Network your way to a Better Memory

No matter what you are doing, whether it is shopping for groceries, getting your nails done, sitting at the park with your children, or attending a networking gathering, researchers have found that ten minutes of face to face contact improves memory and boosts intellectual performance. This research published in the Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin is fascinating.

Think about it, just ten minutes of talking, face to face or by phone, improves memory and boosts intellectual performance as much as intellectual endeavors such as math and crossword puzzles. This is very good news for someone like me who is not great at intellectual endeavors such as math or crossword puzzles, but loves people, especially talented and amazing women. I am excited to think that now, along with strengthening and growing your business, The Heart Link Network™ an international women's networking organization based on the female endocrine system, can also help you to improve your memory. When I created the concept I thought of hundreds of ways that it could help and benefit women, but honestly, improving memory was not on my original list.

University of Michigan psychologist Oscar Ybarra and his team asked more than 3,500 people ages 24 to 96 about their social interactions and tested their working memories. What they found was that regardless of age, the more social contact each person had, the higher their level of mental function. The researchers also split 76 college students into three groups.

One group spent 10 solitary minutes doing intellectual exercises (such as reading comprehension), a second group had a 10-minute discussion, and the third, in isolation, watched 10 minutes of "Seinfeld." I know, most of you believe there is nothing more stimulating than reruns of “Sienfeld,” but on follow-up cognitive tests, the social interaction and intellectual exercise groups did better than "Seinfeld" viewers. And everyone was surprised to discover the chit-chatters did just as well as the intellectual group. This is such good news to me.

"There's a widespread belief in this culture that the way to maintain your sharpness is to do technical and intellectual activities," Ybarra says. But this study suggests an alternative to Sudoku or crosswords could be simply attending The Heart Link Network™, having an amazing evening of fun and connection, talking and sharing with one another and poof, a better memory to boot. It certainly doesn't get better than that.

Dawn Billings is the CEO & Founder of The Heart Link Network, an international womens networking organization and www.TheHeartAlliance.com an online social community for professional women. Dawn is an author of over 15 books, a highly sought after speaker and faculty member of iLearningGlobal.tv, where her insightful and entertaining segments are translated into 5 languages around the world. Dawn is the creator of the new parenting toy/tool, called the CAPABLES, touted by experts to revolutionize parenting around the world. www.DawnBillings.com In 2008, Dawn was selected by Oprah Magazine and The White House Project as one of 80 emerging women leaders in the nation.