3. Find out the names ahead of time, when possible. As the brain scan study showed, people did better at learning names when they saw the names ahead of time. This is very possible to do when you’re going on an interview (assuming you get the schedule first) or to a party where guests have RSVP’d to a public link. It’s no help if you’re meeting someone for the first time with no advance warning, unfortunately. However, since there are many more situations than you might realize that do allow advance prep, you might as well take advantage of this strategy. For example, an instructor should review the list of students on the roster prior to the first class, so at least you’ll have someplace to start. If the class is small enough. As you take attendance, write little notes to yourself next to each student’s name that will give you a unique image for each one.

3. 尽可能提前知道名称。如脑扫描研究所示，人们对事先看到过的名称会掌握得更好。这在面试中（假如你提前准备过）或宴会上（假如宴会提供了客人联系清单）都是可能做到的。不幸的是，对于初次见面的人，采用这样的方法显然没用。不过，有许多场合你可以提前准备，只是自己没有意识到，因此这种方法还是可行的。例如，老师在上第一堂课前应当看下学生名单，这样你至少知道了大概情况。如果班级不大，在点名时你就可以依次在每个学生的名字栏加以备注，这样你就会对每个名称产生一个独特的印象。