If you find yourself misplacing items, the best thing you can to is fastidiously ensure that you always return it to the same spot. Take a moment and walk the item (be it keys, a cell phone, wallet, a tool) to its “home” and you greatly maximize the probability it will be there when you go to look for it later.

However, here’s a nifty trick for when this isn’t convenient. Mark all the items that you’re prone to misplacing with a bold red dot (or any other prominent consistent marking - a gold star works equally well). A red marker or red labelling dot (like they use for garage sale stickers) works fine.

dot

Next time you go to set something down, don’t let it leave your hand unless the red dot is showing, face up and, this is key, look at the dot and the surrounding area as you are setting it down.

This creates several complementary effects. The first, is that you’ve put your mind on notice that you’re about to release an item that you know is prone to misplacing. You might decide to walk it to the right spot (always the best). Chances are, you’ll need to flip or orient the item to ensure it is visible - at least a little.

The second is that you are forcing your mind to notice both the item and its surroundings. Two or three days later, as you are starting to tear apart the house looking for your keys, it’s more likely than not this scene will come back to you.

The intentionality of this effort is enough to trick your mind. At the end of the day, that’s most of what mnemonics are.

If this still doesn’t work, there’s one last effect to exploit - it takes just another moment. Try to imagine something in the scene interacting with the item and dot. If you need to set down the hammer near an electrical socket, picture the hammer getting zapped with electricity. If you set your keys down on a restaurant table, picture a dinner plate full of keys.

Try it! It’s cheap and effective.