Memory palace is a memorization technique based on the Loci’s method. It associates mental concepts with physical locations through visual memory.
It is a memorization strategy that benefits not only students, but anyone who wants to acquire a set of memory devices to help them hack their brain and improve their information retention.
If you are one of these people or need to understand how you can help your students enhance skills such as creativity, orientation, or visual memory, this article will interest you.
We will explain what the Loci method is and what techniques you can use to apply it. All this with examples that will help you understand its importance.
What is a memory palace?
A memory palace is an ancient Greek memorization technique that puts into practice Loci’s method, whereby specific symbols and concepts are associated with each space in an imaginary building with the intention of remembering them.
In other words, it is a technique that allows you to memorize fast concepts, words, or sequences by using your visual memory to imagine an environment (familiar or unfamiliar) and place visual representations of the information you want to remember in it.
The name of the method of Loci (MOL) comes from the Latin loci, meaning “places.” It is a mnemonic technique based on triggers that is attributed to Greek and Latin orators, and consists of associating the information you need to remember with specific points on a physical or imaginary route. In this way, to retrieve the information, the person mentally travels through those spaces in a specific order.
The memory palace is a modern and popular representation of the Loci method and one of the most effective ways to apply it. It has become particularly well known through series such as Sherlock Holmes and its famous phrase: “I’m going to my mind palace.”
It also appears in the book Moonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything, Joshua Foer’s bestseller that explains how he went from journalist to memory champion using these techniques.
Memory palace: origin and cognitive psychology
The memory palace is a mnemonic technique attributed to the ancient Greek poet Simonides of Ceos, but it was used and perfected by Roman orators such as Cicero and Quintilian, who used it to memorize long speeches.
In the Middle Ages, monks and scholars used this visual memorization method to remember large amounts of religious and academic information in what was known as the art of memory, a combination of disciplines such as philosophy, theology, and psychology.
The cognitive foundations of this technique are based on the premise that orderly organization is essential for a good memory. If that organization is linked to a physical space that can be traversed, and where each space has associated symbols and concepts, the result is improved.
More specifically, the cognitive principles that act in the construction and use of a memory palace are:
- Dual coding theory. In a memory palace, you combine visual and verbal memory. As psychology professor Allan Paivio discovered, the formation of visual images enhances the learning process by appealing to more of the brain’s coding systems.
- Spatial memory. Humans have a natural ability to remember places and spaces, so using the Loci technique facilitates the storage and retrieval of information associated with mental locations.
- Fragmentation. When complex information is divided into blocks of data, it becomes more accessible and easier to understand, as well as easier to retrieve.
- Elaborative coding. One way to remember something is to associate it with vivid and even strange or disproportionate images. This is because these unexpected images form solid memory traces. For this reason, as we will see later, you can improve the results of your mind palace with hyperbole and personification of objects.
How to build a memory palace step by step
The success of building a memory palace depends initially on knowing how to extract the relevant parts of the elements or information that you will later memorize by associating them with a space. The process is not complicated; it just requires some practice and time to assimilate the system.
To help you, we are going to share with you the steps to follow to build a mental palace, as well as some practical tips to make the task easier.
Step 1: Visualize a space or route
Start by visualizing a familiar space such as your home, your gym, or your workplace. Whatever place you choose, you should be able to navigate it effortlessly. It can also be a route or journey that you take regularly and know well.
As you gain practice, you can do this with imaginary or virtual places that you visualize for thematic information, for example.
If this is too difficult at first, you can use a static scene.
Step 2: Walk through the space
Next, mentally walk through the space until you feel comfortable in it. Go from room to room, enter and exit them, analyze each space, and record it in your mind. It is important to establish a starting point (this can be the front door) and always walk through the spaces in the same order.
Establishing a viewing order is strategic so that you don’t forget anything, especially when you have to remember sequences that must be recalled in a specific order, such as a mathematical formula, a phone number, a scientific process, or a list of words in alphabetical order.
Each point where you stop will become a memory station, and you will associate each station with specific information.
Step 3: Associate the information with each space
Now relate each element to a specific space or place in your memory palace. These associations are very important, so they must be meaningful and the place they occupy must serve as a clue.
You must transform each relationship between concepts and spaces into a striking mental image, and the more ridiculous, emotional, or colorful, the better.
For example, let’s say you need to remember what Louis Pasteur invented, and even his name. You can imagine a meadow with a shepherd and a child drinking a giant glass of milk. Visualizing strange, surreal, exaggerated, or humorous scenes helps your mind retain information, as we have already mentioned.
Here’s another example. Suppose you are going to memorize your shopping list and you have to buy tomatoes and apples. You can imagine the tomatoes dancing in the kitchen and the apples teasing them.
Keep in mind that furniture and decor play an important role and can act as memory hooks or triggers, that is, they will serve to associate elements, store information, act as clues, etc.
Step 4: Walk through the spaces several times
Once you have associated all the words and items you want to remember, walk through your memory palace several times until you are familiar with the layout.
Repetition allows you to fix the information in your mind much better and feel more and more comfortable with this technique.
Step 5: Keep your memory palace in shape
Like any building, a mental palace that is not taken care of can collapse. The best way to keep it in perfect condition is to return to it from time to time.
To ensure proper maintenance, you can schedule regular intervals, such as visiting your memory temple once a day, then once a week, once a month, and so on.
In addition, to fix information in the long term, you need to update it when necessary, keep it in order, and reinforce the images to make them more relevant to your mind.
A very effective trick is to create little stories that connect the places. The brain responds better to a narrative than to random facts, so giving meaning to your spaces with a good story will optimize the functioning of your palace.
How many memory palaces can you have?
You can build as many memory palaces as you need. For example, you can dedicate one building to each subject or block of information.
In addition, as we have mentioned, they can be based on real, imaginary, or virtual places. The important thing is that each construction has the meaning your mind needs to memorize information. So try spaceships, castles, ships, etc. You can even create mental cities and connect them to each other.
Just keep in mind that it’s important not to overload your spaces, so if one memory palace becomes too crowded, build another one.
Memory palace technique example
Want to try a mini memory palace to start practicing? We suggest you start with a simple shopping list containing the following items: milk, bread, apples, eggs, cheese, and pasta.
The first step is to choose the space and the route. In this example, use your house, as it is a familiar place that you know well.
Next, define a route: start at the front door, go into the hall, the living room, the kitchen, the bathroom, and your bedroom. You need to imagine yourself physically walking through your house in that order (or whatever order you prefer; this is just an example).
Now let’s create memory stations by associating each item on your shopping list with a room and a powerful or surprising image.
The result might look like this:
| Memory station | Associated product | Image to trigger visual memory |
| Front door | Milk | A big wave of milk coming out of the door |
| Hallway | Bread | A sofa made of giant slices of bread |
| Living room | Apples | Apples dancing all over the room |
| Kitchen | Eggs | Eggs cooking |
| Bathroom | Cheese | A bathtub filled with melted cheese |
| Bedroom | Pasta | A shower of spaghetti |
Tips for building an effective memory palace
Now that you know how to create your mental palace, take note of the following tips to make it a success:
- Create virtually empty spaces so that there are no stimuli to distract you.
- Don’t stick one station or locus to another. Leave a few meters between them.
- Mark each station with a symbol or special sign (a bright star, for example). This will help you create mental subgroups and better anchor the information in your mind.
- Differentiate the spaces; if they are too similar, it can be confusing when trying to remember them. You can use spaces of different colors or with a particular style of decoration.
- Light your spaces well so that there are no dark areas.
- Create unusual and striking mental images.
- Update or improve spaces that are less effective.
- Create a story that links the loci together to help you remember the information better.
- You can use Street View or an app you like to get inspiration and use real routes.
Does the memory palace really work?
Yes, building a memory palace is an effective mnemonic technique even for people with little training. For this reason, it has been used since ancient times to accurately recall events, remember great speeches, and all kinds of serial information.
In fact, various studies support its effectiveness. This is the case of Building a memory palace in a minute (Legge, Madan, Ng, & Caplan, 2012), in which researchers conclude that memory improves significantly when using this method.
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Memory palace benefits
The benefits of using the memory palace and the Loci method are numerous.
This method of anchoring memory to spaces has been used in different fields, including medicine, specifically in the treatment of memory loss.
The following list outlines its most relevant benefits:
- It enhances emotional and personal visualization by anchoring memories in places with a certain emotional significance.
- It combats memory loss by actively exercising memory.
- It improves sequential memory, which is really useful when you need to follow a specific structure in the presentation or retrieval of information in order to move forward.
- It does not require intensive training; in a short time, people can begin to familiarize themselves with the system and adapt it to their needs.
- It promotes the development of soft skills that are highly valued in today’s professional environment. Some examples are creativity to turn data into something memorable, concentration to be able to create relevant images, and verbal memory, as it is useful to create narratives associated with mental images.
- It helps to train spatial skills such as perception, mental rotation, orientation, perspective taking, etc. at the same time.
- Real and familiar environments can be used, but also virtual ones.
- It can be built in a few minutes with some practice, despite what it may seem at first.
Can anyone build a memory palace?
While it is true that some studies suggest that this technique is less effective in older adults, in principle, and provided there is no incapacitating cognitive impairment, anyone can use it to work on and develop their memory.
One of its strengths is that no prior training is needed to start building a memory palace and use it successfully, just knowing the steps to follow.
Alternative and complementary techniques of the memory palace
As you know, a classic memory palace is built in relation to a familiar space where the person stores and remembers information.
To enhance the process, we invite you to discover some of the alternatives and complementary techniques you can apply, such as the use of mnemonic rules or the incorporation of words with high imageability. Let’s start with the latter.
Prioritizing words with high imageability
Words with high imageability are those that refer to specific objects that are easily visualized because they evoke visual images in people, such as a dog or cat, tree, house, book, lamp, etc.
It also refers to combinations of statements such as melting ice cream, a flickering lamp, etc.
These types of words work better as memory anchors when compared to words with low imageability, such as freedom, love, or peace.
If you need to remember these types of concepts, it is advisable to relate them to statements with high imageability, such as a dove flying to represent peace.
Use of mnemonics
These types of rules help build visual pathways and facilitate the act of remembering, resulting in a kind of “brain hack.”
Here are some examples to help you understand how they can help you build your memory palace:
- Hyperbole. These are visual exaggerations that may even be ridiculous, but they help highlight information in your mind. For example, if you have to remember the word pen, imagining a huge pen on a table will help you.
- Emotional associations. Relating the memory to something important to you is another way to facilitate information retrieval. Imagine you have to remember the word “book.” If you relate it to a book that has had a significant impact on your life, or to your grandfather’s favorite book, you will improve the process.
- Personification and anthropomorphism. Giving objects and animals a human appearance is another way to fix concepts in your visual memory. It is easier to remember the condition of a car or a tap if you see the car as sick (it needs to be serviced) and the tap as crying (it is open), to give two basic examples.
- Visual acronyms. These are very useful when applying the Loci method. Suppose you need to remember the word “CAMP.” To do this, imagine: a cat sleeping in a shoe, a large anchor hanging from the ceiling, a mirror talking to you from the wall, and a huge pizza spinning on a record player. Here, as you can see, we have added hyperbole and personification to the visual acronyms.
Support in virtual environments
Studies such as the one carried out by University College London, Spatial Cognition in Virtual Environments: Spatial Cognition in Video Games (Anagnostopoulou-Politou, Katerina, and Kinda Al Sayed, 2016), or the research Virtual Navigation Tested on a Mobile App is Predictive of Real-World Wayfinding Navigation Performance (Coutrot et al., 2019) have used environments similar to video games to stimulate people’s cognitive navigation systems, with results as satisfactory as when real environments are used.
In addition to being accessible and adaptable, virtual environments are very useful for people with poor spatial imagination, who can benefit from the advantages of the Loci method thanks to these tools.
In any case, it can be a good resource for introducing students to the construction of their own memory palaces. This will allow them to understand how it works, as well as being objectively controllable in order to guide practice towards strategic educational objectives.
Spaced repetition
As an alternative technique to improve information retrieval, you can combine the Loci method with what is known as spaced repetition.
This is a strategy for working on long-term memory by performing spaced but systematic reviews of the data you want to memorize.
If you use them together, the result is fast and efficient memorization that is consolidated over time: you build a memory palace to memorize something quickly and visually, and then you use spaced review at optimal intervals to remember it in the long term.
Real-world applications and examples of memory palace
The benefits of applying this technique in education are undeniable, especially when the academic content to be memorized is complex, such as medical terms, laws, or psychological techniques.
It is also very effective in language acquisition. For example, you can dedicate a room in your memory palace to each semantic field of the vocabulary you need to learn.
It is equally useful for preparing presentations and speeches by placing each part in a specific mental room.
All this explains why great memory champions such as Dominic O’Brien and Lu Chao use the Loci method to memorize random words, lists of numbers, letters, or any other data in record time.
It is also a mnemonic technique with a relevance that goes beyond the educational field or traditional memory competitions.
For example, some researchers apply this technique in the treatment of people with depressive disorders. The aim is to help them feel more confident by storing and retrieving positive personal memories and experiences.
In this way, MOL has proven to be a sustainable tool for mood regulation, as it can be creatively and constructively adapted to everyday life and integrated into therapeutic treatments for improving mental health.
Is the memory palace right for you?
The best way we can answer this question is by inviting you to try the Loci method and build your own memory palace.
Based on the various studies we have consulted, we can conclude that MOL is not a technique exclusive to memory champions or students, but is actually useful for anyone seeking to improve their memory, organize their thoughts, or actively participate in their emotional regulation.
Students preparing for exams, professionals giving presentations, or anyone learning a new language can use this method to commit abstract content to memory or create sequenced information pathways.
As you have discovered in our presentation, it is a versatile tool that also adapts perfectly to technological environments thanks to virtual mind palaces and applications such as Memory Palace or Mind Palace.
These types of virtual tools, combined with a remote proctoring system, can be evaluated not only in terms of the accuracy of the memorized content, but also in relation to how the student navigates and accesses the information stored in their mental palace.
In this type of assessment, the proctoring plans we offer our clients at Smowltech ensure that there is no cheating and that the assessment is fair for everyone.
We invite you to request a free demo so we can show you each of the solutions we can offer you to innovate safely in your educational project.
