How exactly does the process of trying ‘hard’ to remember something work?

Question

Basically title, shouldn’t whatever we’re trying to remember either exist or not exist in the brain’s memory? How is it that sometimes we are able to remember something after thinking for a while that we otherwise wouldn’t have been able to?

In: 9

Answer 1

Getting to a memory is like getting to a certain tree in a forest. The more times you go to that tree, the more wear you put on the trail leading to that tree, and the easier it becomes to follow that trail the next time.

Edit: Bonus — if you take a friend with you, the trail gets trampled down even more. If you explain an idea to someone else or teach them something you know, it becomes even easier for you to remember the next time.