1. Look!

When you meet someone for the first time, there may be some facial or body characteristic that you notice first. If something doesn't get your attention right away, take a second to really look at the person.

What will you notice when you see this person again?

Examples:
• bright red hair
• unusual nose
• surprisingly skinny
• bad teeth or perfect teeth
• freckles, moles, birth marks, dimples
• receding hairline
• furry eyebrows
• unique accent
• body mods such as nose ring, ear rings, tattoos, spiked hair

I started with more extreme examples to make the point that you must find something memorable about the person's face, hair, or body. But, sometimes, they may not have an obviously noticeable characteristic.

Many people look the same. How many overweight, balding men wearing glasses are there? Obviously many.

But, if you really look, you'll find something that makes the person memorable.

Just trying to select a characteristic will force you to study the face. This will help you to recognize this person when you meet again.

And, the amazing thing about this step is that the process of studying someone's face will make them more memorable to you because you're remembering to remember.
Question: Should you choose clothing as the memorable characteristic?
Answer with a question: How long do you want to remember the person?
If you only want to remember the person for that day, then you may choose clothing as the striking characteristic.

Why would you only remember a person for the day, or for the time you spend at a social function?
Because not everyone is going to be a social or business prospect for you. But you may not know if someone is a prospect when you first meet them. So, you lock in their name so that when you visit with them more, later in the evening, you can determine if they're a potential client.
If you can't immediately see a striking facial or body characteristic of someone, then use their clothing. And when you visit with them again, say their name. Then use your next conversation to find a more permanent characteristic, if you need to.

Cautions:
Some characteristics can change, like hair color, eye glasses, and earrings. Also, if you first meet someone who is very tall, and you select that as the memorable characteristic, then you might not recognize the person sitting.

Going one level deeper (for extra credit and stronger imagery):
Make a story with the characteristic to make it more memorable.
For example:
• bright red hair  "like a fire burning up her face."
• unusual nose  "like a rocket blasting into the air."
• surprisingly skinny  "and might tip over with a slight breeze."
• bad teeth or perfect teeth  "so bright I have to wear sunglasses."
• freckles, moles, birth marks, or dimples  "so big they echo."
• receding hairline  "so far back his forehead looks like a ski slope."
• furry eyebrows  "like caterpillars."
• unique accent  "so twangy it sounds like a banjo."
• body mods such as nose ring, ear rings, tattoos, or spiked hair  "so sharp he could use it as a letter opener."

These private thoughts will help you recall the person, and aren't intended to be insults, just memory cues.

"But Bob, this sounds like a lot of thinking to do very quickly!"
Yes. It is active looking. And you will get better and faster at it, if you practice it.

Next week: Step 2: Listen!

Get INFO about the MAGIC of MEMORY at MemoryMagic.info."