Mind Mapping Clarifies and Strengthens Your Business

Keeping a new business going is like no other pursuit. It's great fun putting together our goods and services, and starting a business.

But how we let others know about it (marketing, sales, networking, etc.) can make us downright uncomfortable.

Sometimes it feels as if we now have business #2, and we are already exhausted from the first.

But another way to look at "that other business" which we have to work in, is to embrace the idea of attending to a few simple "touchpoints".

Sometimes there are so many things going on that it is easy to get overwhelmed, but when you spend your time doing the "right" things, and maintaining your clarity and focus, it is all much easier.

It helps to get clear about activities that matter most to your business and to pay particular attention to a few tasks that are necessary to keep business moving forward.

To do that, I am going to suggest that you create a mind map, and suggest that you download a specific mind mapping tool for a free one month trial.

One product (called Novamind) is for Mac's and PC's, and will give you an excellent taste of the promise behind mind mapping.

We'll begin by covering each of the elements that all businesses need to consider, and along the way, you can adapt them to your own business.

Your company needs a mission statement, even if you are a company of one.

What does your company exist for? If it is an important part of the perceived value of your business, how do you intend to achieve it?

Writing down your mission statement helps to keep you, your employees and your support network focused on your primary commitments.

So now, using your mind map, create your guiding mission, and then divide that mission into different categories according to the company's objectives, its commitment to its customers, its commitment to employees, expected staff conduct and product performance, as you see here.

A meaningful mission statement will be easy to understand, something to refer back to as your foremost guide, and exportable for others to see.

Your company must identify and work towards goals to become market leaders or even just to survive the startup of a business.

Using your mind map, plan company goals by identifying those that are short-term and long term. Next, title each branch with your different goals, identifying:

Under each branch, provide further detail of your strategic plan for implementing the goals.

Alternatively, a second mind map, hyper-linked from the main goal, can contain the strategy to achieve specific goals.

By using colors, pictures and adornments, staff can visualize the outcome and take ownership of the goals, remaining focused on what the company is planning to achieve.

For a specific example, check out this map below:

You can't give confidence to others about your business without communicating successfully who you are and what you do.

If your profits have been draining away, it could be that you need to communicate with a new focus.

Today, that means having a website that is clear, credible, and well presented.

Using a mind map, plan the number of pages, page titles. Revise what information to include, and what pages should be linked.

Using Mind Mapping, this can take a matter of minutes instead of hours, and help you communicate that focus.

Why not have your own brainstorming session to document what you want included and then decide the most logical location for that information?

You can experiment with different structures (rearrange your mind map branches) as your web information grows, but along the way, still stick to the simplest structure possible.

This also helps simplify the review process, and you can link files to the branches of your Mind Map. In this way you could have your Word documents, images, and even HTML pages attached to the branches for easy access and editing.

Ever had problems trying to sell your ideas to work colleagues, your boss or clients? Perhaps they thought your idea sounded more time-consuming than the benefits you got them to perceive?

Your idea will be more understandable and objectives clearer when you visually organize and develop your thoughts.

With your key objectives in the middle of the Mind Map and requirements broken down into logical and achievable steps, you can illustrate what would be involved in a format that is easy to understand and in one that demonstrates forward planning.

With a mind map, your audience will understand your idea in just a few seconds and be able to easily recognize the benefits. What's not to like?

One of the biggest challenges to growing a company is understanding it is not just what we do that sells our services but how we do it.

Although we know of all the component parts (e.g. website, clear goals, clear mission, clear standards, clear strategies around selling), we may still not know them enough to keep our businesses afloat.

We learn as we go along, so we have to circle back and look again at those key touchpoints.

With the freedom and flexibility that mind mapping allows, you can easily modify your Mind Maps.

This brings greater clarity and the choice to strengthen your existing product or service with a refined approach.

Your business will soon be spiralling upward instead of downward.