Making yourself memorable

May 25, 2010
Reading time: 150 seconds

What's the point of people liking you and enjoying your company if they don't remember you? Here's a little story to illustrate my point.

Jill and Robin, two middle-aged ladies, are sitting across from each other at a table in a French restaurant. They’re halfway through lunch when several people are shown to a table nearby. A young woman in the group recognizes Jill and lets out a gasp of delight. She was a student in one of Jill’s classes several years ago. After many hugs and exclamations, Jill turns to her lunch companion: “Robin, this is Edwina. She was one of my most wonderful students back in my days in Stratford. I’ll never forget—she had these rituals for organizing herself and her work. Everything had its own special place and order at her desk. Sometimes she drove me crazy, but it always used to fascinate me how meticulous she was.

”“Nice to meet you,” Robin says, taking Edwina’s hand.

“So tell me, Edwina, what are you doing these days?” Jill asks.

Edwina proceeds to tell Jill about her work as associate producer on a local TV show, and then adds:

“There are quite a few of us there from school. Do you remember Suzanne Sparks?”“No, I’m sorry, I can’t quite picture her,” Jill says, searching about with her eyes.

“You know, the one who always came to class in those crazy leather vests.”

"Oh yes, of course.” Jill turns to Robin, including her in the picture. “Suzanne was a terrific painter. I believe she spoke Spanish and German, too. Does she still have that mop of spiky red hair?” she asks, turning back to Edwina.

“No. She’s long and blond now, and she’s our director of programming. And what about Toni?” Edwina continues. “She’s at the station, too.”

“Now, which one was Toni?” Jill asks.

“Toni March. She was always really friendly. Lived out in Malton.” When Jill gives no sign of recognition, Edwina says: “She was such a hard worker.”

“Sorry, dear, I can’t quite place Toni. Who else?”

“Greg Cuddy. He’s our sales manager.”

“No! Not Greg with the nose ring?” Jill shakes her head in disbelief. “Greg Cuddy was such a nervous young man. He drove his mother’s pickup truck everywhere. If memory serves me correctly, he ran a train-spotting site on the Internet. He published a newsletter and had people from . . .”

The point of this story is that it’s easy for Jill to recall her former students when her memory is triggered by an image. People are more likely to be remembered if they have some kind of handle—some kind of device that makes them stand out from the crowd.

That’s it. Until next time stay well and count your blessings