Key features of buzan approach
There are four essential tools that you must have when you are about to create a mind map for any purpose. If you do not have these four tools, your ability to open your mind, and harness its full potential will be severely limited.
Alongside these essential tools to mastering the art of mind mapping, there are a few rules that will make your experience better, and allow you to become more able to fully access the tremendous power that your brain is capable of.
- You must have a blank piece of paper, which has no other markings on it, and it must be landscape in nature.
- You must have access to, and the ability to use, colouring writing equipment. This is very essential.
- You need to have the ability to open your imagination.
- You need to harness your brain.
Alongside these essential tools to mastering the art of mind mapping, there are a few rules that will make your experience better, and allow you to become more able to fully access the tremendous power that your brain is capable of.
- You have to start at the centre of the page. By starting at the centre of the page, you are allowing yourself the freedom to move in any direction, and you are more capable to express freely exactly what your mind is trying to express. Make the first branches thick, and the branches become thinner as they extend out to other branches. It is important that the first branches from the centre image are the thickest, as this shows that they are the key concepts, and are the most important.
- In the centre you should use an image of a picture. there is an old saying that an image is worth a thousand words, so by having a image in the middle, you already have 1000 words on your page.
- You must use colours. It is suggested that you use one colour per main idea. This not only allows your brain to remember by association, but also excited your mind, and makes the thought process less dull.
- Connect all branches to one of the main ideas. This allows your mind to connect that idea to one of the main ideas by association. Variation in size highlights importance of the concept and terms used.
- Make your branches curved. This allows the brain to remain interested, and not become bored by a page full of straight lines.
- Use only one keyword per branch. This allows your brain to make connections easier, and allows the flexibility to grow your map, without making it look cluttered. Your brain is also stimulated and it is easier to remember one word. Time is saved when you only put in the key words, as you no longer have to search through loads of print before you get to the important stuff.
- Use many images and questions. Questions will jolt your mind into thinking things, and images are worth 1000 words, so by having a few images, you already have a few thousand words. Also using a variation in text size will mean the mind can remember each thing easier.
- Last but not least, be spontaneous, and explode onto the paper with your thoughts. Do not stop to think, as you will lose the go forward. Have fun while doing this.
Image from Buzan (2011).