There are three distinct forms of forgetting.

Our most intractable forgetting can be prevented with self-talk and by sharpening the focus of our attention.

Retrieving a memory depends on refreshing the context in which we first encoded what we want to remember.

Forgetting is a necessary condition of human existence. It allows us to set aside the inconsequential, so we can recall what’s important. Good memory depends on forgetting the irrelevant. Forgetting also helps restore our vitality after disappointing or painful events, encouraging us to recover from unpleasantness more quickly. Without such forgetting, we would remember our emotional pain all too well. And forgetting provides clear, practical benefits, particularly with outdated information—where we parked our car yesterday, the pin code we replaced, the details of a former long-term relationship.

But there are also clear disadvantages to forgetting, especially with things we need to do. Such forgetting is inconvenient, frustrating, and potentially serious.

What are the different forms of forgetting and how can we avoid them?

Forgetting Remembering

We can forget that we remembered to do something. These are typically small matters, but they add up inconveniently—for example, spending time searching for our favorite sunglasses, only to discover that we already slipped them into our pocket.

This forgetting occurs when the goal for doing the act is more prominent and easily retrieved than actually doing the act.

Before cold weather sets in, I disconnect my garden hose and bring it into my garage. Often, I forget doing that and go out a few days later to disconnect the hose, only to find it safely put away. The important goal is not letting my water pipes rupture or my hose become ruined. I have done this for years, and the context is the same from year to year—always early November and always the spigot near my garden.

With repeated actions that don’t have a distinctive feature for each repetition, we often forget we remembered, as with locking a door or unplugging the iron or taking food out of........

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