I DON’T RECOGNISE PEOPLE I’VE MET BEFORE – IT’S SO EMBARRASSING!

Police super-recognisers are specialists who identify repeat offenders, and the techniques they use can teach us a lot.

“these individuals don’t necessarily have fantastic memories,” says detective chief inspector mick

neville, head of the central forensic image team in the metropolitan

police. “but they look at faces in a different way. they’re highly observant and use whole-brain recognition techniques to remember a face –

this means noticing tiny details that ordinary people miss, emotional facial cues, environment, shape and colour recognition. they’re usually very curious about people and interested to know what makes them tick.” HOW TO DO IT When you meet someone, make direct eye contact but also look at their eyebrows, hair colour and shape of their mouth. Notice any scars or moles. Now create picture of them seated on your sofa at home. Note where you are in the room with them, eg next to a table, near a window, in front of a picture. Finally, take a mental snap of them in this location. Do this with everyone you meet. After the party or other event, at home, go back over who you’ve met, picture where you saw them and remember their names. Picture the whole room in your head and where people were standing. These techniques mean your memory will store it and you’ll recall it next time you meet them.