Visual mapping is a module in visual thinking school, a course designed to help you learn how to think and communicate better using the visual part of your brain.
Visual mapping is a way to think through complex issues or solve problems that has several benefits. Visual mapping makes it easier to work creatively and collaboratively with a group. It's non-linear, so you can work out complex hierarchies and relationships. It allows you to see a whole issue, problem or plan, in its entirety and at a glance. It helps you see patterns, relationships and dependencies that might otherwise remain hidden.
Contents at a Glance
The napkin sketch
Napkin sketches happen when you are trying to communicate something and words fail.
A napkin sketch is a way to think about what you want to achieve and the general approach you will take to get there. Because it's on a napkin there's not a lot of room for deatil -- and that's the way you want it.
You don't even need a napkin! A napkin-level sketch can be drawn with whatever is handy: a stick in the sand or chalk on the side of a building.
What better way to begin any mapping endeavor?
Mind maps
Mind maps and concept maps are a way to think visually and creatively about an issue or problem. Just put down the main focus of the map in the center of a large sheet of paper, and let ideas flow out like a web or tree. You can use lines, shapes and drawings as well as words to capture your thoughts.
Here are some examples that might inspire you:
Concept maps
Concept maps are similar to mind maps, but they can be more free-form in structure and may not have a center like a mind map does. This is useful when you aren't sure exactly what the issue is but feel a need to look at it.
Flow charts
Flow charts are a way to simply describe a process or flow. There are standard conventions for how to visualize documents, flows, hubs and start/end points.
You can learn the basics of flow charting in an hour or less, so it's easy to get started very quickly.
Rapid paper prototyping
Paper is still the best tool for visual thinking and mapping. Even the most high-tech industries rely on paper for some of their most creative and inventive work.
Popular in the software industry, rapid paper prototyping is a way to quickly mock up a software interface or user experience without spending a lot of time and money.
Interface designers sketch paper "screens" and test their effectiveness by asking users to think out loud and interact with the paper as if it were an actual computer interface.
Thinking in modules: index cards
Index cards are another module tool. Their advantage over sticky notes is that you can more easily file and transport them. But they don't stay put as well as sticky notes!
UML
UML stands for "Universal Markup Langage." It's a visual language used by software designers to define classes, hierarchies and user scenarios. It's quite flexible and can be used to visually map all kinds of things. However it's also complex and not easily mastered.
The blueprint
We began this exploration of visual mapping with the napkin sketch, so it's fitting to end with the other end of the spectrum -- the blueprint.
Blueprints are usually the outcome of a planning process; they communicate the specifics of the plan. They must be highly detailed, because they will generally be handed to another person or team for execution.
For this reason blueprints generally use specific graphic conventions that can be written and read by all parties.
Books to improve your visual mapping
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by dgray
Dave Gray is the founder and CEO of XPLANE, the visual thinking company. The company's vision was formed and continues to be driven by Dave's passion for... more »
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