information such as passwords, ideas, and important dates such as birthdays, and to keep that information on your Pocket PC or desktop so that it is only available to you. The fact that the program works on the PocketPC means that you have access to this information no matter where you are, and that you are no longer reliant on my computer.
The best bit is that you can set reminders for any day of the year. This means that you can store the date of someones birthday on the program, and then, on that date, a box will pop up on your screen as a reminder. So you don't have to think about it at all any more! You can plug in all the important birthdays, and then when you log into the program in the morning you are instantly notified if it is a day when you need to make a phone call, send a present etc.
PortaWhiz Info Manager will take away one little burden from your life.
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No matter how hard we try to remember, or how hard we try to forget, it always turns out the mind has a mind of its own. From false eyewitness testimony to losing a wallet, the shortcomings of memory are painfully obvious. And even the memories we do keep are often tainted by time, and by nostalgia.
Absentmindedness or benign forgetfulness is something all busy people can relate to. Sometimes we forget things because we're overloaded with work and family concerns, stressed or overtired. Ask anyone who works at a computer all day if they have ever forgotten to add an attachment to an email! Sometimes we forget appointments, birthdays or the name of someone we've known for a while.
You sit at the kitchen table enjoying a cup of coffee when a rush of panic shoots through your body. You have forgotten your sister's birthday. So you rack your brain for excuses; your daughter is sick, work is crazy, you forgot the postage and her card was returned.
Birthdays offer a particular problem. It can be more than a little bit difficult to remember birthdays. Even if you have everyone's birthday listed in a book or on your computer, it can still be easy for someone's special day to skip past before you realize it. It is so easy to end up cursing yourself when consulting your birthday list and finding out how many friends birthdays you have forgotten. It can be a constant battle; and if you have this problem, you are certainly not alone.
Here are several tips to help ward off forgetfulness:
Reduce stress
Stress can affect parts of the brain that process memory. Reduce stress, and you may find yourself remembering more. If you are under a lot of stress, take time to relax; buy a relaxation tape or book if you need ideas about how to decrease stress.
Keep active
Keep mentally active by pursuing hobbies and interests that are intellectually challenging (such as playing bridge or chess, taking courses, doing crossword puzzles, or playing a musical instrument).
Get good sleep
Fatigue can adversely affect your memory. Get enough sleep every night to combat overall forgetfulness.
Mark the date
At the start of the year, go through your calendar and fill in all important dates. Hang the calendar in a prominent place at work or in your home. Then check it weekly.
Try a software solution
Download a software reminder program to help jog your memory. These applications live on your computer and will remind you when important dates are coming.
As well as implementing the above strategies to reduce your level of forgetfulness as a whole, try a number of different methods for reminding yourself of specific events like birthdays; like putting sticky notes on the computer monitor, or placing a small piece of tape on your watch. The most effective tactic for many however, is as mentioned in the last point in the list above; the software solution. There is a software program called Info Manager at www.portawhiz.com. It's a simple but very effective program specifically written for people who need help to orgainze their information; and who struggle to remember important dates such as birthdays.
The program enables you to store information such as passwords, ideas, and important dates such as birthdays, and to keep that information on your Pocket PC or desktop so that it is only available to you. The fact that the program works on the PocketPC means that you have access to this information no matter where you are, and that you are no longer reliant on my computer.
The best bit is that you can set reminders for any day of the year. This means that you can store the date of someones birthday on the program, and then, on that date, a box will pop up on your screen as a reminder. So you don't have to think about it at all any more! You can plug in all the important birthdays, and then when you log into the program in the morning you are instantly notified if it is a day when you need to make a phone call, send a present etc.
PortaWhiz Info Manager will take away one little burden from your life.
Jonathan Stromberg
Read more articles