Basic Ordering Ideas and the Learning Process
The secret to memorising large volumes of information is categories and hierarchies. Tony Buzan, the inventor of the Mind Map, calls it Basic Ordering Ideas in ‘The Mind Map Book’.
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.
read moreIt’s not about the Map
This article has been inspired by the Book, ‘It’s Not About the Bike: My Journey Back to Life‘, a biography of Lance Armstrong’s recovery after being diagnosed with testicular cancer.
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.
read moreAre you a Mind Mapper?
You may have heard about Mind Mapping. You may know what Mind Maps are. You may know the Mind Map Principles. You may know the steps to create a Mind Map.
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.
read moreA Mind Map success story
I started writing this article on 27 May 2010. It was the day that my wife, Jasmine, graduated with a Bcom (Hons) (cum laude) degree.
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.
read moreThe Google Wonder Wheel and Mind Maps
Google has recently changed its interface.
Have you noticed, or have you just continued to use Google like you normally do?
Many people that I’ve chatted to, didn’t even notice, but I am sure that they will quite soon.
Many of the changes have been to help you refine your search better.
I want to talk about one of their changes today – the Google Wonder Wheel.
The image above is a Google wonder wheel. Note how it represents a basic Mind Map.
You access the Google Wonder Wheel by showing ‘more options’ when doing a search on Google. This will expose you to a number of tools that can help you refine your search.
The Wonder Wheel looks very much like a Mind Map
If you click on the ‘Wonder Wheel’ option, you will see something like the top image appear. Your main Key Words for your search will be in the centre and what Google deems to be relevant related Key Words, will be attached as branches to the central Key Word.
The result is a rudimentary looking, but very powerful, Mind Map – or is it?
You suddenly have a lot of Google’s power at your finger tips, as you have a visual image of related results, as well as your normal linear results.
This gives you the ability to see the results of your search as normal, but also any related searches that may make sense according to Google.
Seeing related search results visually, opens up a whole new mindset when it comes to searching. If you have been doing Mind Mapping for a while, you may have noticed that everything in life is related.
Therefore, when searching with the Google Wonder Wheel, I often ended up in a very different place to where I started and often not finding what I was originally looking for.
But I generated a lot of new ideas.
This got me thinking!
The Google Wonder Wheel could be a great tool to generate ideas, find related topics, help with writer’s block, explore your subject visually…
Sounds very much like a Mind Map to me!
A big difference between a Google wonder wheel and a standard Buzan Mind Map, is the ability of the Google Wonder Wheel to make any of the nodes the central idea, while still keeping the previous central image visible.
This looks very much like a concept map, which is similar, but different to a Mind Map. The Google wonder wheel makes the branch you clicked on your new focal point and fades your previous one. This still gives you the focus that you need, but keeps your previous focus there ‘just in case.’
I’m sure the Buzan Mind Map purists could debate whether this is a Mind Map or not, as it breaks many of the Mind Map Principles, but for the rest of the world; I don’t think they’ll care. The Google Wonder Wheel can be a great tool. Whether it will be labelled a Mind Map – only time will tell.
I hope this short post inspires you to ‘play’ a bit with Google’s Wonder Wheel. If you have not been using Mind Maps before, then have a look at the various ways of using Mind Maps to increase your effectiveness, and if you are a seasoned Mind Mapper, let us know of your experiences with Google’s wonder wheel and whether you will call it a Mind Map or not.
read moreNobody drifts to success
Napoleon Hill, the author of ‘Think and Grow Rich’, stated that you don’t have to be a fortune teller to be able to predict someone’s future. You can do so by asking him or her one simple question: ‘What is your one definite purpose in life – and what plans have you made to attain it?”
He goes on to say that if you asked 100 people this question, 98% will say something like, “I’d like to make a good living and become as successful as I can.”
He believes that while this sounds good on the surface, if you dig a little deeper, you will find a drifter who will never get anything out of life except the leftovers of truly successful people – Those who have a definite purpose and a plan for attaining it.
To be successful, you have to decide exactly what your goal is and lay out the steps by which you intend to reach it.
Napoleon Hill’s Think and Grow Rich is attributed by some to be the book that created more millionaires than any other book. While his principles may work if you want to be a millionaire, it also works for the achievement of anything in life. At the core of his principles, is the fact that we are the master of our own destiny, the captain of our ship.
In the movie ‘Invictus‘, Nelson Mandela, the great South African leader and visionary, is portrayed as living by the following mantra:
’…I am the master of my fate, I am the captain of my soul…”
This quote comes from the poem ‘Invictus’ by William Ernest Henley, who himself survived tuberculosis of the bone at the age of twelve and had to have a leg amputated when he was 25. In the 1800′s, this was something that many people didn’t survive, but he went on to lead an active life until he died.
It is stated that Nelson Mandela had this poem written on a scrap of paper in his prison cell, while he was incarcerated. Imagine being imprisoned for 27 years because of your principles and still holding on to the belief that you are the captain of your soul!
If you continued with the comparison of human beings to ships, the following analogy may be useful:
Picture a ship without a rudder, drifting wherever the tide may take it. What chance has that ship got in drifting into a rich and prosperous port? If, on the other hand, you were on a ship with a captain on board, went up to him and asked him where he was going, he will be able to answer you in one sentence.
I have in a few articles before, mentioned how valuable Mind Maps can be in charting your course. You could use Mind Maps to firstly build your vision, and then set SMART Goals to achieve them.
Start by visualizing small successes and then move on to bigger and bigger ones. You don’t have to define success in money terms, like Napoleon Hill does, but do go ahead and define what success means to you.
To Nelson Mandela, it meant the freedom of a nation!
In many people the desire for wealth is just not great enough, but they may want spiritual success, or overcome some bad childhood experiences. Whatever your idea of success is, build your vision for the future, set those goals, put your plan in place, and…
Free Ebook on creating and Using Mind Maps
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Learn Faster and Easier
'Your ability to learn faster than your competitor may be your only sustainable competitive advantage'. - Arie de Geus
Yet, how much time have you spent learning how to learn?
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English Grammar Mind Map Tutor
