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

2. Greetings from New Glarus!

3. What is Mind Mapping?

4. 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”

5. 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

6. Example – This Presentation

7. Example – A Project

8. “Swiss Army Knife for the Brain” - Tony Buzan

9. 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

10. 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

11. 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

12. 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

13. 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

14. 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.

15. 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: and