Opher Brayer’s Blog

When we encounter information, events, people, data etc., our mind is trying to convert it into more meaningful knowledge. We do that by bringing the data into our bank of inner information and we try to associate and make analogies about the common denominator of the outer data and information and the inner one as well.

Information, when combined, brings, usually, new insights, and changes perception about what we encounter. This is basically an automatic creative process, which most people can do without learning any special techniques. If you add questioning, which is an art by itself, the higher your capabilities are, the higher your solutions and inventions will be.

A mind map is a diagram used to represent words, ideas, tasks or other items linked to and arranged radially around a central key word or idea. It is used to generate, visualize, structure and classify ideas, and as an aid in study, organization, problem solving, and decision making.

(from Wikipedia term on Mind Mapping)

Although the mind could create this process without any special skills, it is also limited by its ability to see and search in different directions at the same time. The mind is capable to associate in different directions, but at the same time the mind will choose only a linear one to move on and create multiple possibilities within this one direction. This is also the critical point of the process. While you create new associations within this one direction, which is the right way to go, you also lose different venues which you have been able to search and which could also lead you to better solutions and ideas. Using the Mind Mapping techniques and technology could help anyone to go back and forth within different directions and possibilities at the same time. No brain could match this without these tools. I suggest that you read Tony Buzans’ books about Mind Mapping. Tony Buzan is a world expert in Mind Mapping, and you can find more resources at his website.

While you can use paper and pen for creating your Mind Maps, my friend Eran Lagon, recommends FreeMind - free Mind Mapping software. One of its big advantages is the fact that it multi platform, and it will run on Windows, Linux and Mac.

Go Create!

Opher