First it was "use complex passwords" so passwords got harder to remember, but it was doable. Then it was "don't reuse your passwords" and I'd made a good show of it by dreaming up 3-4 distinct passwords that I rotated in different services. Then I started managing my accounts in an app because I had too many to manually/mentally track. Then it was "use a password manager" and so as I transitioned to the password manager, I had it generate very strong random passwords that I had no hope of remembering, much less typing in manually.
So I don't remember any passwords anymore and I couldn't remember them if I tried. I couldn't even type them (although I could transition to a "correct horse battery staple" method instead.) And I'm beholden to my password manager, plus my Yubikeys plus my phone plus my email, due to disparate mandatory MFA challenges.
Authentication has become really splintered and really complex. It's ridiculous to insist in this day and age that a password is "something you know" unless it's a master password to unlock your vault or your employer's SSO or something. So that ship has sailed, sorry to inform you!
First it was "use complex passwords" so passwords got harder to remember, but it was doable. Then it was "don't reuse your passwords" and I'd made a good show of it by dreaming up 3-4 distinct passwords that I rotated in different services. Then I started managing my accounts in an app because I had too many to manually/mentally track. Then it was "use a password manager" and so as I transitioned to the password manager, I had it generate very strong random passwords that I had no hope of remembering, much less typing in manually.
So I don't remember any passwords anymore and I couldn't remember them if I tried. I couldn't even type them (although I could transition to a "correct horse battery staple" method instead.) And I'm beholden to my password manager, plus my Yubikeys plus my phone plus my email, due to disparate mandatory MFA challenges.
Authentication has become really splintered and really complex. It's ridiculous to insist in this day and age that a password is "something you know" unless it's a master password to unlock your vault or your employer's SSO or something. So that ship has sailed, sorry to inform you!