Mapping your mind

N.Balajhi - Business Consultant & Trainer

 Table of contents

Intr oduct ion 3

Min d mapp in g 3
Why mind mapp ing 4
Sof tware survey results 5

T ypes of mind maps 7

Brainstorming mind maps 7
Flow mind maps 7
Big picture mind maps 8

Comp onent s of a mind map 9

Main topic 9
Sub topic 9
Link lines 10
Association lines 10

Build in g a mind map 10

1) The Quick-Fire Mind Map Burst 10
2) First Reconstruction and Revision 11
3) Incubation 11
4) Second Reconstruction and Revision 11
5) The Final Stage 12
Caution 12

Min d map sof t ware tools 12

Proponent of Min d map 13
Conclu sion 13
An nexure
Mind map case studies (in a separate booklet)

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In tro d u c tio n

One f ine day your boss walks into your ca bin with three visitors and asks you to
brief them about the company’s layout. You know your company in and out. So,
how will you go about it? There can be two approaches. One approach is
explaining things in a descriptive manner.

“You enter the gate from the southern side and w alk in straight to the main
building w here our corporate functions are located. As you proceed to the
main building, you w ill notice a beautiful law n to your right and vehicles
parking yard to your left. If you take the right lane in front of the main
building and w alk for further 50 meters you w ill find the main stores to your
left and proceeding from there for another 50 meters you w ill reach the
pumps division building. From there if you take a left…..“

You can go on and on but almost most of your delegates would have lost
whatever interest they may have had in knowing about your company‘s layout.
It of course is a listless job even for you.

The second approach, which most of us take, is drawing a map of the lay out
and pointing out the location of various parts / places and why they are there
f or. This is the most eff ective and easiest way of gaining understanding of
where is what with regard to a layout. In fact many go as far as keeping printed
maps along with necessary explanations and legends. So we map in order to
make simple presentations that are eff ective and reduce the time required f or
understanding.

M in d m a p p in g
Mapping is an eff icient way of grasping the big picture f aster and better. W hen
we use mapping to picture the f low of our thoughts on a particular topic / issue /
problem it is called mind mapping. By mapping our mind we optimize our
thinking f aculties. Mind mapping enriches our thinking. Various purposes for
which a mind map can be build include the f ollowing.

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Understanding a problem / issue / concept

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Developing ideas / solutions / presentations

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Preparing f or manuals / charts / guides / rules and regulations

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Learning subjects / topics / people / practices etc.

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Preparing f or examinations / lectures / presentations / learning

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Preparing f or writing papers / book

Traditionally as we think many of us side by side jot down our thoughts in a

paper f or working on it later. In some cas es both thinking and documentation of
thoughts take place simultaneously. It generally takes a linear f orm where we
move f rom ‘A’ to ‘B’ and f rom there to ‘C’ and onwards bef ore we complete it.
This process takes more time and is bit mundane. The documentation part
hardly assists thinking and in fact it can at times be stif ling our thinking or
deviate the focus of the effort. On the contrary a mind map assists and
augments thinking.

W h y m in d m a p p in g
W hen we think, we use our mind for learning, inferences, decisions; to arrive at
a solution or judgments etc. However the clarity in thinking, results of thinking
and time taken to think vary with diff ering topics. This is primarily because of
varying interests and the personal capacity to think deep and hard on certain
topics / subjects.

A master story teller w ill be able to t hink unhindered about a plot and
develop the whole story before he opens up his laptop. The same person w ill
find it difficult to think about planning the movie making of the story he had
developed.

The master story teller can afford to do just his job and leave the rest to
competent people. However not everyone has that luxury. In the corporate
world people perf orm multiple tasks that demand lot of thinking. Not all do what
they love but are generally made to love what they do. Here is where the mind
map assists people to optimize the power of their mind.

A mind map boosts creativity and helps one’s memory

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It helps a person to deploy his thinking f aculties f aster and better
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The mind map diagram acts as a reference point f or further developments
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and as well as for a recap
It captures all elements / components of a topic in a diagrammatic f ormat,
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in a single page

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 ð
Mind Map is perf ectly suited to innovative thinking as it consumes all the
skills commonly f ound with creativity, especially imagination, association
of ideas and f lexibility

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Applying the mind mapping technique correctly can f acilitate an individual
to create at least twice as many innovative ideas as a traditional large
brainstorming group in the same period of time.

Software surve y res ults

Extracts of a mind mapping sof tware survey conducted in August 2006 by

Mr.Chuck Fray, Founder of Innovation tools and also an author on mind
mapping topics is given below. Full survey results are available at
www.innovationtools.com.

1. What is t he purpose f or wh ich t he mind map so ft ware was u sed?

A glimpse of the below bar chart tells us the variety of purpose for which we
can use a mind map.

As one can observe from the bar chart mind map can be used in variety of
w ays. It can be used for regular activities like ‘to do lists’ / ‘note taking’. And it
can be used also for preparing presentations and decision making. There is no
rule limit ing the use of a mind map.

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2. What are the sing le big gest benef its you have gained fro m u sing a mind
map so ft ware?

This question also resulted in a number of interesting “other” responses,

including these:

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Create links among previously isolated data islands

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It’s neater when using with other. I usually mind map on paper and it’s
hard to read.

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Helps me deal with my dyslexia

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Omit f ewer things

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Holistic view

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Longer retention of newly learned material

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Manage and share information and concepts

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Concise note taking

As the survey respondents indicated the biggest benefit of mind mapping is

clarity of thinking. Not surp risingly, managing information overload, productivity
and better organisation of thoughts figure in the top 4 benefits of mind mapping.

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T y p e s o f m in d m a p

There are 3 diff erent types of mind map based on the major purposes they
serve. They are viz.,

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Brainstorming mind maps

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Flow mind maps

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Big picture mind maps

Brai nstormi ng mind maps

Brainstorming is a creative process that of ten leads us to a destination / answer

/ solution we are looking for. It generally is a group activity where the members
share ideas and solutions to a particular issue / problem / question at hand.
These types of mind maps can be used both in a group setting and by an
individual. In f act a mind map helps an individual to brainstorm better as the
traditional approach is less stimulating for the individual brain.

Brainstorming mind maps are generally used in the f ollowing situations.

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To identif y the root-cause of a problem

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To develop a new idea / approach

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To develop a solution f or a problem

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Any other situation that sets the thinking process in search of an answer /
way

Flow mind maps

W hen you want to think about developing a system or how to go about

guidelines then you use f low mind maps. They help in mapping the continuity
and the step by step approach in a system. Flow m ind maps act as a ref erence
point and are used under the following circumstances.

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To develop organisation chart

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To develop course of action f or a given task say writing a paper or book

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To develop a learning plan

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To prepare for exams, writing papers and books etc

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For any other ordered approach needed for a particular task

Flow mind maps help a person to draw out a plan or a course of action in the
light of task objectives, so that the task can be executed eff ectively.

Big picture mind maps

The big picture mind map combines both the brainstorming and f low types to
help us capture the big picture. A brainstorming mind map leads us to the
destination. The f low mind map helps us to draw out a plan or course of action.
A big picture mind map starts w ith the desired destination and captures the f low
to reach there as well as things that will take us to the destination. Some of the
situations under which big picture mind map can be used are,

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W riting a Book

o W hat to write? (Brainstorm)

o How to write? (Flow)

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Entering new markets

o W hat markets and with which products? (Brainstorm)

o How? (Flow & Brainstorm)

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Grabbing more market share

o How? (Flow & Brainstorm)

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Securing 90% in the f inal exams

o Approach (Brainstorm)

o Study plan (Flow)

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Mastering a discipline

o W here do we lack and how to improve (Brainstorm)

o Method or plan to f ollow (Flow)

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Any other situation where we know where to reach and contemplate on
how to reach there and things that could helps us reach there

The big picture mind map can also be called as strategy mind map as it of ten
helps us to capture our thinking on reaching the envisioned state.

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C o m p o n e n ts o f a m in d m a p

A mind map consists of following components.

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Main topic shape
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Sub topic shapes
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Link lines
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Association lines

Main topic

A main topic is the starting point for a mind map.

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It can be a problem statement looking for a solution or an idea as in
brainstorming mind maps
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It can be a description of a method or system as in Flow mind maps
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It can be a big picture goal

Sub topic

When a main topic is branched out it results in one or a combination of the

following.

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Further more questions to answer
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Ideas / solutions
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Descriptions / actions
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Gaps and mistakes
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Components / elements
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Reasons / factors

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and the like

These are all sub topics that will branch out depending on the purpose for which
the mind map is developed and the nature of the main topic.

Link lines

Curved or straight lines that connect each parent and children shapes are called
link lines. The main topic is the parent of all topics and each sub topic is a parent
of topics that are branched out of it.

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Association li nes

These lines are used to mark / highlight the association between two topics that
belong to diff erent parent topics or the inter-linkage between different sub
topics.

B u ild in g a m in d m a p
A mind map can be built either manually or using a mind map sof tware tool.
Building manual mind maps require more eff ort and are not easy as it will be
diff icult to correct mistakes. Also a manual mind map is less legible and it is
diff icult to enrich it. There are lots of mind map sof tware tools available in the
market that makes mind mapping process easier and f aster. They are available
both as f ree to download and for a price.

In simple terms

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Draw a main topic shape on the centre of a page

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Draw sub topics related to the main topic

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Further branch out each sub topic till there is value in breaking down the
sub topic(s)

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As you draw the shapes connect the main topic with the sub topics and
each sub topic with its sub-topics.

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Draw association lines between relevant topics

In the words of Tony Buzan (the founder of Mind Mapping) there are f ive stages
in the creative mind mapping process:

1) T he Quick-Fire Mi nd Map Burst

Begin by drawing a stimulating central image that represents the general topic
of interest. Your image should be placed in the centre of a large blank page,
and f rom it should radiate every idea that comes into your mind on that subject.
For about twenty minutes you should let the ideas f low as f ast as possible.
Having to work at speed unchains your brain f rom habitual thinking patterns,
and encourages new ideas. Many of these new ideas may at f irst seem absurd,
however do not disregard these ideas as they of ten hold the keys to new
perspectives and breaking old habits.

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2) First Reconstruction a nd Re vision

Have a short break, allowing your brain to rest and begin to integrate the
ideas generated so far. Then make a new Mind Map, in which you identif y
the major branches, categorizing, building up hierarchies and f inding new
associations between your preliminary i deas. It may become noticeable
that similar or identical concepts are present in several different places
of your Mind Map. These should not be dismissed as unnecessary
repetitions as they are fundamentally 'diff erent' in that they are attached
to different branches. These peripheral repetitions ref lect the underlying
importance of ideas which are buried deep with your store of knowledge
but which actually inf luence every aspect of your thinking. Following your
brain's f low, the Mind Map explores your current thought in this new
centre to replace the old. In due course this new centre will itself be
placed by a new and even more advanced concept. The Mind Map
theref ore aids and ref lects intellectual exploration and growth.

3) Incubation

Sudden creative realizations of ten come when the brain is relaxed such
as sleeping, day dreaming and running. This is because such states of
mind allow the radiant thinking process to spread to the f arthest reaches
of the brain, increasing the probability of mental breakthroughs.

4) Second Reconstruction a nd Re vis ion

Af ter incubation your brain will have a f resh perception on your f irst and
second Mind Maps, so it will be usef ul to do another quick f ire Mind Map
burst. During this reconstruction stage you will need to consider all the
inf ormation gathered and integrated in stages 1, 2 and 3 in order to make
a comprehensive f inal Mind Map.

5) T he Final Stage

You now need to search f or the solution, decision, or realization which

was your original creative goal. This of ten involves linking elements in
your Mind Map, leading to major new insights and breakthroughs.

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Caution

A mind map can be addictive when it comes decorating it. Remember the core
task that of using the tool to augment thinking. Decorations are needed only
when one needs to make a presentation. Otherwise the basic map structure of
the sof tware will do. Don’t lose your time decorating when you need to think
f aster and better.

M in d m a p s o ftw a re to o ls
Given below are some of the mind map sof tware tools that are f amous and
available in the market

Aviz ThoughtMapper (PC) BrainMine (PC )

Compendium ConceptDraw MIND MAP (PC/ Mac )
Eminec MYmap (PC) FreeMind (PC/Mac/Linux)
HeadCase (PC) i Mind Map (PC/ Mac)
Inspiration (PC/ Mac) MindApp (PC)
MindCad (Mac) Mind Pad (PC)
MindChart (PC) MindGenius (PC)
MindManager (PC/ Mac) MindMapper (PC)
Mindman Microsof t visio
MindVisualizer (PC) NovaMind (PC/ Mac)
OpenMind Business (PC) Personal Brain
Pocket Mindmap (Pocket PC) SMART Ideas (PC/ Mac)
ThinkGraph (PC) Topicscape (PC)
Visi Map (PC) Visual Mind (PC)
XMIND (PC/ Mac)

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Most of these mind mapping sof tware’s may vary with regard to f eatures,
they however have similar way to create and build mind maps

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Some of them like Mindman, Freemind are available for f ree download
and trial versions are available f or the rest of them

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Microsof t visio is much than a mind mapping sof tware. It helps users to
create and build many other drawings.

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P ro p o n e n t o f M in d m a p

T ony Buzan, an author and educational consultant is the proponent of the Mind
Mapping technique. Buzan was born in London, is an alumnus of Kitsilano
Secondary School, and received double Honours in psychology, English,
mathematics and the General Sciences from the University of British Columbia
in 1964. He is best known for his book, Use Your Head, his promotion of
mnemonic systems and his Mind Mapping techniques. He launched his own
sof tware program to support mind mapping called iMind Map in December 2006.

He is the author of books such as Use Your Memory, Master Your Memor y, Use
Your Head, The Speed Reading Book and The Mind Map Book. He has since
authored or co-authored over 100 books.

Buzan developed Mind Mapping whilst at university, out of the f rustration that
traditional notes took up so much time to create and review. He has argued that
Mind Maps are an eff icient way to take notes f rom lectures or books. His
brother Barry Buzan, who co-wrote The Mind Map Book, suggested the
technique could also be used to capture notes f rom one's own creative ideas
and is useful in business.

C o n c lu s io n

Mind map helps an individual to optimize his thinking and utilize all his / her
creative thinking skills. Building a mind map is a mind stimulating experience
and as a result it helps an individual work with greater mental energy. It makes
the jobs of learning, studying and analyzing, more f un, thus increasing one’s
contribution towards the goal. If you have to think on something then mind
mapping is the way to go. Try it out, you will be rewarded.

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