How to keep a name for longer than three seconds

You didn't forget the name. You never stored it. Here's the four-step fix for your next introduction.

Someone says their name. You say yours. Three seconds later it's gone, and now you're stuck calling them "mate" for the next ten years.

Here's the thing: you usually didn't forget it. You were busy thinking about what to say next, so the name never went in at all.

This week's trip

Next time you meet someone, run these four steps:

Hear it. Stop planning your reply. Listen for the name and nothing else.
Say it. "Good to meet you, Priya." Saying it once makes you actually process it.
Picture it. Turn the name into something you can see. Priya sounds like pria, a prize. Baker is easy. Oliver is an olive. It doesn't need to be clever, only visible.
Stick it on their face. Pick one thing you notice, like big glasses or curly hair, and join the picture to it. A gold prize trophy is balanced on Priya's glasses.

The fourth step does most of the work. Next time you see that face, the glasses bring back the trophy, and the trophy brings back the name.

Practice without the pressure

You don't need a party for this. Open a news site, look at five faces with names, and do steps three and four on each one. Close the page, wait a minute, then come back with the names covered.

It'll feel slow the first few times. It gets quicker, and the pictures start arriving on their own.

Try it once this week, on one real person. One name you keep is worth more than ten tips you read.