Can I become a source of inspiration?

No doubts anymore for current or future users of iMindMap that a mind map software can cope with (wo)man’s creativity. Discover another nice looking mind map in the form of a tree created with iMindMap 5.

Cliquez ici pour voir la version française du billet

I’m happy to see how my last post about post-it in mind maps with iMindMap (beyond-limits-of-software) has been welcomed by the community. All of that is very new for me and this enthusiasm about my work can only boost me in doing more.

I was looking around on Biggerplate for nice mind maps. I mostly found a lot of great content about various subjects but presented with rather limited imagination. I have the impression (more than that, I’m a bit frightened) that computer based mindmapping is become so accessible and easy that mind map creators tend to forget the use of their right brain, one of the golden rules. We learned how important curves, images, dimensions, colors are essential in the creative thinking or memorisation process. If all the mind maps start to have the same 6 default colors, located at the same default position, displaying same kind of branches, using similar default central images or typical cliparts, we will quickly loose signs of imagination and creativity. The ultimate result is that more and more mind maps will appear approximately the same. This said, I don’t want to minimise the effort put into creating very interesting content in mind maps and having all of that accessible in a repository such as Biggerplate is wonderful. I’m just asking for more creativity and imagination when drawing them.

In order to remove some doubts current or future users of iMindMap might still have about the ability of the software to cope with (wo)man’s creativity, I’ve created another nice looking mind map in the form of a tree. You have already probably seen handmade mind maps with an old tree as a central image and wooden branches for developing the ideas. I just decided that it would be possible to create such a mind map with iMindMap 5. I’m proud of the the result that I’m posting here for you.



Causes and Effects of Deforestation or How to make a tree with iMindMap 5



Because I wanted to be complete in the approach, I selected a subject and quickly developed the ideas at first and second levels. It’s about the main causes and effects of deforestation. It’s just an example that illustrates the usage of the map. I invite you to take it as a template and adapt it for your own purpose. But maybe you don’t believe it’s a true iMindMap file so I also invite you to see the presentation mode in action.

I see several advantages with this kind of mind map:

• It has the look and feel of a drawing but it is a computer assisted mind map that you can adapt, edit and expand on the fly according to your need;
• It’s fresh, giving another dimension of something that could become at longer term boring, like most of freemind or mindmanager mind maps (again talking about the visual aspect, not the content);
• Because it’s quite different in the shaping, you might enjoy reading it more and need less effort to remember its content (or at least it will hit your mind more). If you look at it for a while and you close your eyes, you should be able to redraw it in your imagination and replace the content straight away;
• In the presentation mode, you will appreciate again the dynamic and originality of the flow, creating a “wow!” effect in the audience.

This kind of work is really inspiring me to go further in the domain. I have other ideas I will share with you very soon. In the meantime, if you have ideas about other out-of-the box mind maps I could try to draw, do not hesitate to post your suggestions. It will be a pleasure to sketch it.

For those who are interested by the iMindMap file, it is uploaded on the Biggerplate platform and accessible on http://www.biggerplate.com/mindmaps/rue92IJ8/philippe-packu-causes-and-effects-of-deforestation-or-how-to-to-make-a-tree-with-imindmap

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Beyond the limits of a software

An important ingredient of an outstanding mind map is its visual dimension with the use of colours and spacial elements. With the introduction of mind mapping on computers, creators of true mind maps have the feeling of being limited in their creativity. But what computer applications deliver also depends on your ability to overtake the limits, to imagine beyond what you think the software allows you to do.

Cliquez ici pour voir la version française du billet

An important ingredient of an outstanding mind map is its visual dimension with the use of colours and spacial elements. With the introduction of mindmapping  on computers, creators of true mind maps have the feeling of being limited in their creativity. They are partially right because it will take a couple of years before they will get the freedom we have with markers and paper.

On the other hand, what computer applications deliver also depends on your ability to overtake the limits, to imagine beyond what you think the software allows you to do. That’s why iMindMap is revolutionary and sets the precedent in the field. The assumption I will ask you to make is that not all your mind map images must come directly from the iMindMap environment. Indeed you have a lot of other surrounding  sources available in order to grab or build the most appropriate illustration for your ideas.

Because going out of the box is not easy, I will post mind maps created with iMindMap that I hope will inspire you to go further with the tool. If you find them interesting, I will also give you access to the resources that will allow you to reproduce similar mind maps for yourself.

Today, I propose you an alternative to the box branch (which is mainly used for multiple word ideas or statements) and use the famous post-it. We will see that the idea can be applied for floating text annotations as well. It’s essentially for creating astonishing presentations that I’m sharing this tip with you. I’m well aware that if we transform texts into images, we lose them for export or other usage.

Let’s imagine you and your team have brainstormed about changes that would help members to better communicate together. You end up with a lot of items on the flip chart and finally decide to vote and only keep the 6 most important ones. In order to create a contract, you have been assigned to re-formulate each item properly, present them to the team and print it out to have it signed by everybody. A traditional approach would be to list on a sheet of paper or a bit more innovative, to create a mindmap with 6 box branches, like here below.

6 tips for better communication - standard approach

I must admit that the second one is already more engaging than the first one. But is it really enough? We all like appealing things. If we want to remember something, it should talk to us. If we want to hang it on the wall and see it every morning, we want it to be cool. If we want to commit to it, we need to be proud of what we sign. So, the final output must be different and could be something like the one below.

6 tips for better communication - Engaging presentation

I hope you find this version much more attractive and you would sign a high resolution color printing of this map. It has been created with iMindMap 5, by exploiting the power of image attachments. In presentation mode, here is what you get:

I promised to give you the resources and the explanation that would allow you to include post-it in your mind maps. First, I would like to guarantee that all the images that I’m sharing with you here have been created by myself and I give you the authorisation to copy them for your own usage without any risk of copywriting pursuit.  Here are the post-it high resolution images..



Post-it / Yellow

Post-it / Pink

Post-it / Green

Here are the steps to get a post-it on your branch.

1. Open another application on your computer that would allow to write text on a picture. The easiest is to use Microsoft Powerpoint if you have MsOffice installed or a design tool of your choice; 
2. Import (or copy and paste) the post-it picture I created for you; 
3. Add a text box on top of it and write your text using the “Freestyle Script” font. I selected that one because it is representative of a hand writing which make more sense on a post-it. You can choose the font you like of course; 
4. Select both the post-it and the text box and copy the whole thing into the clipboard; 
5. Go to iMindMap, select your branch and paste the picture. You can resize, move and rotate the post-it picture according to your needs.

As mentioned earlier, you can also use the post-it to write and place a floating text annotation on your mind map. If you don’t want to link the post-it to a branch, paste your picture on the background (no branch selected). A new central idea will be created (iMindMap supports multi-maps) that you will be able to move and resize (rotation is not supported in this case). I recommend that you turn off Smart Layout (Format menu) if you want to place the post-it concurrently with your initial mindmap.

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Did you mindmap me?

My colleague was surprised when he discovered that I summarized the main characteritics of his personality with a mind map. Cliquez ici pour voir la version française du billet

Today I attended an interesting training session mainly focused on communication. One of the exercises proposed by the trainer was to practice for few minutes with a partner and identify the things that mattered most to him in a given context (ie work).

During my interview, I took some notes but I really wanted to draw a mind map. However, I chose not to raise the issue with my partner in order to avoid disrupting his concentration. Once the exercise was finished, I used the break to take a few colored markers available to us and I made a quick mind map outlining the interests of my colleague. On his return, I was happy to explain my approach and offered him the map. He exclaimed "Wow! Did you mindmapped me?”. He was surprised by the gesture but not by the content. He was aware of the Buzan method and the subject seemed to interest him much. He made me the pleasure of photographing the mind map that I gladly share with you.

Quick mind map for a colleague

The mind map is actually not very elaborated but it is not the primary object of this post. This is to demonstrate that a mind map is also a tool for socialization and fun because it brings pleasure easily to the one who performs but also to those who receive.

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