Professional Keynote Speaker and Memory Expert Ron White shares why he competes in memory tournaments and specifically the USA Memory Championship.
Today I was interview for a video blog on at www.time.com and the interviewer asked me why I compete in memory tournaments. There are probably a handful of reasons and listed in no particular order:
1. They are fun! Yeah, I know it sounds dull and boring and recently when I read in Joshua Foer’s book, Moonwalking With Einstein that they seem to have all the excitement of an SAT test I did chuckle. On the other hand, there is adrenaline, strategy, intensity and fun!
2. If you are going to have a hobby why not have one that makes you smarter or learn faster? Sure you could play pool or darts as a hobby and I enjoy both but at the end of the day what have you really accomplished other than passing a little time and relaxing. Both are perfectly good reasons to play darts or pool by the way and certainly not trying to insight the bar game crowd here.
3. It is cool to be #1 in the United States at something. I mean to be national champ…yeah…that is cool :)
4. I am just curious how fast my memory can operate and how fast I can go with more and more memory training. I am really curious and I enjoy the challenging of pushing it further than I did the year before.
5. I teach memory training seminars for a living so competing in these tournaments and specifically the USA Memory Championship does give me very, very, very good PR.
6. Memory training keeps your brain YOUNG! I really believe the more I work my memory the sharper and quicker it gets and keeps it healthier and younger
7. I am a competitive person and I really thrive on the competition. I like working hard on a strategy and well…coming out on top is really thrilling! The feeling of being crowned the USA Memory Champion was exhilarating!
8. If I am going to walk on a stage and be announced as one of the best memory experts in the United States, I better do something to prove that is true! I didn’t want to be one of these guys who had the marketing hype ‘America’s Top Memory Experts’ but yet not put myself up against the best in my field. There is just something wrong with a person who claims to be the best but refuses to be measured. For the rest of my life I will be able to say that I went up against the best and walked away as the USA Memory Champion!
Are there more reasons than these? I am sure there are and I will transcribe those over time I am sure. In the meantime, I really do encourage you to take a look at this hobby for yourself and your kids. It is a happy, healthy and productive hobby and can really impact every area of your life when you learn how to improve your memory.
This article was written by Ron White USA Memory Champion and memory training expert.
