Repetition is Key
Why do we recall the lyrics to old songs so easily?
Since the day we were born our brains have been trying to make sense of the world around us, make sense of what we see, what we hear, and what we feel. Our brains are constantly being bombarded with new stimuli and trying desperately to make sense of them by matching them to existing memories and experiences.
People, images, sounds and smells that we experience frequently make stronger connections. The more we experience them, the more likely we’ll remember them, it is kind of obvious but worth being aware of, especially when you want people to learn something new or change their habits.
Stimuli with regular patterns make for easier recollection.
Nursery rhymes are a good example of this, as combining multiple elements together can help with memory recollection. We also learn to associate certain simple patterns with important messaging; the two tone of a siren, the black and yellow stripes of a stinging insect, the red circle of a traffic stop light. You quickly become aware of these when you’re in a foreign country where familiar patterns are replaced with new or slightly differing ones.
As we get older our ability to remember more complex patterns improves and we start to group memories subconsciously. Driving a car or playing sports are all examples where we can do many, and sometimes complex, repetitive tasks together automatically without too much conscious effort. Changing gears with a clutch, playing tennis, are all dependant on muscle memory
The mastery of skills
You could classify these combined memorised sets of movements as ‘skills’.
Many of our pleasures in life come from the repetition of skills. Sometimes just the act of triggering an old learnt behaviour is enough to give us comfort or calmness. We also enjoy refining or building upon these repeated behaviours.
I personally enjoying sketching, and the act of moving my hand through learnt gestures is a form of relaxation and meditation. This muscle memory gives pleasure.
So great observation, but why is this useful me?
Well, if you’re a team leader, a designer, or involved in any kind of communication, which lets face it, that all of us (unless you’re a hermit), then understanding how we learn and importantly, how we get enjoyment from learning, is imperative to our success.
Getting the message across requires constant repetition, sometimes with the same message, sometimes trying different ways of saying the same thing.
Visually repetition can make something ordinary become something stunning. You can see this is architecture, sculpture, art, and performance art like theatre, music and film. It will often be core to what is recalled when asked to describe it.
Where could I use this knowledge?
Messaging is one area that repetition works very well. Often in presentations it’s easy to get lost in the details and confuse the audience as to what is important. Repeating the core message is vital for understanding and retention.
People like shorthand to remember something. This is why slogans work so well in advertising. Distilling the core message down into something instantly memorable is crucial to communication. Repeating words, repeating rhyming words, repeating syllables.
UX and UI (user experience and user interface) also benefit from repetition. People look for recognisable patterns, not only buttons and icons, but also sequences. These expected behaviours are fundamental to a user interface being easily understood on first time use. Being mindful of them, knowing when to adhere to these sequences, and perhaps more importantly knowing when you deviate or break these sequences.
Takeaways:
What is the one thing you want people to remember from your interaction?
Condense your message down to the simplest form.
Use techniques from advertising or songwriting. How can you make your message more memorable?
Use Alliteration: Repeating initial consonant sounds in words or phrases can create a rhythmic and memorable quality to your message. For example, "Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers."
Use Rhyme: Rhyming words or phrases can make your message catchy and memorable. It adds a musical quality to the text. For example, "I scream, you scream, we all scream for ice cream."
Follow common behavioural sequences for product or interface design.
Be bold, Be simple, Be memorable.