How to Memorise the Major System (and Make Numbers Stick for Good)

Most people don’t struggle with memory.

They struggle with numbers.

Phone numbers, dates, passwords, statistics, codes. They look at a sequence of digits and feel their mind slide straight off it. Not because they’re incapable, but because numbers arrive with no meaning attached.

The brain doesn’t remember symbols. It remembers experiences.

That’s why the Major System works so reliably, and why it’s been used by memory athletes for over a century.

What the Major System Actually Is

At its core, the Major System is a translation framework.

It converts numbers into sounds.

Sounds into words.

Words into images.

Images into memories.

Once a number becomes an image, the brain treats it like any other meaningful experience. It stops being fragile and starts being stable.

This isn’t a trick. It’s a structural change in how information is encoded.

Why Numbers Are Forgotten So Easily

Digits have no sensory footprint. They don’t move, they don’t feel like anything, and they don’t trigger emotion.

So when the brain encounters a number, it briefly registers it and lets it go. There’s nothing to attach it to.

The Major System solves this by giving numbers form.

Instead of remembering “3–7–4–2,” you remember a scene. And scenes are what memory is designed to hold.

The Logic Behind the System

Each digit from 0 to 9 is linked to a consonant sound. Not a letter, but a sound.

Once you know the sound, you can add vowels freely to create a word. Vowels don’t count. They’re just there to make the word pronounceable.

That word then becomes a visual image.

The exact mappings matter less than consistency. Once the associations are learned, the process becomes automatic.

At that point, numbers stop feeling abstract. They start appearing as pictures without effort.

From Numbers to Images

The power of the Major System doesn’t come from forming words. It comes from what you do next.

Words must be visualised.

A static image is weak. A moving, exaggerated, emotional image lasts.

When an image has movement, sound, or absurdity, the brain flags it as important and stores it more reliably.

This is why still pictures fade, but vivid scenes persist.

Linking for Longer Sequences

To remember longer numbers, images are linked together into short mental scenes.

Instead of trying to hold six or eight digits, you hold two or three images interacting with each other.

When you later recall the scene, the images cue the sounds, and the sounds reconstruct the numbers.

You’re not remembering digits. You’re decoding meaning.

Encoding and Decoding Matter Equally

To truly memorise the system, you need fluency in both directions.

You practise turning numbers into images, and images back into numbers.

At first, this feels deliberate. With repetition, it becomes reflexive.

Eventually, you hear a number and an image appears instantly. No translation required.

That’s the point where the system stops being a technique and becomes a skill.

Why This Works Long-Term

The Major System works because it uses how memory evolved.

It leverages visual processing, association, emotion, and chunking. Multiple memory pathways activate at once, which dramatically increases retention.

Repetition alone is fragile. Connection is durable.

This is why people can memorise long sequences in minutes using this framework, and why the memories last far longer than expected.

Making the System Yours

For deeper mastery, many people build a personal image list for numbers from 00 to 99. One image per number.

Once that list exists, numbers never appear as numbers again. They appear as characters, objects, or actions.

At that point, memorising numerical information becomes faster than writing it down.

A Different Way to Think About Numbers

Most people try to remember numbers logically.

Memory doesn’t work logically. It works experientially.

When you convert digits into scenes, you’re no longer fighting the brain. You’re speaking its language.

That’s why the Major System feels almost unfair once it clicks.

Where This Really Pays Off

The real benefit isn’t just recalling phone numbers or statistics.

It’s confidence.

When numbers stop slipping away, thinking becomes clearer. Communication sharpens. Attention stays present instead of drifting toward notes or devices.

Memory stops feeling unreliable.

If memorising numbers, data, or codes is something you’ve struggled with, understanding this framework properly changes the game. And if you’d like to explore how to apply it cleanly to your own work or learning, you can get in touch with me by clicking here.