The 4th vital key in effective memorization is the hardest for most people.
Record and listen.
We “hear” and absorb things differently when we’re listening versus when we’re speaking. This also strengthens aural pattern recognition, which, again, is like muscle memory for our ears. The reason it’s the hardest key for most people is we hate the sound of our own voice.
When I work with people using recordings, inevitably their first comment is, “Is that how I really sound?” It may sound like a silly question, when, in fact, it makes total sense. Unfortunately, our ears are located in our head, which is its own sound reverberation system. The vibrations of our voices resonate in the bones of our head and, to our ears, alter the true sound of our voices—to us.
Therefore, when we are separated from the sound source and we hear for the first time “outside of ourselves”, our own voices sound different to us. Most people think they sound more tinny or nasally than they imagine. But do it enough and you soon get used to it. When you take your mind off how you sound you will think more about what you’re saying.
