Mind Mapping Your Library Mind Mapping Your Life Denise Anton Wright Public Library Administration Consultant South Central Library System Madison, Wisconsin

Greetings from New Glarus!

What is Mind Mapping?

Why Do Mind Mapping? Very versatile process; wide range of uses Suitable for professional & personal situations Each mind map is unique – reflects the thoughts of the creator (great for the memory) “What you think about – you bring about”

What You Can Do with Mind Mapping Presenter notes for lectures / presentations Notes from texts / books Notes from talks, presentations & discussions Project management Knowledge management Exam preparation

Example – This Presentation

Example – A Project

“Swiss Army Knife for the Brain” - Tony Buzan

Tony Buzan (1942 - ) Former science reporter Late 1960s – need for efficient note taking Roger Sperry’s “split brain” research Researched extraordinary people 1970s BBC television series “Use Your Head” Author, speaker, consultant iMindMap software

Why Does Mind Mapping Work? “Brain friendly” “Pictorial Superiority Effect” = visual stimuli take precedence over other sensory stimuli Reducing chunks of text, replace them with visualizations = better for your brain Our thinking = unpredictable, led by association & oriented towards key concepts

What Mind Mapping Can’t Do (other presentation methods are better suited) Linear information (for example, giving directions ) Process presentations / process charts (the logic is different than Mind Maps) Mathematical expressions

Mind Mapping Formats Traditional (paper and pencils / markers) Most flexible Fits into most settings “muscle memory” Computer / Device software Easy to share Professional appearance Easily updated

Let’s Get Mind Mapping What you’ll need: Perfection is not required A topic / issue / task / process to mind map White paper (legal size is great!) Colored markers / pencils / pens Imagination & Creativity

Let’s Get Mind Mapping Tips & Suggestions Always begin in the middle of your mind map Branches always connect to the main idea or other levels of branches – use as many branches as needed (curved branches) Keywords instead of phrases Colors distinguish one branch from another Personalize with drawings, symbols, etc.

Useful Resources Tony Buzan has published widely (books, e-books, DVDs, etc.) on the topic of mind mapping Many of his students have also published on the subject There’s also great information available on YouTube (including interviews with Buzan) Official Tony Buzan sites: www.tonybuzan.com and http://thinkbuzan.com