The Mad Mapper is on a crazy quest to discover The P–E–R–F–E–C–T Mind Map.
“The PERFECT mind map”, you gasp? “Surely you’re not serious. How on earth could you ever hope to stumble upon such a rare artefact? And by whose definition of ‘perfect’ would you judge it anyway, eh?”
“Don’t you know the ideal mind map has already been conceptualised, defined, laid down and set in software through the sacred mind mapping teachings and laws of the Grand Master Buzan?”
“You know, ‘Thou shalt utilise colours and images; thou shalt curve thy connecting lines; thou shalt issue one decree per branch; thou shalt radiate thy thinking;’ and all that. You presumptuous young imp!”
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PDF Doc ~ Sab on Biggerplate!
Feel free to use my ‘Perfect Mind Map – An Alternative Approach’ as follows:
1) For any NON-commercial use
2) Leave it EXACTLY as it is
3) Don’t change ANYTHING
4) Make sure the © Copyright text is included and intact
5) See 2) and 3) (you get the idea!)
You CAN reproduce it online or embed it in your blog or website as long as you…
6) Respect 1-5 above
7) Include a credit to ‘Sab Will / Mind Map Mad’ if posting in a primarily mind mapping context. Include a credit to ‘Sab Will / Fun English Lessons’ if posting in a primarily English learning context. AND include a clickable link to this page ( http://www.mindmapmad.com/2015/06/english-verb-tenses-ultimate-mind-map/ ) on the web page next to or near the image – thanks!
Anyway, it’s a place absolutely crammed with cool mind maps, including mine – he he! You can download the actual original iMindMap file (the mind mapping software I use) and play around with it yourself. Nice!
Yes, but, mutters The Mad One, he would also probably maybe appreciate some of the following…
“Ah yes, of course, how silly of us. By your own inflated ego’s idea of what makes a mind map Truly Great we have to consider your childish ideas. We should have guessed.”
Childish would be a compliment…
“Well, OK, if you’ve really decided to lay yourself open to the cRiticism and Riducule of the mind mapping Community At Large, lay it on us. And you’d better not be wasting our mapping time!”
So here goes, revel in the Mad Mind Mapper‘s perfectly personal idea of what goes to make up… The P–E–R–F–E–C–T Mind Map!
(Note: This is a slightly edited version of a section from the Mappy Awards page on this very same site: Go HERE to find out more)
Anyway, in short, the perfect mind map should be, unsurprisingly, according to me…
Showing character and possibly something of the point of view or insights of the map’s creator. This could be through the maps’s design, its style and colour or simply the topic chosen. Impersonal and characterless doesn’t do it for us.
We get excited by original and unusual creations. We’re looking for innovative, out of the ordinary designs. They don’t have to be totally mad but anything a bit different or eye-catching is always nice to see.
I have to admit I was struggling to find an ‘R’ for my acronym here. In the end I settled on a whole bunch of ‘R’ words which basically convey the idea of ‘Really Interesting Content, Cool Facts & New Angles’.
We’re looking for information contained within the mind map which is, ideally: Revealing, Radical, Realistic, Riveting, Rich, Relevant and… Right!
Bring back emotion – who banished it in the first place?! We want your maps to be aesthetically pleasing, artistically fulfilling and visually stimulating. Lovely to look at, delightfully designed, in a word… Fab!
A lot of information can be squeezed into mind maps and sometimes it works. Less, however, is often more. Eliminate complexity. We get confused and distracted when we are drowning in detail. With too many branches, too heavily laden, we lose sight of the trunk, the main idea. Sometimes the unpicked fruit rots…
Essential points only keep our thinking laser-focused. If you think this is contradicted by the word ‘Rich’ in the ‘Really…’ section above, think quality, not quantity. This section was a bit too long, obviously to prove my point…
Here we recognise and reward the technical abilities – the skills – of the map’s creator. With a hand-drawn map this may be drawing talent (something I sadly lack!) or choice of appropriate materials. For software users it’s their knowledge of the application or their judicious selection of creative tools.
Where everything comes together, synergistically and sublimely. It’s not just one thing which makes a successful mind map. An attractive design is great. Useful information is clearly a positive thing. Personalisation is nice. But no one aspect can stand alone.
For us here at Mind Map Mad, a good mind map will incorporate several or even most of the above characteristics. But a great mind map will have one more. A mysterious, almost mystical quality which it is impossible to define, where everything comes together to create something which is greater than the sum of its parts.
This is truly a P–E–R–F–E–C–T mind map!
Hey, I even did a mind map on it. Who can say fairer than that? 😉 Look:
Is it P–E–R–F–E–C–T? Far from it. But at least I have a few ideas in mind so it’s not just a list of words. That has to be worth something, right?!
2015 Sab Will / Mind Map Mad
Mind Map Mad Facebook Group
If you’d like to join our friendly mind map discussion group on Facebook to learn more about mind mapping and submit your own creations, then you’re welcome!
Just click the button below and join up straight away – I look forward to meeting you there 😀
Here are those download links again, and don’t forget to let me know what you think here. Did you find my Perfect Mind Map – An Alternative Approach useful, and how will you use it, either for yourself or for anyone you know into mind mapping? Feel free to share, and I hope it helps you in some way!
JPG Image 800 px ~ JPG Image 1920 px ~ JPG Image 3500px
PDF Doc ~ Sab on Biggerplate!
Feel free to use my ‘Black and White Mind Map’ as follows:
1) For any NON-commercial use
2) Leave it EXACTLY as it is
3) Don’t change ANYTHING
4) Make sure the © Copyright… text is included and intact
5) See 2) and 3) (you get the idea!)
You CAN reproduce it online or embed it in your blog or website as long as you…
6) Respect 1-5 above
7) Include a credit to ‘Sab Will / Mind Map Mad’ AND a clickable link to http://www.mindmapmad.com on the web page next to or near the image – thanks!
Anyway, it’s a place absolutely crammed with cool mind maps, including mine – he he! You can download the actual original iMindMap file (the mind mapping software I use) and play around with it yourself. Nice!
I sourced some of the images for this FREE mind map through Google searches. It would have taken too much time, for dubious effects, to attempt to track down and credit the authors of all of these various excellent images.
However, as an original content creator myself, I totally and intrinsically respect the original artists’ rights. If any of the authors of any of these images see them and want a credit and link back to their work I’m only too happy to oblige. This Perfect Mind Map is not a commercial product and is available for free download on this web site and elsewhere. Please enjoy and share if you want to, thank you.
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