
It’s unnecessary to have more than one person doing the idea generation when using mind maps - so don’t get caught up in details. Words or images can represent the main idea and should trigger related ideas with the participants of the mind mapping session. So gather your team and get to mapping.īig Idea Front and Center- Begin by placing the central idea or goal in the center of the page. Grab Your Team- Although mind mapping is an activity that can be completed by yourself, it has a much more significant impact when conducted by a team. Here are the foundational steps to the mind-mapping structure. In addition, images and symbols are processed faster by the brain than words are, so using images will speed idea flow.Ĭreating a mind map is a simple process. You just need to understand the underlying structure. So it makes sense that you should experiment with your mind map to figure out how this might work for you. Whether we are aware of it or not, we tend to associate images and colors with ideas. Likewise, mind mapping allows creative people to jump from one idea to another in their idea capture without worrying about maintaining a linear approach. Instead, new ideas occur as they write, which demand changes and new ideas at different parts of the book to keep the story intact. If you imagine an author writing a book – they don’t sit down and write it by starting at page one and writing every page in order until they reach the end. This flexibility is ideal for creating flow and going where inspiration leads. A mind map mirrors how the brain functions and “maps out” our thoughts using associations, connections, and triggers to stimulate ideas.

It connects our ideas and our memories to countless other ideas and concepts. Our brain is built to create associations.

Mind maps work because they are not linear – they allow users to jump around from place to place in their thoughts. Mind maps are great for categorizing information together so that you can avoid being overwhelmed when trying to concentrate on many ideas simultaneously. They can be made by hand, with pen and paper, or by using software.

Mind-mapping creates a visualization of ideas by creating a document that combines words, statements, images and arranges them by their relationship to each other. Mind maps are a common tool used to jump-start the ideation phase of a reinvention effort. When social impact leaders are faced with disruption, they often need to generate many new ideas quickly.
