Set Up Reminders to Think of Tip-of-Your-Tongue Thoughts Later

The more you try to remember that tip-of-your-tongue thought, the more harm you're doing. Instead of obsessing, consider reader Nicholas Barry's lead and setting up reminders to yourself to think about it later.

As we've highlighted before, relaxed minds remember better, and when you're trying to think of something on the tip of your tongue and just can't seem to get it, not only are you probably tensing up—you're also making it worse. Take Nicholas' advice:

You know when some word or name or memory is just on the tip of your tongue, but you can't quite remember what it is you're trying to remember?

Many of you have probably experienced that later in the day, after you've stopped thinking about whatever you were trying to put your finger on, it will suddenly come to you. I think our minds just need to turn things like that over in our heads a bit to find the answer we're looking for.

So whenever that happens to me, I email myself a reminder to think about whatever it was I was trying to figure out, and then stop worrying about it. Often when I get around to looking at the email I sent, later in the day, I can immediately think of the answer!

Sounds about right. Got a method you prefer for tackling tip-of-your-tongue memory blocks? Let's hear it in the comments. Thanks Nicholas!