Over the years I’m becoming less interested in reading lines of text in favor of colors, shapes, and design. Makes sense. The brain is a complex mix of synapses and stuff (a scientific explanation, ha ha). Ideas and memories are triggered by seemingly unpredictable situations.

Think about brainstorming. Ideas pop up from “no where” and in no particular order. Mind mapping is like a free flowing word representation of a big vision. The core concept is placed in the middle of the page. Related concepts branch out from this core concept. You can branch out from each of these branches too (called siblings). Each level away from the center shows greater detail, and all branches are in support of the core concept.

I think I’m proving my own point by trying to describe this. It’s tough being constrained to words in live after line to describe how something looks! This is where the beauty of mind mapping is evident. Be free to use color and pictures to develop your thoughts!

Want to give it a test run? You can! If you have a Mac, that is. (I understand the Windows version will be along soon.)