Remembering things in the long-term can be tricky. Yet, especially in today’s busy times, increasing deadline-related projects and growing to-do lists, much of the information we take-in needs to be “stored” for later use or application.

It is completely normal for memories of things learned to be clearest immediately after learning them. But, as time goes on, we tend to forget more and more of the information, finally being able to recall only small parts of what we so-diligently learned.

This can be particularly destructive in the workplace, making it important to find a reliable tool that keeps information “fresh” and saves you valuable time and effort by not requiring “relearning.”

Surprisingly, it may be as simple as reviewing the knowledge you need absorb and apply later more frequently, which enables you to keep it fresh and alive in your mind. This makes it easy to recall when you need it with a minimum of effort.

The first step to successfully doing this is to spend a few minutes reviewing material immediately after the learning session. This helps you to:

• Confirm that you understand the material;
• Reduce the time needed to relearn information when you need it; and
• Improve the quality of future learning, by building on a well-remembered foundation. This helps your mind to make connections and linkages that it would not otherwise make.

A good way of carrying out this review is to rewrite your notes. You can do this effectively by putting the information learned into a Mind Map (see http://www.mindtools.com/pages/article/newISS_01.htm).

After this, reviewing information should be relatively easy and need not take long. Carry out reviews at the following times:

• After one day
• After one week
• After one month
• After four months

Review the topic by taking a few minutes to jot down everything you can remember about the subject, and compare this with your notes. As you may suspect, if you review information often, it should stay fresh in your mind, and will be easily accessible when you need it.

For more information on information skills, how to retain knowledge, even how to study more effectively, go to http://www.mindtools.com/pages/main/newMN_ISS.htm.