Memories are made of this?
Four people go to see something. Have an experience.
But each one’s memory of that experience will be different.
It’s scientifically and logically true. Yet we seem to think that everyone is experiencing the world and making memories the same way as us. They’re not.
Here’s why.
In most situations, there are about 11 million stimuli per second outside us to be processed by our brains. Sights, sounds, light, darkness, temperature, weather, emotions, there is a lot going on.
What happens is that your brain filters these stimuli. It has to in order to make sense of the world.
The filters and how they work are generally different for every person.
Most of us can only process five to seven (give or take plus or minus two) stimuli at once.
Even then, some of those stimuli will more closely match our way of thinking and processing information, so will be retained better than others.
One of the basic filter sets is through our senses, every one of us is stronger in one or two of these:
Visual - These people like to look good, their surroundings are important to them, and they notice colours, faces, how people are dressed, decor, and views. They often think in pictures. They are the people to go to when you need to decide what colour to paint a room or visually notice when something is out of place. They could tell you more accurately than most what looks good on you.
Audible (tonal) - These people take in sounds very strongly. They can tune a radio with ease, and love music. They are annoyed by people with shrill voices, or sudden loud sounds. They listen to not only what you say, but the tone in which you say it. They remember theme tunes, they will flinch at a musician playing the wrong note. They can tell you how you sound to others. They can re-wind conversations in their mind, so accurate at remembering what was said.
Kinaesthetic - The feelers of the world, sensitive and in touch with their emotions. They’ll squirm in itchy clothing or rough fabrics. They love physical comfort and touch. They prefer to learn new skills by doing things, they’re the ones that can master muscle memory. If they tell you they have a ‘gut feel’ about something, listen. They are highly attuned in this way. They often take in information while they are moving around, they’ll probably walk around in meetings, or feel the need to stand, especially if the seating is uncomfortable. Often they are highly empathetic and great people people.
Olfactory - Those with an acute sense of smell. They will be over-stimulated in perfume stores. They will be very fussy about scented products. They’ll notice the smell of autumn leaves, smoke, or someone’s natural scent and remember it exactly years later. A scent can easily trigger a memory. The top perfume makers exceed in this sense. An olfactory ability is usually combined with an attunement with one of the key mental processing senses visual, audible, and kinaesthetic.
Gustatory - The world’s gourmets or the fussiest eaters. Food manufacturers employ ‘super-tasters’ to test new recipes, they can spot layers of flavour or a subtle ingredient, they can be wine connoisseurs and with training can tell you by taste exactly where a fine wine was made. These people often make exceptional chefs and cooks. Again, these natural gourmands have an affiliation with one of the key mental processing senses, visual (eating with their eyes), audible or kinaesthetic.
Audio-Digitals - a relatively newly discovered group, these people are not born this way but become this way over time. Once rare, they are now becoming more common, but still only makeup about 10% of the population. These are your logical people, great at pattern spotting, and able to retain quite detailed and complex information. These geeks of the world are often found in the tech sector. They have a unique type of modern intelligence.
