Hi there,
Does anyone use mind maps for all your notes or todos, on a regular basis? If so, do you apply mind mapping principles in tandem with other memory techniques (memory palace etc.)? I happened to stumble upon a video where a person seemed to be using mind maps even for daily todos/task management - that led me to ask in here to see if you guys have any specific habits in regards to mind mapping.
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Hi @naveenroyv ,
I use it not daily but from time to time.
The thing for me is that a mind-map is limited to only one word/image per node.
So if you need to have an explanation for a word or concept, you need to write it sometimes on another paper.
It is a good tool to get an overview of the subjects you want to discover.
But if you want to have something you have to share with other people, sometimes you need to explain it in another step ( make a more traditional note ).
That is even so when the other persons know mind-mapping, some keywords can have only for you a special meaning in the context of the discussed subject.
And need to be explained to others in more details.
Or sometimes I make a mind-map for an overview in my diary, but on the next page I describe in more details what that means.
For me I found the bullet journal method for this a good combination.
Because for every subject you have a clear symbol to divide it from the old one.
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Hello 
I use mind mapping especially for note taking and when I read.
When I read, I want to memorize my non fiction books. So I resume every chapter in mind maps in the book and sometimes I make a bigger mind map of all the small ones and then, I use the draws and ideas in the mind map to put into a memory palace.
Mind mapping is much faster to take notes (I take less then 5 min for each chapter) and also very easy for recalling informations. Its a good way to synthetize informations that I can, after, put in y MP
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That’s a great hint, thanks!
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Thanks @QuaraMan and @CelineDL , those are some neat ideas.
I stumbled upon this video where the author maps out a life plan via mind mapping, found it really interesting.
For notes, I also find mind maps to be tremendously useful for recall. My algorithm these days is usually - start with linear notes via an app like Google keep or docs(depending on how big the idea is), then transfer the note to a mind map via pen and paper to give those ideas concise visual form. I don’t go too crazy on packing every node with every piece of information - each node is just a keyword or a symbol meant to invoke active recall. If I can’t seem to recall the information encoded in the node, I can always refer back to my linear notes then tweak the mind map.
I understand that mind mapping may have other uses as well - brainstorming, for example, but I feel that in general it’s such an underrated tool in the notetaking space.
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I have not personally found mind mapping useful for note taking - unless reproducing ideas already in memory and seeking to expand them.
I don’t think mind maps must be limited to one image or idea per node as @QuaraMan frames it, but a lot depends on the nature of the idea/image. Part of Buzan’s point and his use of the term “radiant thinking” was precisely to avoid such limitations.
Thus, I heard him loud and clear when he himself said he abandoned mind maps for memory quite early on. I think that was premature and there is a simple way to fuse mind maps with Memory Palaces. But overall, I feel he was right to focus on their power for developing understanding and their use in planning/seeing what belongs in a plan that would otherwise remain hidden in linear outlining.
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Hi @metivier ,
Buzan mentioned in the rules for mind maps to have only one word or a very short phrase.
But my point was not to follow such rules.
When you do Mind Maps you have physical limits.
Especially when you do analog mind maps.
At the end of the paper you have nothing to write the ending of a sentence.
For an emotional event ( for example a work day that was worse ) I use this technique:
A page for mind mapping
A page/pages for linear notes
In this way I can write down whole paragraphs and write later the keywords in the mind map.
@naveenroyv : Thank you for the video I will watch it later.
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Thanks, @QuaraMan, I’m certainly no advocate of blindly following rules.
The point I should have drawn out is the selection of the word or image. In my memory, Buzan is quite clear that the choice of these things matters a great deal.
Thus, woe to those who choose bland and uninspiring keywords and images. Poor choices diminish the point and the power of mind mapping in the first place.
Likewise when playing keywords and associations in Memory Palaces. There’s no reason why a single image or keyword can’t remind you of several things at the same time. In my practice, I rely on this characteristic of well-chosen, multi-sensory prompts.
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@metivier yes as he explains in his books many times: A mind map is not only a collection of images in a sorted way, it is itself an image.
For example I had this weekend a good mind map session about a work problem.
I needed to create the mind map multiple times, because the problem was first that I had emotions that are standing in the way.
But later I realized that it is a big problem not for myself but for the staff I help in my function as person for IT Solutions.
So I ended with a big mind map and later with a well structured mail to the management to describe the problem.
A Mind Map can help to get the details of a problem in every aspect.
Without emotional writing like I see in many mails I get.
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- Mind mapping is widely used in education, business, and creative fields. In education, children often use mind maps to learn concepts and remember information presented visually. In business, mind maps are used to plan strategies and projects, and to gain insight into customer needs. Creatives often use mind maps to brainstorm ideas, and to visualize solutions before beginning a project.