HOW TO REMEMBER
HOW TO APPLY THE DOMINIC SYSTEM
Once you have memorized the cast, you have finished the hardest part of this book. They are the key to remembering telephone numbers, credit cards, addresses, any number you want. They even hold the key to memorizing the entire twentieth-century calendar.
HOW TO MEMORIZE TWO-DIGIT NUMBERS
Let's assume that you want to memorize the number of somebody's house. A friend of yours lives at number 74, but you are always knocking at 64 and 84. Translated into letters, 74 becomes GD, the French actor Gerard Depardieu. Imagine him sticking his sword through the letter box of your friend's house. (In all these examples, I am using well-known people from the list.)
Location is important. Always picture your person at the house you want to remember. You must also ensure that he or she is doing their appropriate action. This helps to link them to their location.
Let's assume another friend of yours lives at number. 79; 79 becomes the Egyptian ex-president Gamal Nasser (7 = G; 9 = N). Imagine him tying his camel up outside your friend's house.
Perhaps you want to remember the time trains leave your local station. If it is 8 minutes past the hour, imagine Oliver Hardy (0 = O, 8 = H) standing on the platform, turning around with a plank on his shoulder, sending passengers flying in all directions.
HOW TO MEMORIZE THREE-DIGIT NUMBERS
You are already equipped to remember three-digit numbers. All you have to do is break the number down into a pair of digits and a single digit. For example, 644 becomes 64 - 4. Translate the pair into a person: Sharron Davies (6 = S; 4 = D). And the single digit into a number shape: sailing boat (4). Combine the two and you have an image of Sharron Davies swimming alongside a sailing boat, trying to keep up. Now place this at a relevant location.
If you want to remember the number of a bus, the 295 for example, break it down into 29—5. This gives you an image of Barry Norman and a curtain hook. I would imagine him drawing curtains in a bus (parked at the bus stop) and showing a film.
HOW TO MEMORIZE TELEPHONE NUMBERS
Most telephone numbers in Britain now comprize ten digits. You have already learnt how to memorize two digits by creating an image of one person. It fol-
lows that if you want to remember four digits, you have to visualize two people.
But this would only make life half as easy. To memorize someone's telephone number, for example, you would have to visualize five people. Far too much like hard work!
I have stressed throughout this chapter how important it is to give each person an action: Eddie 'the Eagle' is always skiing; Stephane Grappelli is never without his violin. Actions are the key to remembering any number over three digits; they halve the amount of work you have to do.
FOUR, SIX, AND EIGHT DIGITS
When you see the number 2914, the first stage is to break it down into 29 - 14, which translates into Barry Norman, and Arthur Daley. But there is no need to visualize them both. Use the first two digits to give you a person, the second two digits to give you an action.
Then combine them to create one image of Barry Norman selling second hand cars. Arthur is nowhere to be seen. You are interested only in his action, which is selling cars.
29...14 Barry Norman...selling cars (person...action)
Similarly, if the number was 1429, you would visualize Arthur operating a film camera. Barry Norman would be out of shot completely. His spirit lives on, though, in the action of filming.
The first two digits always refer to the person, the second two digits to an action.
14...29 Arthur Daley...filming (person...action)
All you are doing is alternating between person and action to create a complex image.
COMPLEX IMAGES
Complex images are an efficient way to memorize longer numbers; they con- dense them into a manageable size. If you have to remember a six-digit num- ber, 142968 for example, break it down into 14- 29 - 68, and then visualize Arthur Daley filming Sherlock Holmes (68 = SH = Sherlock Holmes.) I am simply continuing the process of alternating between person and action.
14...29...68
Arthur Daley... filming...Sherlock Holmes person...action...person
Taking the example a stage further, let's suppose you have to memorize 14296896. Break it down into 14-29-68-96. Then imagine Arthur Daley filming Sherlock Holmes playing chess (96 = NS = Nigel Short, the chess player).
14...29...68...96
Arthur Daley...filming...Sherlock Holmes...playing chess person...action...person...action
FIVE, SEVEN, AND NINE DIGITS
These numbers work in exactly the same way, except that you have to incor- porate a number shape into your complex image to remind you of the single digit. Take 14296, for example. Break this down into 14-29-6. Then imagine Arthur Daley filming an elephant.
14...29...6
Arthur Daley...filming...elephant's trunk person...action...number shape
TELEPHONE NUMBERS
We now come to phone numbers themselves. Take the phone number 0122 524593, an ordinary ten-digit number. Apply exactly the same principles as before.
The first stage is to break this number down into pairs of digits. 01 - 22 -52 - 45 - 93. And then translate them into letters: OA - BB - EB - DE -NC. We are then reminded of five images of people and their actions:
Ossie Ardiles (playing football) Betty Boothroyd (banging, order!) Eric Bristow (playing darts) Duke Ellington (playing piano) Nadia Comaneci (balancing on a beam)
We combine these people, alternating between person and action, to give us one complex image:
Ossie Ardiles is banging and shouting 'Order!' at an unamused Eric Bristow, who is playing the piano, accompanying one of Nadia Comaneci's delicate routines.
Location is, as ever, essential when remembering phone numbers. It is no good memorizing the number in isolation. It belongs to someone and we must connect the above image to that person. In most cases, the simplest way of doing this is by setting the scene at the house or office of the person whose number we are trying to recall. I remember the number of the person who delivers our logs, for example, by setting the corresponding scene outside his house.
Or take the phone number 0606 922755. Broken down into pairs, the number translates into the following letters: OS - OS - NB - BG - EE.
This gives us the following persons and actions: Omar Sharif (playing backgammon) Omar Sharif (playing backgammon) Nigel Benn (boxing)
Bob Geldof (knighting)
Eddie 'the Eagle' Edwards (skiing)
We combine these to form a complex image at a relevant location, alternating between person and action:
Omar Sharif playing backgammon with Nigel Benn, who is being knighted by Eddie 'the Eagle' Edwards.
I have outlined the process in detail. With practice, however, you will automat- ically see images of persons and actions when confronted with a number. I do it automatically now. Life becomes so much easier when you don't have to write down things such as phone numbers.