Working Memory · by NACD
Your brain’s mental workspace. And the skill that matters more than IQ.
Working memory is how much information your brain can hold and manipulate at the same time. It’s what lets you follow a conversation, remember instructions, solve a math problem in your head, or read a paragraph and understand what it means.
Why Working Memory Matters More Than IQ
The strongest predictor of academic success — and it responds to training.
Research shows working memory is one of the strongest predictors of academic success — stronger than IQ in many studies. And unlike IQ, it responds to training. Bob Doman proved this on himself in 1965 and has been applying it to tens of thousands of individuals ever since.
NACD’s understanding goes deeper: working memory isn’t a standalone skill. It’s part of the brain’s processing system — interconnected with sequential processing, executive function, and long-term memory formation. Simply Smarter trains the whole system, not just one piece.
Weak working memory shows up as forgetting instructions immediately after hearing them, losing track while reading, struggling with mental math, difficulty following multi-step directions, or losing the thread of a conversation. These aren’t signs of low intelligence — they’re signs of a processing capacity that can be built.
Research supports this: Working memory capacity is a stronger predictor of academic and life success than IQ — and adaptive training has been shown to improve fluid intelligence in controlled studies.
Conway et al. (2003); Jaeggi et al. (2008), PNAS · See full research library →
How Simply Smarter Trains Working Memory
🧠
Progressive Capacity Building
Activities that gradually increase how much information you can hold and manipulate — always pushing just past your current limit, where new neural connections form.
🔄
The Whole Processing System
Working memory doesn’t exist in isolation. Simply Smarter trains it alongside sequential processing, auditory processing, visual processing, and processing speed — the full system, not just one piece.
📊
Measurable Progress
Processing scores tracked over time on your dashboard. You’ll see the numbers move before you notice the change in daily life — and then you’ll notice the change in daily life.
45 Years of Applying This Insight
Bob Doman proved this on himself. Then on thousands of others.
In 1965, Bob Doman went to college carrying an insight from his father — that you can change the brain. His first experiment: work at his own digit spans until they changed significantly, then watch what happens. The results showed up in his college work and in his ability to develop programs for special needs children. That experiment became a 60-year career.
What NACD discovered over decades of direct clinical work is that what had been perceived as separate things — short-term memory, working memory, long-term memory, executive function — are all part of one system: the brain’s processing capacity. Train that capacity, and everything else improves. Simply Smarter delivers that training in 10–15 minutes a day.
Build the skill that matters more than IQ.
14-day free trial. No credit card. 79 activities, personalized from day one.