24. Caricaturing

One of the greatest guides to name retention is the singling out of one feature in a face. This can be amplified by the use of the caricaturing system. When you see a cari­cature in a newspaper or magazine, you find that the person has been caricatured by the amplification of the outstanding feature of his or her face. This method is highly recom­mended for the memorizing of names and faces on a perma­nent basis. This is one of the most important features in this entire publication.

You meet Mr. Jones. He has average features. You can­not find anything unusual about Mr. Jones. You could take the last four letters of his name, however, and scramble them to spell nose . . . n-o-s-e, and then see Mr. Jones pulled along by a J-shaped hook in his nose. The picture, so ridicu­lous and yet so vivid, will stay with you.

Many have told me at the outset that they might make an embarrassing mistake by calling a person by the wrong name. In the Jones case, they might say Mr. Hook. Repeti­tion of this system, however, will establish confidence, and eventually security in the knowledge that you are right.

Here are some further examples to use as a test. How would you associate the names of Garfield, Simon, Butterson, Carmichael, Bussell, Finch, Culpepper, Ramsey, Yankowski and Selman? Try it yourself before you read my sugges­tions. No doubt there will be various suggestions. There can be many pictures for each name.

I would see a big fish (a gar) in a field . . . Mr. Gar-field. I would picture Mr. Simon as sighing and moaning on alternate breaths. Mr. Butterson would be spreading butter on a big, red setting sun. Mr. Carmichael would be driving a car shaped like a microphone (or with a "mike" on the radiator cap) into the gates of hell.

Mr. Bussell could be selling a bus . . . the bus with a big number one on it, meaning that the bus comes first . . . before the "sell." Finch could easily be a big F on a one-inch ruler. Mr. Culpepper could be gulping pepper; and Mr. Ramsey, with a big old ram, could be riding on a sight­seeing bus "to see what he could see." The seemingly dim-cult names are the easiest ones to recall. Just picture Mr. Yankowski as a man yanking a cow on skis.

Yankowski

Selman is a name I missed once. I'll never forget it. I failed to associate the name with something definite and it did embarrass me. It could have been associated with the famous Cardinal Spellman or I could have Mr. Selman be­ing sold in an ancient slave market. There are many ways to reach a perfect or near-perfect picturization of anyone you meet.

Desire — Repetition — Visualization — Association — these are the keys to name retention.

Remember: Desire — Repetition — Visualization — As­sociation — these are the keys to success.

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