Tony Buzan was said to have popularized Mind Mapping around 1974. I am sure that many people before him have done some form of Mind Mapping on their own, especially professors at the universities, but none really popularized it. Mind Mapping is a natural creativity of your own mind to which you are able to express it out with clarity in a simplified manner.
Mind Mapping, as you see it now, is a graphic art form to draft out primarily your thoughts, which would probably be an idea, a concept or a goal. The objective is for you to draw out the vision you are having in your mind, on a piece of paper and interlink the details. By doing so, you will either be able to summarize your thoughts and recall the planned path that you wish to take. It also simplify your presentation of an idea to someone or staying in focus to what you want to do. What was done on a piece of paper, in your notebook, is now also made available on many different software and online applications, stating for your ease of use. I agree to disagree with this and I will tell you why.
When you are drawing out an image on a piece of paper, the objective is in your mind, to be able to download your thoughts, via a pen or pencil. The freehand movement of your art form is unrestricted. If you do have a digital pen and pad, for example, an Apple iPad or Microsoft Surface, the similar objective can highly be possible. However, I have tried both and for some reason, I find that in drafting out on a piece of paper with my pen and pencil gives me an artistic freedom. It’s the finer contact between the tools I use, like a pencil to a paper, compared to a digital pen and pad, that makes the difference for me.
This is what that got me concerned and to which I took the initiative to write this topic. Many examples of Mind Mapping are terribly complicated! The art form, although supposed to be reasonably artistic and expressive, but in return, it looks more like a major traffic jam in Mumbai or Beijing. Try to Google for examples of Mind Mapping and you will understand what I am saying here. This is where I say, Mind Mapping got messed up!
Mind Mapping is a simplistic artform.
Maximus @ MaximusPrimo.com
Don’t over-complicate it.
When you draw out your mind map, keep your drawing simple and easily readable. Don’t go around just drawing and interconnecting lines, writing subtopics but in the end, you do not know how to interpret it. The worst thing you can do for yourself is trying to decipher your mind map because it looks so complicated. Your task is not to draw an abstract drawing, but to have a mind map drawn with clarity.
This is where I find my steps to Mind Mapping works well for me. I firstly take out a piece of paper and start to write the topic in the center of the page. I then start writing the subtopics that seem to float out in my mind, relating to the main topic. Thereafter, for each subtopic, I list out the subjects, tasks or ideas that relate to them. It is very much like writing out your goal, and going the next step of planning out your tasks with timelines.
Here is where I differ compared to the conventional Mind Mapping method. I review my original draft, being my initial artwork, and begin to eliminate the excess listed ‘downloads’. What are the downloads? When you start listing down the subtopics, it’s a free-flow of ideas from your mind. The question here is, are all these ideas productive and executable?
By reviewing the initial mind map drawn, I can be more objective towards completing what needs to be done first. This is where I redraw my mind map again, focusing on the key subtopics and refined subjects or tasks. You may ask, what happens to the original draft? I keep it because it the free-fall unloaded mind map. When I convert the mind map to my time planner as a written goal, with tasks and timelines, I get the sense of reality to accomplish my plans effectively. This translates to my ability to do it without any delays!
Creativity in Mind Mapping is the
reality in accomplishing your goal.
Maximus @ MaximusPrimo.com
Once I have accomplished the written goal related to the mind map, I go back to the original draft. I ask myself, what is the next step I will need to do, since my first line of tasks are all completed. At this point, if I find that there is a next interpretable goal from the original mind map done, I will redraw a new simplified mind map again. By now, you will see, the creative part of the mind requires continues challenges, but you need to accomplish the initial goals in order to go the next ones. This is where most people fail, because they jumble up their mind map and wanting to do all at one time.
So, is using mind mapping software impractical? No, it is not. When you are designing a mind map for your organization, you can effectively draw out the mind map using a readily available software. The tools provided will make it easier for you to create fancy footprints. Remember, when you are using the software, you will be greatly tempted to write a lot and it can become complicated.
I suggest that when you are doing your software-based mind maps, draft it out on a piece of paper first. Chances are, you can see the difference in downloading your thoughts much easily. The hand, interprets your thoughts on a piece of paper in a very unique way.
Mind Mapping can easily reflect the state of your mind. You are bringing your visualized image to actuality. When you draw it, the images can also help you to see if you are stressed, uncertain, disarrayed, loss of ideas, unsure or actually being in focus. Enjoy this journey of being lost in your own mapping!
