I Don’t Have a Photographic Memory

When I am teaching mah Jongg, my students ask me if I have a photographic memory. The reason for this repetitive question I get weekly, is that I can remember what hand every student in the room is playing and what tiles they each need. I know I can do this for up to 48 people at the same time. I haven’t tested myself on more people than that at once, so I have no idea what my upper limits are.

I promise I don’t have a photographic memory. I just have a really good mah Jongg memory. This is something anyone who plays and teaches as much mah Jongg as I do can do. It’s just that there are not many people who play and teach as much as I do.

It’s the teaching where I developed this skill. Playing helps, but not to remember what other people are doing since you don’t know what other people are doing until the games starts to unveil it’s self, and then at most, you might be able to know what four people are doing.

It’s really useful as a teacher to have this kind of muscle memory. This is one of the skills that amateur mah Jongg teachers usually don’t have and won’t develop until they have been doing it years.

Being able to remember what hands students are trying to make is very useful in helping keep them on track in a timely manner.

When someone from a place far from me, that I don’t visit to teach, asks me what to look for in a mah Jongg teacher I say, “First make sure the person has been playing American Mah Jongg at least seven years. Someone who has not lived through many card changes does not know what they don’t know. Second, make sure your teacher has been teaching mah Jongg for a couple of years before you become their guinea pig.”

Lots of people who fall in love with Mah Jongg believe they can teach it right away. They might be able to explain rules to others. Rules are easy. But understanding how to figure out how different people learn differently and being able to help multiple people at the same time without adding confusion is harder than most people think. Precise use of language is incredibly important.

The one thing that frustrates me is how an amateur teacher spoils the well, by not being able to communicate well enough that people have a chance to fall in love with the game. A bad teacher will create more people who think they “can’t play mah Jongg, or don’t like mah Jongg”, so they give up. It is usually not the students problem, but the teacher.

Chose your teacher well. They don’t have to have a photographic memory, but it will look like they do to you if they are a really good teacher.