Mind Mapping

Simon Chester, an attorney at Heenan Blaikie and a long time leader of the ABA Law Practice Management section, put me on to mindmapping software.  Mind mapping is a thinking technique using visual representations to connect ideas.  Mindjet just came out with their latest version, which is easier to learn and use.   You can download a free trial to check it out before you buy. 

How does this apply to lawyers?  Mindjet posts a case study about a law professor who uses mind mapping to teach legal concepts.

I learned to take notes in outline form, nesting ideas in a linear fashion.  Ideas and thoughts, however, are not often linear.  They are organic, interconnected and unbalaned.  Mind mapping is a great technique for brainstorming a strategy, sketching out an article or book or planning anything.

For those who have been mindmapping for awhile, check out mindjet's blog.