If you are sad because you’ve been looking forward to getting a weekly tip into you email inbox, don’t worry, something else and hopefully something better will replace it.

I started the ‘your weekly tutor’ to serve two purposes. Firstly, to create content for my new blogging website, MindMapTutor.com and secondly, to get a mailing list of followers that could serve as a yardstick to measure my degree of success, or failure.

I am now happy that I have achieved both objectives. MindMapTutor.com is a well established Mind Mapping authority on the Internet. My list of followers have also grown satisfactorily.

But there was a problem with the Blog format. I wasn’t happy with the way the content was organised for you, the reader. I wanted you to be able to get maximum benefit from the content.

Blogs are organised chronologically by default. This means that it’s mainly the new articles that get focus. The older ones just drop of the map.

If you are interested in a particular branch of Mind Mapping, it is very difficult to follow related articles on MindMapTutor.com.

With this in Mind, I started UsingMindMaps.com. By starting a ‘normal’ website, I could organise the content in a structure that was more ‘reader friendly’. I’ve been running both in parallel for a few months now, but the duplication of effort has become too great to sustain.

To make things easier, I’ve decided to provide the following touchpoints:

1. Set up of a new UsingMindMaps Facebook page.

The UsingMindMaps Facebook page will allow a community of people that are using, or want to use Mind Maps in their daily lives, to grow. I want it to become a community of ordinary people doing extraordinary things with Mind Maps.

The community allows two way communication, where you can not only give input on how you are using Mind Maps, but also connect with fellow Mind Mappers. In this way, we can all learn from each other’s experiences.

I hope to attract both newbies and expert Mind Mappers, as we can learn the most by being in touch with fellow Mind Mappers.

The Facebook page will also enable me to get your input and give you insight on our latest projects.

I foresee an exciting and vibrant community that is willing to share and collaborate with each other to make a difference.

So, join us on Facebook now. The page is still young, so get in now and be one of the people that helps take the community forward.

2. MindMapTutor Blog

MindMapTutor.com will be run more as a Blog and News site than before. I will update the blog as and when I find useful information to blog about.

I have not been a traditional blogger until now, as my articles were ‘real’ articles. This means that they were researched, drafted and redrafted before being published.

The blog will be more off the cuff opinions and news about Using Mind Maps and progress updates of our MindMapTutor developments.

I hope that this will therefore be more personal. It will also allow you to comment on updates and give input into the type of material that you would like.

If you don’t do anything, you will still get blog updates to your inbox, but it will not be the same as the ones you get at the moment.

The updates may be more regular, but also more erratic. So, if you don’t want this, feel free to unsubscribe and you will immediately be removed  from the list.

I don’t want be accused of sending you junk mail. It is not my policy to spam you with marketing information, as regular readers know.

3. UsingMindMaps.com

This will be the content resource centre.

It already needs a bit of revamping to get the content categorised better. I will continuously try to ensure that the content is organised in a way that is easily accessible and gives you maximum benefit.

I also publish a monthly newsletter on UsingMindMaps.com. So if you want to still get the good quality content that you’ve become used to in your Email inbox, subscribe now to our monthly newsletter.

The monthly newsletter will highlight the articles of the previous month, as you may miss them on the sight because the website is not organised chronologically.

The newsletter will also highlight what’s coming and have some news on the latest projects and activities.

You will also be given the latest tips and techniques on using Mind Maps when you subscribe to our newsletter.

To encourage you to sign up, we are offering some valuable freebies. So sign up today to get maximum value from UsingMindMaps.com.

I hope these changes will make your Mind Mapping experience a good one and that you will be able to start reaping all the benefits that Mind Mapping can give you.

This week’s article starts with a quote of Chris Brogan, which summarises some aspects of learning in the Digital Age.

“You probably don’t give yourself credit for all you DO know about social media:

• You know about YouTube, that it’s more than dogs on skateboards.
• You know about Facebook, that it’s not just for kids any more.
• You know about blogs, and at least two places you can blog for free.
• You know the difference in mainstream news and social news.
• You know where to find tech advice, marketing advice, sales advice, what matters to you advice.
• You know what a wiki is, what a Flickr is, what a twitter is.
• You know lots, and have helped others around you understand even more.

Who are you teaching? Where are you laying down your knowledge?”

While this quote is about Social Media, it is very relevant to learning in the digital age.

There is a wonderful diagram in ‘Use your Head’ by Tony Buzan, the inventor of the Mind Map. It has a person at the centre and lots of various disciplines radiating out of the person.

This depicts the fact that every piece of knowledge is somehow related to every other piece of knowledge.

If you are a knowledge worker, you probably spend a lot of time on The Internet. There is probably not a topic under the sun that you can’t Google and get results.

But, what I want to highlight in this article is not the fact that you get so many results, as most topics will bring back millions of results if typed into Google.

Have you noticed sometimes that the results seem unrelated and that you sometimes end up on a completely ‘wrong’ page?

This is no fault of your own, because as you surf The Internet, you click from one page to another via links on the various sites that you come across. A few minutes later, you come to a site that is completely different to the subject that you started searching for.

It is even worse if you are in a corporate environment, where you have to watch where you are going.

This is what Tony Buzan’s diagram means to me. In my previous article on maintaining lifelong learning, I quoted Leonardo da Vinci’s expertise in many disciplines. Many see him as the greatest mind that ever lived.

Using Mind Maps in your learning program will enable you to manage your various interests but also allow you to explore them to the fullest. It is the perfect complement to the digital age.

Now, let’s explore the tribe concept a bit

I’ll use the example of a computer programmer, as one of my passions is Information Technology. No programmer, or developer, as they are often called today is worth his/her salt without Google and The Internet. It is just simply amazing how many ‘Bloggers’ out there are sharing detailed knowledge of their programming skills and tips. They are not doing it for the money, or the fame. They are simply doing it for the love of it and their sense of belonging to a community.

Humans have always been gregarious by nature. The need to belong to a group or tribe has been wonderfully described in Seth Godin’s ‘Tribes’ concept.

Tribes are easier to form today because of technology. Years ago families became clans and clans became tribes. This was geographically determined, as people need to be able to bond and communicate to be in a successful tribe. Even with limited mobility, people joined various tribes and some even belonged to more than one tribe.

Now let’s fastforward to the present day. New tribes are being formed every day, based on the same principles of ‘belonging’, communication and sharing common interests. The only difference is that these tribes are being formed online.

There are some people that just ‘don’t get it’. This does not alter the fact that the Facebooks, Blogs and Twitters of this world have somehow appealed to a deep rooted need of many people and have millions of followers. Like any tribe, there are scandals, squabbles but more importantly, there is also a lot of connection, fun and a sense of belonging.

This is largely true of my endeavours on The Internet around Mind Mapping, lifelong learning and Using Mind Maps in your daily life to get a competitive advantage.

Every tribe needs a leader. I happen to be the leader of my own tribe. The people that subscribe to my blog, my newsletter and even the Facebook and Twitter followers all belong to my tribe.

My role as leader is to keep the tribe happy by providing them with information around common interests, i.e. lifelong learning, Mind Maps and getting a competitive edge by being able to learn faster and easier.

Most of the information is given freely in a spirit of sharing and growing the tribe. Yes, I do sell our learning management program, but that is done after getting the confidence of the tribe. Most of the people that end up purchasing are people that have been around for a while and visit the site regularly. They have built up a sense of trust and feel that whatever they buy will benefit them.

I, on the other hand, as the leader of the tribe try to ensure that what they purchase is worth more than what is freely available. I do this by providing concise, practical guides that cut through all the clutter.

As I said at the beginning of this article, if you Google any topic, you could get back millions of results -  some related and some not.

By taking any subject and putting it into a MindMapTutor, I am able to give you what is needed, but also allow you to expand it in your own unique way.

In this way, I hope to build up a bigger group of followers that willingly follow me, thus increasing the size of the tribe.

The new ‘virtual’ tribes cannot be dictators. After all, leaving the tribe is just one click away!

To conclude, I’ve posted a wonderful video on our Facebook page, showing how kids learn in the Digital World. How are you engaging with them?

As a South African, I feel an extreme sense of pride and joy, as I am posting this article on the birthday of the great Nelson Mandela.

Today, 18 July, has been declared international ‘Mandela Day‘ by the United Nations General Assembly, where everyone is encouraged to do some good for humanity on this day.

This article, the free articles on MindMapTutor.com and UsingMindMaps.com, as well as the free weekly tips are all done in the spirit of giving before you get.

Today, I would like you to put together a plan for lifelong learning.

As Nelson Mandela said about education:

‘Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.’
Nelson Mandela

In South Africa, we are once again in the wake of another major educational change in our school curriculum. But it’s not merely the change to the curriculum that’s making waves, it is the change in the methodology that is causing so much debate and even disruption.

South Africa needed a change in its approach to education after the first free elections in 1994. This brought about major revisions to the curriculum and the methods of teaching and learning.

The ‘Brain Trust’, being the Educational Department, concluded that ‘Outcomes Based Education‘ (OBE) would be the new standard. With OBE came along new methods, new terminology and a learner centric approach to learning, versus a teacher centric approach. It all sounded great.

Unfortunately the practical implementation did not go as well as the academic discussions did.

This led to the current and previous revisions.

The biggest problem that this created, in my opinion, is uncertainty in both parents and students.

While the South African education problem has been, and will still be, debated to death, time marches on. Learners are still graduating every year. They are entering tertiary institutions like universities and colleges. They are entering the workplace and some are becoming entrepreneurs.

What is the message that must be given to them?

While I am not an academic, I am a ‘knowledge worker‘. I’ve made my living in an industry (information technology) that requires constant learning and innovation. My ability to learn faster than my competitor is a definite advantage.

This advantage has taken me from the ‘Third World’ to Europe, where I could apply my knowledge in my chosen field and learn a new language, Dutch.

It allowed me to change career focus as and when I needed.

And it afforded me to write this highly opinionated article today!

Luckily, I am married to an education specialist. She helped me put together a Learning Management Program that can be used to learn any subject under the sun. The program has been tested in the classroom, in the workplace and in self-study.

The strange thing about the program (to me anyway), is the interest that has been shown by people all over the world. Since the program has been packaged into an easily accessible Ebook format, it is now easy available for world wide access and instant download.

Does this mean that educational systems all over the world are in disarray? This conclusion would cause world wide anarchy. But is does mean that brains are in quandary, as Tony Buzan, the inventor of the Mind Map, states in ‘The Mind Map Book’. This is not a South African problem, but a world wide problem.

What has really changed?

With so many different opinions on educational systems all over the world, it is rather obvious to a non-academic like myself that none of them are correct – and all of them are correct. (That should cover me).

If you asked the question: ‘What is a knowledgeable person?‘ today, what would the answer be. Would the answer have been any different if it was asked centuries ago?

Would a person like Leonardo da Vinci be a great mind today?

The answer is a most emphatic ‘Yes!’

I am going to give you some characteristics that I think a brilliant mind should have. I am also going to show you that you can still acquire a brilliant mind if you start now.

And if you acquire these characteristics, you will immediately start improving your competitive advantage.

A great mind has a good memory

Throughout the ages, people have been astounded and impressed by people with great memories. Your ability to recall facts where and when you need it is indispensable. If you start applying memory techniques to your daily life, you will see almost immediate rewards.

The Mind Map is the ultimate mnemonic and memory tool. It is for this reason that Tony Buzan dubbed it the ‘Swiss Army Knife of The Brain’.

The articles on our website UsingMindMaps.com should get you started with Mind Mapping. Our Learning Management Program will really get you going.

No matter the country, the language, the education system – improving your memory can only give you advantages over those with poor memories.

A great mind can apply what has been learned

Once again, let’s look at Leonardo da Vinci. He has left behind a legacy of applying his knowledge. We know that he was a great mind because of the practical applications of his knowledge, not the volumes of textbooks that he wrote on the subject.

He even has a lot of impractical models that would never work, as a part of that legacy.

In other words, even he was not always right!

Don’t be afraid. Apply what you have learned. Use the scientific approach, which is as follows:

• You start with hypothesis
• You test the hypothesis
• You get feedback from the tests
• You do some more tests based on the feedback
• Continue until you succeed

There is a statement goes something like: ‘To succeed more often, you have to fail more often‘. In other words, the more attempts you make, the greater the likelihood of success, (but also the greater the likelihood of failure).

Thomas Edison, arguably one of the greatest inventors of the modern era, is reported to have failed 10,000 times before he successfully invented the incandescent light bulb.

A great mind shows insight

By continuously improving your memory and applying what you have learned, you will in a very short space of time begin to show insights that other people find amazing.

Those are the same characteristics that define a genius.

By improving your memory and applying what you have learned, you will start to make connections between diverse subjects. Those connections will bring about a new thinking, a new approach.

This is how human knowledge evolves.

Coming back to the great Leonardo da Vinci, you will see that he was a great mathematician, scientist, inventor, artist and lots more.

Does your current approach to learning enable you to do this?

Most people stop structured learning once they stop formal education. What they don’t realise is that their school, college and university qualifications are only the beginning.

It is with this in mind that our Learning Management Program was put together. There is nothing new in it, but it does package things in a simple 10 step program that virtually guarantees that you will learn faster and easier, than with having no system.

The program prepares you for learning by revisiting your vision, your goals, your time management and gets you motivated to succeed.

You then go about honing the skills needed: memory, reading and note taking.

After this, you refine the application of the skills by developing a method to learn, study and test your knowledge.

The program ends with advice on keeping sharp by looking after your Mind, Body and Spirit.

All this is done with Mind Maps, using our unique MindMapTutor concept.

Conclusion

While educational systems all over the world differ, the concept of a great mind is almost universal.

You therefore need an approach to learning that can be applied within any system – in any country.

It is with the universal principles of Recall, Application and Insight that our Learning Management Program was developed so that you can stay on a path of lifelong learning and maintain a competitive edge by being able to learn faster and easier.

I’ve given you enough information to develop your own program, but I recommend that you get hold of our Learning Management Program today, so that you can speed up the process of lifelong learning  – starting NOW!

Our methods are easy to learn, simple to use and produce fast results – no matter what educational system you are using.

This is called the Law of diminishing returns.

Years ago, I purchased a book written by Tony Little called ‘Technique! Target Training for a Fat-Free body’. While he is quite a controversial character and self proclaimed “America’s personal trainer”, his advice on technique stuck with me.

If you look at any of the top performing athletes, you will see that most of them have a technical coach. As good as they are, they are constantly working on their technique.

We are coming to the end of the 2010 Fifa Soccer World Cup here in South Africa and you have to look no further than this amazing event to see the principle of ‘technique’ in action.

Not only individual technique, but also team technique was in many cases the differentiator between winners and losers.

The soccer players could train longer and harder and still underachieve, if the coaches did not focus on technique.

So whether you are a world record holder like Usain Bolt and Michael Phelps, a top tennis player like Venus and Serena Williams, or simply a person trying to get ahead in life, you have to focus on technique.

This is where Mind Maps and Mind Mapping come into their own. The Mind Map is such a great tool that it could help you improve your technique in just about anything.

Let’s assume you were a soccer player and you wanted to improve your kicking technique. Here is a simple example of how you could use a Mind Map to guide you:

You now have a simple tool to coach both yourself and others with.

The same goes for your learning and personal growth.

If you’ve been following my articles and the information on our websites, you will have noticed that we often quote that your ability to learn faster than you competitor may be your only sustainable competitive advantage (Arie de Geus).

It is with this in mind that we developed the Learning Management Program.

While the program is designed to help you manage your learning better, it focuses a lot on technique. All 10 modules:

• vision,
• motivation,
• goal setting,
• reading,
• note taking,
  
• memory,
  
• study methods,
  
• time management,
  
• exam technique,
  
• sound mind & sound body, focus on technique.

The Mind Mapping and other techniques in the program ensure that you are not only working harder, but working smarter.

Let’s use the Note Taking Module as an example

Tony Buzan, the inventor of the Mind Map, claims that 90% of the words use in traditional linear notes add nothing to the meaning. He goes on to say that memory is actually hindered by the fact that the important words are separated from each other by irrelevant words that add no value. The key principles of association and hierarchy are naturally lost in normal linear notes.

All this can be solved with Mind Maps and Mind Mapping.

If you continue to work harder without improving your note taking techniques, you are simply enforcing the principle of diminishing returns.

If you could improve just one aspect, e.g. your note taking technique, by purchasing our affordable Learning Management Program Ebook, you would already have gotten your money’s worth. We use a ‘hand holding method’ to take you from your traditional linear note taking methods to Mind Mapping using our unique MindMapTutor concept.

We also go into the Cornell Note Taking Method, which is a structured linear method.

It’s like running a marathon. You don’t just go out there and run 42 km on the first day. It takes months of training and preparation to get you running a marathon.

The same goes for Mind Mapping. You are not going to be an expert Mind Mapper in one day, but if you apply our techniques bit by bit, day by day, you will soon become a proficient note taker – simply because you are working on your technique.

Now imagine what you could achieve if you improved your technique in all the other areas covered in our Learning Management Program – You will have all the knowledge and skills to gain a competitive advantage by being able to learn faster and easier.

I would even go so far as to say that there is nothing new in our Learning Management Program, but you will have your own personal coach and tutor in one easy to read simple format to help you improve your technique.

The program is available as an affordable Ebook as well as an interactive Mind Map, which needs the OpenSource software, Xmind.

This program gives you all the knowledge, skills, attitudes and values required to put together your own Learning Management Program. By following the instructions, advice and tips in the program, you will learn how to learn using methods that are easy to learn, simple to use and produce fast results.

But – You still have to go and do it. It only tells you what must be done and how to do it – It does not do it for you. YOU must still go and do it yourself.

We all (including myself), struggle with getting things done. Luckily, I found a wonderful technique called the Pomodoro Technique by Francesco Cirillo.

He has quite a comprehensive free Ebook, which can be downloaded on http://www.pomodorotechnique.com.

The Website also covers the technique in more detail than this article. Please note that I am not affiliated to them in any way, nor do I receive any commission for items you purchase on the website. You also download or buy anything at your own risk.

We cover our unique approach to time management in some detail in The Learning Management Program. A good introduction to time management using Mind Maps can be found on UsingMindMaps.com.

The Mind Map techniques allow you to easily prioritise and manage your tasks. Now all you need is a method to actually do the tasks.

I have found that the most difficult thing in the world is to concentrate on one thing only for an extended period of time. We simply have too many distractions in the modern world. Even when writing this article, there will be phone calls, text messages, emails, Facebook, Twitter and lots of other possible distractions. What do I do? When do I attend to them? How do I manage my productivity?

I recently tried this with my 18 year old son, who is studying for his finals. He is in his last year at high school. Getting him to concentrate on one thing for an extended period of time is almost impossible.

Luckily, in stepped the Pomodoro Technique.

Before I get stuck into the technique, let me tell you a bit about the word Pomodoro. (I know you are dying to know!)

Pomodoro is the Italian word for tomato. “What has a tomato have to do with time management?” you may ask.

Francesco Cirillo describes the origins of the Pomodoro technique in his Ebook. I quote:

“…One day in the classroom on campus where I used to study, I watched my classmates with a critical eye…It was clear to me that the high number of distractions and interruptions and the low level of concentration and motivation were at the root cause of the confusion I was feeling…So I made a bet with myself…’Can you study, really study for 10 minutes?’ I needed objective validation, a Time Tutor, and I found one in a kitchen timer shaped like a pomodoro (the Italian for tomato) – in other words, I found my ‘Pomodoro’…”

This is how the Pomodoro Time Technique was born.

Let’s look at the steps as listed on http://www.pomodorotechnique.com:

• Choose a task to be accomplished
• Set the Pomodoro to 25 minutes (the Pomodoro is the timer)
• Work on the task until the Pomodoro rings, then put a check on your sheet of paper
• Take a short break (5 minutes is OK)
• Every 4 Pomodoros take a longer break

Choose a task to be accomplished

This step assumes that you tasks have already been identified and prioritised. We suggest that you use Mind Maps to organise and prioritise your tasks.

Choose one task and only one task to do and then follow the technique to complete the task.

Set the Pomodoro to 25 minutes (the Pomodoro is the timer)

Cirillo recommends 25 minutes as the unit of time that you choose. I think that you can choose any unit that works for you. At the moment, I stick to the 25 minute rule.

I use my mobile phone as my timer, but you could purchase a proper pomodoro timer. You can also get free pomodoro software for your PC, Mac, iPhone, or Android Phone.

Work on the task until the Pomodoro rings, then put a check on your sheet of paper

This is the most important step for me. Work on the chosen task until the Pomodoro rings. Focus on nothing else.

This requires some preparation beforehand, as you need to ignore phone calls, text messages, the urge to surf the net…

You need to ignore ANY interruption that will prevent you from accomplishing the task.

You then work until the Pomodoro rings – AND THEN YOU STOP.

The urge will be there to continue working, but the technique works well if you stop immediately and take a break.

This will be one Pomodoro unit. Record the completion of the unit using a mark on a page, in a book or on your computer.

A Pomodoro unit is always a complete unit.

Take a short break (5 minutes is OK)

This is important. Resist the urge to continue working, even if you didn’t work flat out during your Pomodoro unit of work.

You will get better at focusing on one task at a time and giving it 100%.

Your productivity and effectiveness will increase over time and soon you will be able to measure your effort in Pomodoro units, which are real units of work done and not just elapsed time.

Every 4 Pomodoros take a longer break

If each Pomodoro consists of 25 minutes and a five minute break, then two Pomodoros make up an hour’s work. Four Pomodoros equate to two hours work and is referred to as a Pomodoro Set.

After a Pomodoro Set, take a longer break.

This means that you will be taking a longer break every two hours. How long you break, is up to you. Cirillo once again recommends a 25 minute break.

Conclusion

I don’t always use the Pomodoro technique, but I do use it when learning, or when writing, or when I need to dedicate my time to a known task.

As many of you may know by now I write an article once a week, which gets posted to my website and delivered to my email subscriber list. To prepare for this article, I do research and then create a framework of what I would like to write about (Using Mind Maps of course).

But when it comes to the actual writing of the article, I try my utmost to set my Pomodoro and do nothing but write. I don’t browse the Internet, look at email or answer phones. I ignore Twitter, Facebook and other Social Media distractions. I try to focus on the task at hand.

I don’t say that I always win – But I am definitely more productive and more effective by applying the Pomodoro technique.

Thank you Francesco Cirillo!

Nothing is further from the truth! I pay lots of homage to Tony Buzan, as he is the master. I am but a humble student.

But, I have taken his instructions to Accept, Apply and Adapt and used it in the development of the MindMapTutor concept and use it as a Tutor or Teacher.

The MindMapTutor is used to not only teach by using Mind Maps, but to teach without the use of a physical teacher. In other words, it has been designed for self-study.

The MindMapTutor is self-sufficient in that it delivers both detailed content and Mind Map Summaries. This enables me to deliver content in areas where I am the Subject Matter Expert. It also allows me to engage with other subject matter experts and get them to deliver their knowledge using Mind Maps.

This allows you to reap the benefits of engaging your whole brain in the learning process and putting you in the centre of the learning process.

This is made possible by linking Basic Ordering Ideas and detailed information in a single MindMapTutor.

To understand this concept a bit better, I am continuing on the subject of Basic Ordering Ideas in this article, and expanding on it.

I highlighted the importance of Basic Ordering Ideas in last week’s article. This article shows you how to expand on the Basic Ordering Ideas to give you the full picture.

According to the Mind Map Book, it was Barry Buzan, the brother of Tony Buzan that introduced the concept of Basic Ordering Ideas. He believed that the real power of Mind Maps lies in the Basic Ordering Ideas.

I tend to agree with him.

If you are struggling to extract your Basic Ordering Ideas, you could get hold of our Learning Management Program Ebook, which shows you how to extract the important information when reading. This can be applied to any text, including difficult academic text books.

Once you have your Basic Ordering Ideas, you need to start filling in the details. This is where most people struggle and also the reason for us developing the MindMapTutor concept.

Tony Buzan encourages us to create a Mega Mind Map, and this is where I started.

I used to get a big writing pad, which is often hard to come by and often very expensive, but it works. This was before I used software to create my Mind Maps. I created huge Mega Mind Maps, which were hand drawn, organic and colourful.

It became a problem for me though, as those big pages were difficult to carry around with me. It also forced me to revise at home only because of this.

After searching for a solution to this dilemma, I discovered the Cornell Method of linear Note Taking. This had Key Words in the left hand column and details on the right hand side. I then used Mind Maps only for the summaries and the Cornell Notes for the details. The Cornell Method is also covered in our Learning Management Program Ebook.

This worked very well for me and still works very well.

The initial MindMapTutor concept developed out of this, where I display a Summary Mind Map followed by explanatory text. Our Learning Management Program Ebook is written in this fashion. There are also some more examples on this MindMapTutor page and throughout UsingMindMaps.com.

With Mind Map Software, I was able to take this even further by including both the summary Mind Map and the detailed text in the same Mind Map. The next generation of the Learning Management Program is being written in this format and will be available from 1 July 2010. You can get it free, if you buy the affordable Learning Management Program Ebook before 30 June 2010.

The MindMapTutor is a departure from classical Mind Map Theory as taught by Tony Buzan. Classical Mind Map Theory (as I am calling it), requires one Key Word per line and everything on one Mega Mind Map.

I still use all of Tony Buzan’s Mind Map Principles when I am using Mind Maps during brainstorming or thinking. One Key Word per line allows the brain to generate an infinite number of ideas and allows unbelievable creative thinking.

The Mind Map also separates the thinking process from the writing process. You don’t have to worry about grammar, syntax, concord and other details during the thinking process, if you use Mind Maps.

But I use the MindMapTutor concept when using Mind Maps to teach or tutor.

I thought that a Mind Map is too good a tool to waste, when it comes to teaching, yet people battled when I gave them my personal Mind Maps, which were based on the Mind Map Principles. The fact that each branch had a single Key Word became a hindrance. I had to give them more details. But as I added more details, the number of branches exploded and the Mind Map became unwieldy.

I gradually started to put more words on a branch, but I wasn’t happy about this, as it breaks too many Mind Map Principles.

I found that having a summary Mind Map with all the necessary text to be the best compromise.

With the discovery of XMind, an OpenSource solution became available, where I could charge people for my knowledge and expertise and not for the tool.

The latest Learning Management Program is therefore an interactive Mind Map that provides all the details contained in the Ebook. You simply click on a branch to read the details.

Every detail is just a click away.

You can view samples of the New Interactive MindMapTutor here, to give you an idea of what is to come. Click on the outline button to get an idea of the content.

The version you get will be fully interactive. You can add your own thoughts, hyperlinks, Mind Maps, images, or whatever you want to.

The MindMapTutor contains Ten detail Mind Maps and an Overview Mind Map in one Xmind Workbook.

While the OpenSource version of XMind is great, you could also buy the Pro version of Xmind, which gives you added functionality and features, including project management, presentations, audio notes and lots more.

This approach allows you to get started quickly and cheaply, but also allows you to expand when you are ready.

But first get hold of our Learning Management program today and Mind Map your way to Effectiveness. Don’t forget, that if you buy on or before 30 June 2010, you will get the Interactive Mind Map Free.

Most subjects can be distilled into a few guiding principles, yet there are always volumes and volumes written on the subject.

Both are correct – and both are required.

You need the principles to organise and order your thoughts and you need the details for completeness and an in-depth understanding of the subject.

I will discuss this principle using our Learning Management Program as an example.

There are literally thousands of books written on the subject of learning. People spend their whole life learning Pedagogics, Andragogics, Didactics, Educational Psychology, Education Philosophy, Learning Theory, etc., etc.

Yet we have developed a simple 8 module Learning Management Program. How is this possible?

The secret lies in Basic Ordering Ideas, Principles, Categories and Hierarchies.

In our latest version, which will be published at the end of the month, we reduce the number of branches on the main Mind Map even further to four main branches.

• Preparation – Preparing yourself to learn
• The Skills – The Skills you need to learn efficiently
• Application – Applying your knowledge and Skilss
• Keeping Sharp – A Healthy Mind and a Healthy Body

This goes against the principles of more is better. Many authors believe that the thicker the book, the more authority it will have.

You may have come to believe this as well. What if I told you that less is more? Would you believe me?

Let’s explore how this is possible.

To understand this, you have to go into the basic principles of memory.

According to Tony Buzan, Categories and Hierarchies are the secret to a good memory. The categories should be the Key Concepts into which your Key Ideas can be organised. This in turn allows you to organise another set of ideas.

In a Mind Map, this naturally forms a hierarchy that is categorised. In our Learning Management Program Mind Map, each of the four main branches has one, or more, Mind Maps attached to it.

By using this hierarchical structure, organised into categories, you are best able to remember the principles that we are trying to put across.

This is what separates us from the thousands of academics and books on the subject.

If you learn how to be more effective with our program, you will end up with a few principles that guide you. Even if you apply only one principle effectively, you will be more successful.

Does this discredit all the academic literature on the subject? I don’t think so.

We had to read volumes on the subject, try different learning methods, test it in the classroom, use it in the workplace and test it for self-study before we could crystalise it into these few modules.

This is the secret of knowledge management in today’s Internet driven Information Age. You can Google just about any subject and get thousands, or even millions, of pages as a result, but how useful is this information?

The best way to make sense of all this, is to organise your thoughts into Categories and Hierarchies, or Basic Ordering Ideas.

Let’s explore the principles of Basic Ordering Ideas even further.

In ‘The Mind Map Book‘, Tony Buzan describes a case study done by Bower, Clark, Lesgold and Wimzenz in 1969, which demonstrated the importance of Categories and Hierarchies as an aid to memory.

In the experiment, the subjects were divided into two groups. Each group was shown four cards, with 28 words written on each card. They were later tested on their ability to recall the words.

• The people in Group 1 were shown words organised hierarchically.
• The people in Group 2 were shown the same words arranged randomly.

Which group do you think did better?

Tony Buzan also describes another experiment in his landmark work, ‘Use your Head‘. Subjects were once again divided into two groups and told that they will be tested on the contents of a book.

• Group 1 was told that they would be tested on the whole book.
• Group 2 was told that they would only be tested on the main themes.

Both groups were tested on the whole book, yet Group 2 did better than Group 1.

The main reason for the different results, was that Group 2 was looking for Basic Ordering Ideas, while Group 1 was trying to remember everything.

Let’s get back to our practical example, our Learning Management Program. The Learning Management Program has been organised into a few Basic Ordering Ideas that can be memorised in one sitting. By memorising the basic principles, you have a framework for the details.

This framework provides ‘mental hooks‘ for your brain as you read through the details. By creating your own overview Mind Map and a Mind Map for the details, you will be able to learn, understand and remember the principles quickly and easily.

We provide you with an overview Mind Map of each module, or chapter, as well as the details, in our affordable Ebook.

But, as I’ve been saying for the past few weeks, we are also developing an interactive MindMapTutor, which has the Basic Ordering Ideas as branches in the Mind Map. But we are going even further; we are providing the details in the Mind Map as well, using text notes.

We are able to deliver this to you with the aid of XMind. You are able to use the OpenSource version to open our MindMapTutor and interactively explore our Learning Management Program.

More importantly, you able to expand on it and add your own thoughts and ideas to the subject, making it your own. By doing this, you will make yourself the centre of the learning process and therefore get maximum benefit from the program.

Learning how to create Basic Ordering Ideas

Basic Ordering Ideas provide the Key to creating good Mind Maps and the key to a good memory. Yet, it is not very easy for many to do. Taking a vast subject and reducing it to a few Key Concepts can be quite scary for you. You may fear that you will be missing too much if you only have a Mind Map of the Basic Ordering Ideas.

It is with this in mind that we are developing our series of MindMapTutors that can give you a head start. We will be producing MindMapTutors on many subjects that we know will interest you, based on the feedback that we are getting to articles on our websites.

These MindMapTutors will allow you to interact with the subject using Mind Maps and also allow you to add your own thoughts. In this way, you will learn to work with Basic Ordering Ideas and also become an expert Mind Mapper.

(By the way, you will also master the subject in the process.)

We will also be giving this interactive Mind Map free to anybody that buys our Learning Management Program Ebook before 30 June 2010.

Lance Armstrong is arguably the best cyclist that ever lived.

Yet, his fame and achievements go beyond his seven Tour de France wins. His ultimate achievement lies entirely somewhere else.

In 1996, Lance Armstrong was diagnosed with testicular cancer. In 1999 he won the Tour de France, one of the most gruelling cycling races around. The Tour de France covers about 3,600 km (2,200 miles) across France and bordering countries and lasts three weeks.

This was to be the first of an unparalleled seven wins.

His story is one of grit, determination and the human spirit tackling difficulties head on. It is important to note that his book, ‘It’s Not About the Bike’, was written in 2000, just after his first Tour de France win in 1999. He went on to win seven Tour de France’s after this.

It wasn’t written after his successes, but during his struggles.

But why title the book, ‘It’s Not About the Bike’, and what has it to do with Mind Mapping?

There is an idiom that states: ‘A bad workman blames his tools‘, which, in my mind, summarises the principle Lance Armstrong wants to make.

Did Lance Armstrong have the best bike in the business? You bet he did. In fact, he revolutionised the way bicycles were made by using a ‘Formula One’ approach. Bikes used to be assembled from components made and designed by different manufacturers and designers. He got sponsors and manufacturers to collaborate to produce a bike that was designed as a coherent whole, possibly giving him the best bike in the business.

Yet, it’s still not about the bike!

You could give the same bike to a lesser athlete. Would they win seven Tour de France races?

The best workmen DO have the best tools, but it’s not about the tools.

The same goes for Mind Mapping and learning.

The Tools

Mind Maps are described as the Ultimate Thinking Tool and the ‘Swiss Army Knife‘ of the brain, by Tony Buzan, the inventor of the Mind Map.

I’ve seen many Mind Mappers draw perfect Mind Maps, following all the Mind Map Principles. They have a beautiful central image. Their branches are organic and colourful. They print on the branches, with one Key Word per branch.

Yet, they still do poorly.

Are Mind Maps to blame for their poor performance?

I’ve seen many non-Mind Mappers get very good results. Does this mean they can’t benefit from Mind Maps?

I believe a Mind Map is the greatest tool to bring out the best in you. But you need a broader, holistic approach to your learning; And you need to put in the work. There is no easy ride to victory. Look no further than Lance Armstrong’s gruelling recovery program.

Mind Maps will make your life easier and make learning more fun, but it will still be hard work.

All the more reason that you have to work smarter.

We believe that having a learning framework is so important, that we’ve put together an affordable Ebook on the subject to get you started before you invest in expensive tools and services.

If you don’t apply the correct learning principles when creating your Mind Maps, you could end up with a beautiful, colourful, organic Mind Map that meets all the Mind Map Principles, and still not perform.

Lance Armstrong still employed the best coaches, trainers and tools he could afford.

The Map and Reality

A map is not reality, it is just a Map of reality. Imagine visiting South Africa for the 2010 Fifa World Cup. You love soccer and this is the first time that the Fifa Soccer World Cup is being played on African soil.

You want to experience the adventure of travelling in Africa, yet enjoy some of the greatest football ever played. You want a guide that will take you there with the least amount of effort, yet provide you with the creativity and freedom to follow your own path.

You arrive in South Africa and go to the nearest market, where you buy a Map of the country. The Map is the most beautiful, colourful Map you have ever seen. But, it wasn’t drawn up by an expert cartographer and didn’t use accurate sources for the information on the Map. The Map doesn’t reflect reality accurately.

Very soon, you will distrust the Map. The less the Map reflects reality, the less you will trust it. Soon you will be looking out for another guide to the country.

You may find a personal guide that knows South Africa well and get the guide to take you through the country. The guide becomes a great help, and is most welcome in a foreign country like South Africa, which has a bad reputation and is notorious for being dangerous. Yet, the guide has limited knowledge on the subject and you are totally dependent on the guide to find your way. The guide is definitely not the best tool to explore the country. The guide does not empower you to explore the country like you envisaged, but the guide appears to be working well and is ‘safe’; just like your linear methods.

The same goes for Mind Maps. Mind Maps can unlock the unlimited potential of your wonderful brain. It can combine both your creative and logical side and allow you to use your brain just like the great geniuses of the world.

But, your Mind Map must reflect reality – It must reflect the content accurately. If not, you will start distrusting your Mind Maps and go back to old, linear ways.

Learning how to Learn

To do this, you need to revisit the way you learn. You need some kind of program that will take you from where you are to where you want to be. Lance Armstrong went on a vigorous program, both mentally and physically, once on the road to recovery.

You need to get on the program of lifelong learning. You need to get to understand good learning principles so that you can record and retrieve information as quickly and accurately as possible.

• You need to have a vision, become motivated, and set goals.
• You need to manage your time effectively.
• You need to read faster, with better comprehension.
• You need to record what you have read with more creativity and accuracy.
• You need to remember what you have read.
• You need to maintain a sound mind and a sound body.

Once you have all this in place, you can start talking about the quality of your ‘bike’.

We have taken these principles and put it into a Learning Management Program, and packaged it in an affordable Ebook to get you started. It is no silver bullet, but it will get you on the right path.

Once you have these principles in place, your Mind Mapping efforts will be improved. You will get better results with less effort and not continue with the law of diminishing returns, where you have to put in more and more effort, with smaller and smaller rewards.

By using Mind Maps to reflect the original content and your own thoughts accurately and by applying a good learning management program, you will soon realise that it’s not about the Mind Map – It’s about the content, and your ability to reflect it accurately and succinctly.

P.S. As stated last week, we are developing an interactive MindMapTutor using Opensource Software. The cost has not been finalised, but it will be much more than the cost of the Ebook. You can get it free, if you purchase the Ebook before end June.

But are you a Mind Mapper?

This question is particularly relevant if you’re on my email list and have been for months. Have you made the transition?

My guess is: Probably Not.

Why is it so difficult to change?

We found that using Mind Maps are easy, but creating them is a bit more difficult.

Teaching you the Mind Map basics is easy. Mind Maps are fun, colourful and engage the whole brain, so changing should be easy.

There are enough courses, books and websites on the subject for you to learn the Mind Map principles in a very short time.

Yet, changing from your linear ways is hard.

The Linear Way is a part of your life blood. You were taught throughout your life with linear methods. All your note taking during your development years has been linear.

Things that are learned early in life are the hardest to change or unlearn. Early conceptions of the world, even if lost to consciousness, remain a part of our memory and may influence our behaviors in some very interesting ways. (Barry Greenwald, Ph.D)

During our use of Mind Maps and our experiences in teaching with Mind Maps, we found that the problem does not lie in the Mind Map Principles, or in the Steps used to create a Mind Map.

The problem lies in your ability to change.

For you to change, you have to consciously go back to learning how to learn. People look at my MindMapTutor summaries of popular books and say: ‘That’s easy!‘

What they don’t realise is that there’s are over two decades of Mind Mapping experience embedded in the creation of that Mind Map.

Have a look at my MindMapTutors on The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, or the Six Thinking Hats. I believe that I’ve covered the essence of the books in those Mind Maps.

An urban legend of Pablo Picasso illustrates this principle even better:

…Legend has it that Pablo Picasso was sketching in the park when a bold woman approached him.

“It’s you — Picasso, the great artist! Oh, you must sketch my portrait! I insist.”

So Picasso agreed to sketch her. After studying her for a moment, he used a single pencil stroke to create her portrait. He handed the women his work of art.

“It’s perfect!” she gushed. “You managed to capture my essence with one stroke, in one moment. Thank you! How much do I owe you?”

“Five thousand dollars,” the artist replied.

“B-b-but, what?” the woman sputtered. “How could you want so much money for this picture? It only took you a second to draw it!”

To which Picasso responded, “Madame, it took me my entire life”…

Don’t worry, I won’t ask you Five Thousand Dollars for any of my Mind Maps!

Are you able to summarise a whole book on one simple Mind Map? Or, better still, are you able to summarise a whole book on one or two pages that includes both a Mind Map and a text explanation?

If your answer is yes, please send us some examples. We will be keen to publish them on our website, where you can share them with the world.

The answer for most of you will, unfortunately, probably be ‘no’.

To help you get there, we’ve come up with a couple of solutions.

Step 1 – Go back to learning how to learn.

You need to consciously visit the way that you learn. You have naturally been learning for many years, but:

• Do you understand the principles behind your learning?
• Do you follow a structured learning method?
• Do you know how to extract the important information when learning?
• Are your notes structured?
• Has your reading method gone beyond Grade 1?
• Are you using Mind Maps?
• Can you recall what you have learned effortlessly?
• Are you committed to lifelong learning?
• Is learning Fun?

If you have said no to one or more of the above questions, then you need to develop a Learning Management Programme so that you can learn how to learn and start getting a competitive advantage by learning faster than your competitor.

We have made this easy for you by creating an affordable, instantly downloadable, Ebook. You can obviously develop your own program, which could take you months, or even years. Or, you can simply purchase ours for a quick start.

Summarising and applying our program using Mind Maps, would be the perfect start to a new life. This brings us to the next step:

Step 2 – Use Mind Map Software

Mind Map Software has revolutionised the way you are able to create your Mind Maps. The branches can be rearranged, modified, or even deleted with the press of a few keys, or a few mouse clicks.

Gone are the days where you had to manually draw and redraw on paper. Things which took hours the manual way, can be done in a few seconds.

I believe that Mind Map Software will make Mind Mapping more accessible to many people, as it takes away the ‘fear factor’.

There is no need to buy expensive software to get started. We recommend that you get hold of Xmind Mind Mapping Software. Xmind is OpenSource, so it won’t cost you any money.

By using Mind Map Software, you will become free to experiment with creating Mind Maps. Revisit our article on the Mind Map Principles before you start though, as it is so easy to start Mind Mapping with Xmind. Many people skip this step and end up having to unlearn bad habits later. Get it right, first time.

Step 3 – Accept, Apply, Adapt

Have a look at the Mind Map examples on our Website and other websites. Try to reproduce them exactly in your Mind Maps. Do they need to be reworked? Can you structure your Mind Maps better than ours? Can you personalise the Mind Maps?

Once you have copied ours and applied them in your life, you will be ready to adapt them for your own use. Send us your efforts and we will gladly publish them, so that you can share them with the world.

MindMapTutors – A special promotion just for you.

I am taking this opportunity to tell you about an exciting happening that is coming down the line. We are developing a set of MindMapTutors that you can use immediately to help you become a Mind Mapper. And if you are already a Mind Mapper, we will help you become an even better one.

We are busy developing a set of interactive MindMapTutors using Xmind, for you to use and adapt as you see fit. The first one to be published will be based on our Learning Management Program.

The Mind Maps will be fully interactive and will combine Mind Maps and text, to get you into Mind Mapping as quickly and effectively as possible.

You will use our method to learn our method!

If you have purchased our Ebook, you will automatically get these MindMapTutors free once they have been developed. So get it now, before it’s too late.

We plan to launch this concept by the end of June 2010. Any purchaser of our Learning Management Program Ebook by then will automatically get these MindMapTutors free.

We are offering this as a launch special for this one time only. The Interactive MindMapTutors will sell for much more.

Conclusion

Revisit the way you learn. Ensure that you follow a structured program when learning, so that you can learn the most, with least amount of effort.

Download Xmind and start Mind Mapping. First reproduce our examples, then apply and modify them.

To really take your Mind Mapping and learning to the next level, purchase our Learning Management Program Ebook and get our Interactive, Xmind MindMapTutors at no cost at the end of the month.

I remember back in 2001, when she, with a teaching qualification, told me that she would like to study in an entirely new field. We had just returned to South Africa after spending about three years in The Netherlands and were getting to terms with the conditions back in Africa.

Living in an emerging market and living in a first world country are vastly different.

We had two kids that had to readjust, we had to get jobs, buy a house, get cars…The list just goes on and on.

Changing careers quite late in life, and starting a degree from scratch via distance learning, was not the easiest thing in the world to do. It took great courage, great sacrifice and a good learning methodology.

Luckily, she is also a keen Mind Mapper. She taught using Mind Maps in the classroom and while many of her students did not become Mind Mappers themselves, they were able to get good results by using the ready made Mind Maps that she provided.

During her studies, she produced over 30 Mind Maps for each subject. Each of these Mind Maps became imprinted in her brain, even though she does not claim to have a photographic memory.

Last year, while trying to get our 17 year old son to learn more efficiently, I decided to prove the power of Mind Maps to him. Jasmine’s folder with her Mind Maps was lying on our dining room table. I randomly chose one of the Mind Maps and told him that I will test Jasmine on how well she remembers this Mind Map. (Bear in mind that she had no idea of what I was up to.)

She was still busy studying when I asked whether I could disturb her with an important experiment. I told her that I was going to test her on a random Mind Map chosen from her folder.

She was a bit nervous about this being sprung on her, but she reluctantly agreed.

Well, she could recall the Mind Map 100%. Even better, she could tell us exactly what position on the page, each branch was, what was highlighted and the relationships between the branches. She could even relate this to other Mind Maps.

We had to stop her, as she would probably still be rambling on today, if we didn’t stop her!

The proof was overwhelming, even though she does not believe she is particularly clever.

Mind Maps really do work!

But more than just Mind Maps are needed. We’ve put together a Learning Management Program, which is available in easy to read Ebook format. The program takes you through the whole process of learning – The same process that produced a working mother, wife and part-time student an honorary degree Cum Laude.

I am more excited than ever with what we are doing and what will be coming down the line. We will continue to provide you with information and guidance so that you can maintain a competitive advantage by being able to learn easier and faster.

Keep a look out for our ready to use MindMapTutors on various subjects. They will be coming soon and they will make your learning and grow even easier and more fun.

You could also enrol for our monthly newsletter on UsingMindMaps.com. Enrolment will also give you access to a free email course based on our learning management program, as well as access to an online ‘How to Mind Map’ course.