Drawing Concept Maps
Concept maps are the most free form type of idea drawing that we will consider. In concept mapping, you draw relations among ideas as they occur to you, with one thought leading to another, showing with arrows how the different ideas or concepts you think of are associated with each other. As one part of the concept map makes you think of another idea or relevant fact, you add that idea or fact as a new element in your map. If you are working with paper and pencil, you could make a very wide ranging set of drawings to depict the concepts you are thinking of, from simple sketches to elaborate doodles or evocative pictures. But with MindDraw we intentionally limit the types of objects you can draw, so that through practice, you can enrich your ability to use them in expressing yourself.
You begin a concept map by drawing a circle and naming an important element in the situation you are considering, entering a key descriptive phrase that gives the context or implication of what you are thinking about. Ideally, it should be the central idea you are trying to explore, or the central thing you are trying to accomplish, or the main problem you are trying to solve. You then develop a concept map by adding other elements that are related to the central idea, with arrows between the elements, saying what the relation between any two elements is. Relations can be sequential, as in: element A happens before element B.
Or relations can show that one element is composed of another, as in: A is composed a C and D.
Or relations can indicate that one thing reminds of another as being similar in some way, as in: A reminds me of E.
The arrows indicate what you believe the important associations are among the concepts, ideas or desires in your drawing. The arrows explain how the parts of your drawing fit together in your own mind. Each idea or element you add to your concept map will suggest other ideas associated with it.
Let’s take a simple example of planning a trip. As shown below, all sorts of elements associated with planning a trip come to mind, and a concept map lets us relate them all together and consider them in one whole image. As we look at it, we think of things we have forgotten, or the elements in the map remind of new things we should include in our planning.
A concept map is a very simple form of idea, and can also be shown as on outline, with a main topic and many subtopics, each of which can have their own subtopics.
Main Topic -- Plan a trip
Subtopic 1 -- Need to book travel
Item 1-A -- Could take a bus
Item 1-B -- Could drive
Item 1-C -- Could search for cheap airfare
Subtopic 2 -- Need a place to stay
Item 2-A -- Contact friends
Item 2-B -- Find a campground
Etc. --
Etc. --
A concept map is good for creative exploration of an issue, letting your mind roam free and making whatever associations among ideas that occur to you. It is a kind of drawing that lets you explore an issue without the constraint of being strictly logical. The elements in your drawing can be anything you want, and the arrows can express almost any association you can make between them. An arrow might mean “this reminds me of that” or “this comes before that” or “this is composed of that” or “this implies that ”.
Concept maps are the best place to start when you are just beginning to do visual thinking with MindDraw. They are helpful if you are considering questions such as “what courses should I take in school?”, or “how can I make extra money?”. Both of these are open ended questions in which a large number of different considerations should be brought together as you struggle to think through a complex question.
