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Using Mindmaps So You Don’t Have To Remember Your Ideas
Posted On: January 22, 2009Posted In: Organization and Productivity, Video Blogging
Comments: 35 Responses
Whats going on folks! I know…where have I been huh? Well, for one, I was sick…for two…I’ve been working! Nevermind that though, I got something to share with you today.
I told you I was going to start sharing some of my productivity tools with you, so today I want to talk to you about mindmapping.
What is mindmapping and why should you use it?
Basically it’s a visual way of brainstorming and jotting down your ideas in a way that coincides more closely with the way we think, which is non linear. You have ideas all over the place and they are sometimes connected in strange ways, with mindmaps you can make it happen.
Some people do it by hand, some use software. Personally, I’m the software type.
I started with desktop software, but I’m really a nut of “in the cloud” options…..online versions. They keep my data in one spot, and I can get to it no matter where I am online.
What can you keep in your mindmaps?
- I keep lists of training products
- niche ideas
- social network plans
- affiliate campaigns
- bills
- stuff related to the organization of my business
- anything else I want to jot down and not lose.
Being able to “dump” your brain helps keep you more focused and you don’t have to worry about forgetting something, once you write it down it’s there.
Anyway, make sure you watch the video highlighting the tool I use.
When you’re done watching…..click the banner below to get your own account
January 23rd, 2009 at 9:27 am
This sounds pretty cool. I’ve been tracking all of my web site ideas and plans for each of them on pieces of paper, but it unfortunately gets pretty messy since I often lose them or am out and about and don’t have them close at hand. This looks like a nice way to consolidate all of that.Thanks Joe!
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Normal Joe (2055 comments) Reply:
January 24th, 2009 at 10:20 am
hahaha, yeah man! We’ve all been there, it’s all good. Try it out…you may like it, you may not…it’s good for organization though.
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Michael Henry (12 comments) Reply:
January 25th, 2009 at 10:36 pm
I’ve looked at the product, but I’m not so trusting of services that make it easy to brainstorm.
I use SugarCRM Community Edition for almost everything at this point. Unfortunately, they don’t have an affiliate program so plugging them isn’t worth anything to me, but its worth checking out.
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Normal Joe (2055 comments) Reply:
January 30th, 2009 at 11:15 am
I like something that is simple to use, yet has the features I need to keep going. I started with desktop software, moved online, and tried a few before deciding on this one.
January 23rd, 2009 at 1:00 pm
I’m going to have to check out this and the one Jay talked about…. On his recomendation I purchased the program called Things to deal with my ToDo list and project manaegement. I payed $50 and it was way worth it.
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Normal Joe (2055 comments) Reply:
January 24th, 2009 at 10:21 am
Yeah…I don’t have a mac, so things wouldn’t do much for me. I have another program I use for a todo list, I’ll be highlighting it soon as well.
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Michael Henry (12 comments) Reply:
January 26th, 2009 at 10:40 pm
Windows comes with a nice todo list generator: notepad.
Its also an excellent HTML editor, love note generator, suicide note generator, and ransom note generator.
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Normal Joe (2055 comments) Reply:
January 30th, 2009 at 11:14 am
ha…so basic man! I’ll show you what I use for a todo list….
January 24th, 2009 at 9:07 am
Man, this is a great nugget of advice. I’ve been going crazy trying to keep my thoughts and notes organized as I start my e-book about franchising.
Much appreciated!
TAM
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Normal Joe (2055 comments) Reply:
January 24th, 2009 at 10:22 am
Hey whatsup kid! Yeah dude, it would totally help out with gathering the stuff for your book man.
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January 24th, 2009 at 9:34 am
SWEET! More great info on organization… one of my biggest problem areas.. man i need to take about a week and just go through everything and start from scratch and get organized once and for all! This looks like a great tool to use!
Thanks man!
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Normal Joe (2055 comments) Reply:
January 24th, 2009 at 10:22 am
You’ll love it man…even if you don’t go with this one, find one that works the best for you and is easiest to get your thoughts down. It changes everything lol.
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January 24th, 2009 at 10:15 am
I use Mindjet Mindmanager at work, but though it’s powerful, it’s expensive for home users. I tested several cloud mindmapping software applications and decided http://www.mind42.com was the best and easiest to use.
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Normal Joe (2055 comments) Reply:
January 24th, 2009 at 10:23 am
Yeah…I use mindjet at work as well…..but i prefer the online options better. I tried mind42 a while back…it was okay, but it just didn’t do it for me. Believe me…I’ve tried quite a few lol.
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January 26th, 2009 at 1:46 am
Joe
This is actually a pretty slick idea. I’ve certainly heard of mindmapping and braindumping but I didn’t realize there was a software tool for it. I’ll bet most entrepreneurial types are constantly jotting ideas and bits of inspiration down on scraps of paper and napkins. I know I do. This will definitely come in handy. Good lookin’ out.
T
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Normal Joe (2055 comments) Reply:
January 30th, 2009 at 11:15 am
T! I’m tellin you man…just try it out, you’ll be hooked I know it.
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January 26th, 2009 at 12:05 pm
Oh man I hate mindmaps. I have nothing against it, but I nearly failed my history paper when I used mindmapping methods!
Aww…
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Michael Henry (12 comments) Reply:
January 26th, 2009 at 10:37 pm
History is easy! Just memorize one event but change the dates – history repeats itself! Ha!
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Normal Joe (2055 comments) Reply:
January 30th, 2009 at 11:14 am
Hahaha, bad memories huh D? lol…I understand.
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January 29th, 2009 at 7:37 am
Good idea.I keep an “old-fashioned” pen and paper and write down any new ideas I get for blog posts.I have also a simple marketing schedule that I follow, makes life a lot easier. I will look into this mindmap system as well.
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February 1st, 2009 at 4:05 am
Outstanding Joe, yet another tool for the box over at Big Ben Patton’s Place. I have been using just plain ol’ notepad, and this my friend should make life a bit less hectic and much more organized.
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Normal Joe (2055 comments) Reply:
February 1st, 2009 at 3:55 pm
I got some more coming for you this week Ben! I’ve been using a few key tools that have made my life easier and my biz run much smoother. Glad to see ya back around man, keep an eye out for my todo list tool, some book keeping software, and some client management tools. As well as some storage/file sharing stuff.
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February 1st, 2009 at 2:16 pm
@Tom – Home Business – yea, Pen and paper is a good strategy and it rarely does you wrong. The problem I have is FINDING all of the paper that I write ideas on.
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Normal Joe (2055 comments) Reply:
February 1st, 2009 at 3:48 pm
I know right! Nothing wrong with taking notes on paper…I like to transfer them over to the mindmap though.
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The White (1 comments) Reply:
February 4th, 2009 at 3:22 am
I’m the same way, I have a really messed up system. Through out the day I keep ideas on little scraps of paper I find, what ever I can get my hands on, business cards, sticky, notes, the inside of my tshirt, or pocket. Then at the end of the day I stuff all of my scraps into my day planner, and then on the weekend I go through the scraps and write them all down in my “beat up full of rad ideas I’ll never get to” notebook.
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Normal Joe (2055 comments) Reply:
February 4th, 2009 at 8:32 am
No doubt man! Get you some mindmap in ya life kid…you’ll love it. You can still do your sticky note, tshirt….boxer brief note taking….just compile them all into your map at the end of the day/week. Or…you could put them in there first. Trust me, it helps a ton….I too was a victim of the random note syndrome!
Welcome to the site man…I look forward to seeing you around.
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February 1st, 2009 at 3:56 pm
This has been a real savior for me man. I’m fairly new to them (a couple months now), but now that I have it as my homepage, and force myself to use it planning everything, it’s been great.
As I told you before Joe, it actually helps make me feel 100 times more confident about my plans, because I can see how it will all play out.
I think everyone should at least “try it” lol
Cheers!
Jay
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Normal Joe (2055 comments) Reply:
February 2nd, 2009 at 8:08 am
You already know son! Get it in man! Having a plan, and actually SEEING that plan in a way that makes sense to you will give you tons more confidence than just having an “idea” scattered all over ya brain.
Keep it up man! I know what you working towards and you gonna hit it son!
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February 1st, 2009 at 4:13 pm
Ok ok… i did it… and man.. this is SWEET! I just put some ideas in Mindmaps for the first time and i’m like, why the heck haven’t i already done this! Man this is going to be a major help to me! Now i can stop going through emails i’ve sent myself, trying to find word docs and excel sheets i’ve created..
With this new contest i got going.. man this is a live saver for me as well!
thanks again for the great tips!
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Normal Joe (2055 comments) Reply:
February 2nd, 2009 at 8:07 am
hahahaha, no doubt man! I’m glad you liked it dude. It has really helped me out…and I really enjoy having it online so I can access it even away from my laptop. Stay tuned…I got some more tools to show ya!
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February 4th, 2009 at 6:46 pm
Mind Maps… hmmmmmm… where have I heard this before???? Lol…
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Normal Joe (2055 comments) Reply:
February 4th, 2009 at 6:47 pm
Been tellin you sucka! Get some!!
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February 5th, 2009 at 11:19 pm
Haha thanks for sharing this Joe. Really interesting stuff! Brings me back to the good old school days where we had to keep doing mind mapps..
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Normal Joe (2055 comments) Reply:
February 6th, 2009 at 9:04 am
Whatsup man! Yeah…I’m a mindmap fanatic…funny thing, we never learned about them in school.
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February 1st, 2009 at 5:53 am
[...] let those great ideas evaporate in that so called think tank of yours then I would head over to ImWithJoe.com [...]