How do you record your brainstorms? You don't have to be creative to brainstorm and use a mind map to organize them. The combination of these two methods to explore thoughts and obtain information. 8 Tips For Coming Up With Winning Ideas When You're Brainstorming 8 Tips For Coming Up With Winning Ideas When You're Brainstorming Solo Two heads are better than one, but brainstorming is the most about problem solving individual and group problems. Here are some methods to brainstorm ideas Read More are valuable in any field.
Here we share tips and tools to help you use these strategies for research, planning, and innovation.
Getting down to the basics of what each term literally means, Dictionary.com defines them as follows:
Brainstorm (noun)
Mind map (noun)
So when you combine these two, you can open up a whole new world of possibilities for your thought process. Brainstorm your ideas and don't dismiss any of them right away. As you do this, create a mind map with each thought as a node.
From there, the diagram will allow you to explore all the concepts on a visual level. Basically, this allows you to see the entire image at once. You can then add, rearrange, delete, or edit the pieces as needed.
As the Dictionary.com definition suggests, you can use mind maps as study guides. Also, you can use brainstorming and mind maps for other school activities. These tools can be especially helpful when working on team projects.
For example, a project for psychology class with the central keywords as Behavior disorders you can start with a mind map like this:
Remember that you can also use mind maps for brainstorming projects that you work on alone. This gives you a quick way to capture the ideas that pop into your head for term papers, speeches, and presentations.
Whether working alone or with co-workers, consider adding a mind map to your brainstorming session. When you have a marketing meeting, project kickoff, or new product shoot, put those ideas on a mind map.
Let's say you're meeting with the advertising team to create a plan. When everyone comes up with their ideas, place them on the mind map to get a clear view.
Mind maps can include more than ideas and thoughts. For project managers, as an example, you can make the project name the central node and add deliverables and tasks as children to create a great overall picture. You can even prepare a complete work breakdown structure. How to Organize Any Project With a Work Breakdown Structure How to Organize a Project With a Work Breakdown Structure A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. Every complex project consists of multiple components. The Work Breakdown Structure can help you identify all the steps and put them in sequence. Read more.
For authors and writers, the use of these two methods can be very useful. For example, as an author you may have many ideas for chapters, characters, locations, conversations, and conflicts for your book. You can throw these ideas into a mind map for maximum insight and easy editing.
If you're a writer collecting article ideas, try a mind map. When those thoughts come up about a specific article, you can organize them in any order you like with a mind map.
When you're ready to create a mind map, you need to have the right tools. Fortunately, you can choose from several mind mapping apps online. The key to choosing a tool is simplicity . You should be able to add and review your ideas quickly and easily so you can focus on the brainstorming part. These are just a few of the great online options to get you started.
MindMup 2 is a web-based tool with wonderful features. You can easily add nodes, change their colors, include notes, and attach files. When your mind map is complete, you can save or publish it. The app also works with Google Drive Try MindMup Mind-Mapping via Google Drive Try MindMup Mind-Mapping via Google Drive If you've ever tried to create a mind map for your brainstorming sessions, you'll know that using the correct tool is essential. There are many sites with mind mapping tools to choose from, and choose among them... Read More
You can jump right in and start using MindMup 2 for free. This allows you to create public maps up to 100KB in size and save them for up to six months. You do not have to register or log in with this option. You can also check out the Personal Gold paid plan which allows you to create private maps up to 100MB in size and save them longer.
Another good free online tool is WiseMapping. With the same user-friendly and intuitive interface as MindMup 2, WiseMapping also provides a nifty set of icons and shapes for nodes. You can add links, include notes, export maps and embed them in web pages.
WiseMapping offers a helpful mind map of its own to get you started. You can edit it and get used to the available tools before starting your first mind map. The online application is available for free 8 free mind map tools and how to best use them 8 free mind map tools and how to make the most of them For an office worker, a mind map can be a brainstorming tool solo or a collection of collaborative ideas. In the right hands, a simple mind map can help you make better decisions. Read More
One more web-based option to check out is Coggle. This is another full-featured mind mapping tool. How to Solve Problems and Get Ideas With These 5 Diagrams How to Solve Problems and Get Ideas With These 5 Diagrams Drawing a digram is a powerful problem-solving technique. The right diagram can reveal hidden relationships hidden behind facts and figures. Try these five simple visualizations for everyday decision making. Read More You can add comments to nodes and chat with co-workers right from the app. You can also view a history of diagram changes and receive email notifications when changes are made.
Coggle offers a free plan with real-time collaboration and unlimited public diagrams. You can also check out two paid plan options that provide shared diagram folders, chat history, and branding options.
The online tools mentioned give you quick and easy ways to build your mind maps. However, if you find yourself without internet access Please note that software you already own may be used often as well.
Microsoft applications such as Visio are designed specifically for diagrams A free, open source alternative to Microsoft Visio A free, open source alternative to Microsoft Visio Do you need to create diagrams, flowcharts, circuits, or other types of entity relationship models? ? Microsoft Visio is the best software for that, but it's expensive. We will show you two free open source alternatives. Read more . But you can also use Word How to Build a Mind Map in Microsoft Word How to Build a Mind Map in Microsoft Word The average person has thousands of thoughts every day. Our brainstorms are rarely strategic. A mind map helps you capture a bunch of thoughts and put them in order. We show you how. Read More or PowerPoint to create mind maps. The same goes for Mac users who have Pages and Keynote. While these tools aren't ideal and may take more time, they can still help you when you're in a link.
You don't have to be a visual person to appreciate the value of using these two methods together.
Have you tried the combination of brainstorming and mind mapping yet? Do you have tips or tools you'd like to recommend? 4 Great Web-Based Mind Mapping Tools to Enhance Your Creativity. 4 Great Web-Based Mind Mapping Tools to Enhance Your Creativity. Mind maps are a wonderful resource for brainstorming, planning and managing ideas in a way. It increases your productivity and enhances your creativity. But what if you want to create a mind map without pencil or paper? Read more ? Let us know in the comments!
