By Debra Christopher, MSM | February 26, 2014

I was recently on a business trip in New York City. While roaming the city one evening after dinner, I passed by a street vendor who was selling small canvas bags with colorful messages stamped on the sides. One message caught my eye, and it’s turned into a new mantra for my professional development work. The message: “Make it brief . . . and work it!”

This statement relates directly to what the science of learning tells us about how the human brain functions—specifically, how human memory systems operate. We know the human brain holds information in short-term memory for only about 18 seconds. If that information isn’t attached to something quite meaningful, or if there’s no time to organize the information and process its relevance, it leaves the brain as quickly as it entered. Without some type of emotional hook or cognitive engagement, the content simply cannot stick.