What is mind mapping?

What is Mind Mapping?
Mind Mapping is a way of creating pictures that show ideas in the same way that they are represented in your brain.

Your brain uses words, pictures, numbers, logic, rhythm, color and spacial awareness to build up unique pictures of information. The ideas are linked together in a way that makes it easy to understand and remember.

Mind Maps use exactly the same types of things to show the ideas and link them together. This

is what makes Mind Mapping so powerful.

You start with a central topic that you are going to be examining, and add branches radiating from the center, and then sub-branches as required to represent your ideas.

You create your Mind Maps in a natural way by using your own words and connections that make sense to you. It is best to stick to one or two keywords on the branches and use the branches to show the connections between the ideas.


How can I use mind mapping?
You can use Mind Maps for every part of your life where you need to:
* think more clearly,
* plan or organise things,
* solve problems,
* make decisions,
* remember things,
* do school and university assignments,
* come up with new ideas (using brainstorming),
* or give presentations.

What if I can't break down my idea into a single keyword?

This is a common issue when people are not used to Mind Mapping.

After having worked with Mind Mapping for many years, we have come to the conclusion that there are some times where you do want to have phrases and sentences on branches rather than just words. This is the exception rather than the rule though.

Try putting just one or two words on each branch and see how you go. It will force you to think carefully about the main ideas. In some cases, a paragraph may convert into one main keyword and several sub-branches with a keyword on each.

This really does open up thinking about the core meaning of the topic and the association of the refinements and explanations to the main topic.

Many people find the transition to this way of thinking difficult at first, but now they say they will never go back.

In Mind Mapping, there is no "right" or "wrong" way to organize your Mind Map, so don't be scared to try things out and find what works best for you.

article source: http://www.novamind.com/mind-mapping/

map from: www.thethinkingbusiness.co.uk/mindmappingappl