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VISUAL PRODUCTIVITY When you look at it, it just makes sense!

by

Kevin Achtzener

OK Productions Edmonton

An OK Productions Book

Copyright © 2014 by Kevin Achtzener

YoureMakingMe.com

All rights reserved. The uses of any part of this

publication reproduced, transmitted by any form or by

any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying,

recording, or otherwise, or stored in a retrieval system,

without the prior consent of the publisher is an

infringement of the copyright law.

Printed in the United States of America.

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Table of Contents

ABOUT KEVIN 1

WHAT IS A VISUAL MAP? 9

DO THEY HAVE TO LOOK PRETTY? 21

PRODUCTIVITY 27

CAPTURE SYSTEM 31

REPLACE YOUR TO-DO LIST 45

LEARNING 55

PROJECT MANAGEMENT 69

MAKING NEW PRODUCTS 73

STANDARD OPERATING PROCEDURES (SOP) 83

HOW TO PLAN AND RUN MEETINGS 93

ABOUT THE AUTHOR 97

IMAGE CREDITS 98

About Kevin

Who am I?

Hi, and thanks for picking up a copy of this book.

I'm a speaker, author,

blogger, and father, and I

love to talk to people about

a number of different

topics. I've written a pretty

awesome book called

Diamonds and Silver, and

I've also created a full

management curriculum,

including an audio set, called Mega Productivity.

If you would like more information about me or about any of

the things I offer, please feel free to stop by

YoureMakingMe.com.

Let me give you an idea of where I'm coming from in relation

to visual thinking, visual maps, and how it relates to my Mega

Productivity system.

I've been using visual mapping software virtually every day

since 2007. During that time, I've tried a lot of different

products and approaches. I've used pen and paper, computer

apps, smart phone apps, white boards, and web solutions to

name a few. I've come across a lot of good ideas, but I've also

found that there are some dead ends out there.

http://yourmakingme.com/

2 Visual Productivity

While it's important to find the right tool for you, it's also

important to know what you can do with that software. That's

where this book comes in. My goal is to show you several real

world examples of how you can use visual maps to be more

productive, effective, and creative.

I'm different from other mind mapping Gurus

One of the biggest ways that I differ from a lot of other mind

mapping "Gurus" is in the fact that I don't necessarily believe

that you have to have stunning visuals in every mind map you

create.

If you believe the hype,

you'll soon spend all your

time creating the "perfect"

mind map to show off to

your friends.

Don’t get me wrong, I do

care about beauty, but I

don't spend my life

formatting things, and you

shouldn't either.

I'd much rather you spend

time solving problems and

planning out projects, than

worrying about whether

blue or green better

About Kevin 3

highlights your key point.

I'm a proponent of being as productive as possible.

Sometimes productivity and beauty go together, but in many

people’s day to day lives, speed and results should come first,

and slightly less emphasis on looks.

My goal is to show you how to create a visual thinking

strategy to help you get more work done in less time.

It's also important that you make something to help you do all

the heavy lifting in whatever profession you're in, while

allowing you to come back to a task after a month or a year,

and be able to easily pick up where you left off.

I'm not against pretty

Let's get this straight.

Although, I don't want you to waste your time making things

pretty, you obviously need to realize that when you produce

ugly looking work, it reflects badly on you, and makes you

come across like an amateur.

Most of the programs out there look pretty good, but keep in

mind that you're judged on your finished product.

What I recommend is that you keep things looking neat while

you work, but also spend some time slowly building a better

looking template. All I’m saying is that if there’s a choice, I'd

rather you spend a week on the content and an hour on looks,

rather than vice-versa.


It's all about accessibility

One of the biggest benefits of visual maps is how accessible

they make the information.

When you're considering using anything for a new system, it's

important to use a tool that provides quick access to the

information you've stored in it. That sounds like a strange

thing to say, but you'd be surprised at how many people never

take the time to sit down and really think about how they'll

store their information and ideas.

A good visual mapping system, and a bit of forethought, can

help you leap frog over most other people who are still storing

information using old-fashioned methods, like Word

documents.

If you've listened to my audio program, Mega Productivity,

you've no doubt heard me say that I don't care how hard you

work. The only thing I care about is what gets done.

Visual maps are one of those tools where you can quickly

About Kevin 5

reduce the effort put in, even though the results you're getting

seem to be multiplying. I don't know about you, but I'll jump

on a tool like that any day.

Problem with some corporate computers

Something that may (or may not) come up if you're planning

on using visual mapping software in a work setting is the

ability for you to install outside programs on your computer.

Some work

environments allow

employees to install

any program they

want on the

computers. Other

companies, usually

larger corporations,

may restrict what

you're allowed to install. If you have an IT (Information

Technology) department, you may need to call the good old

folks down in the IT department and put on your sweet voice

to get them to install the program on your computer. When

you call them, there’s a good chance that they won’t be able to

help you out. Their job is to keep your company safe, which

means not installing programs.

If you're not able to install outside software at work,

there are three typical workarounds:

1. Use a web-based app.


There are plenty of options that let you log into a web-based

account and create all of your visual maps online. Some are

very good, and can serve as collaboration tools within your

company. A downside to using anything in the cloud is that

potentially sensitive information will be stored outside of your

company's system (which is definitely uncool). If you're only

planning on using visual mapping for basic tasks and generic

info, then this should be fine.

2. Portable USB drive option.

XMind is an example of software that has a separate version

designed to run from a USB drive. This might be a way to

avoid having to go through the IT department. The glaring

potential danger with this option is the fact that you could

accidentally save something onto the USB drive, and then

someone walks away with the data. That sounds funny, but

my wife received a letter in the mail a few years ago,

describing how someone "lost" a USB drive that included her

name, and the names of thousands of others. If you go with

option 2, just be sure you save only on the hard disk.

3. Call me!

OK, I'm partly kidding, but not really. If your company is

considering moving to a visual mapping platform, I'm

available to come in and help get you set up. I can work with

management to look at the options, and help get approval to

add a program company-wide if needed.

About Kevin 7

Visual Mapping Challenge

In 2007 I was searching for a good visual mapping tool to use.

I had no idea what I was doing back then, but I knew what I

liked, so I went ahead and chose 4 different visual mapping

programs and put them to the test. I found one I liked called

XMind, and went with it.

In early 2013 I figured I'd better go back and see what else

was out there. I wanted to see if a better program had become

available.

I narrowed my choices down to 7 different visual mapping

solutions and spent an entire day using each one. I used that

testing to make videos of each of those products and

described the benefits and drawbacks of each of them.

I'm happy to report that many of the programs I tested are

very well done. I would highly recommend looking around a

little before you invest your time (and potentially money) into

a program you're likely to see every day.

A few programs were ones you can install on your computer.

Others were web only interfaces. A key feature I looked for

was smartphone/tablet options, but that's still in its infancy in

my opinion with regards to visual mapping. There was even

an option that runs from a USB drive, allowing you to take it

wherever you go.

After 6 solid years of using visual mapping software, I still

found that simplicity and effectiveness was the most

important quality I was after.


Which visual mapping program do I use?

After a lot of careful consideration, I chose to stay with

XMind.

I wasn't trying to be boring. I actually challenged myself to

find a new program, but I ended up with the same conclusion

I had in 2007. I like the simplicity, speed, and the fact that it

works just like any other windows

program. I'm not sure why so

many programs try to get fancy

with the controls. I like how it

works intuitively for people right

out of the box.

You can feel free to use any

program you feel comfortable

working with. I want to share the

ideas with you, not tell you what to use.

Within this book, you'll see several images of visual maps, and

they're all taken from XMind. I thought about taking images

from different programs, but I use visual maps to be more

productive, and it would be counterproductive for me to be

constantly flipping back and forth between programs.

Besides, this book isn't really a how to book. It's more of a

"What can I do?"

What is a Visual Map?

What is a visual map?

A visual map really just boils down to another way of looking at

information.

In this day and age, we’re surrounded by information.

Visual maps allow you to quickly get ideas out of your head and

they help you visually “See” the ideas. Using maps is a great way

to help you make decisions more quickly.

Some people say visual maps are a more intelligent way of

grouping information, because it lays everything out in a way

that’s easier for our brains to understand. I’m not sure if that’s

really true or not, but I’ve found that I’ve made gains in my

productivity by using them.

In essence, a visual map is simply a way of organizing data.


Who created it?

According to Wikipedia, the techniques underlying visual

mapping have been around for thousands of years. The first well

regarded use was during the third century when Porphyry of

Tyros graphically represented the various categories of Aristotle’s

work.

Tony Buzan, an intelligence and memory author, coined the term

Mind Mapping and trademarked it in the 70’s (for seminars). His

marketing efforts are probably the reason why you’ve heard of

the term Mind Map.

Since I plan on doing seminars for this topic, and I don't want to

be stepping on anybody's toes, I'll use the term Visual Map

throughout this book.

Increase your productivity with visual maps

When new information comes in, I recommend organizing it

right away, and this is where visual maps shine. You can use a

visual map to organize your life and also help you decide on your

most important tasks, so you can get them done.

You can also plan upcoming projects by writing your major goal

in the middle and then listing all the actions required to complete

that goal as sub-categories. When you’re done, it’s easy to see

what needs to happen so you can achieve each of your desired

results.

What is a Visual Map? 11

What you will get from this book

My goal in this book is to give you concrete strategies, as well as

real-world examples of how you can use visual maps in your daily

life to get more done. I want to help you become more effective,

so you can stay on top of the information deluge you're

bombarded with on a daily basis.

I used a visual map to help create this book. I took all of my

ideas, and used the visual map to visually sort everything. From

there I moved things around until everything was where I thought

it should be. Finally, I used those ideas (sentence fragments) to

dictate the book into Siri on my iPhone.

One of the most powerful uses of a mind map is the ability to

quickly organize, and reorganize information. If you're using a

computer version, you can drag and drop an idea from one

section to another. If it doesn’t fit in the new section, you can

easily move it again.

It's an exciting way to look at information and it's much better

than sitting down and staring blankly at a computer screen. It’s

easy to see the progress you're making, and when the time comes

to stop planning and start doing, you will already have a clear


outline of all the major ideas and sub-sections.

I encourage you to try everything for yourself and see how it

impacts your workflow. I really believe that if you give it an

honest try, you'll find that you'll get more done in a day, and have

fun doing it (Even more than usual, that it).

It's not about you being smarter or having you work harder. It's

more about you finding a way to capture and leverage the

information floating around in your brain and putting it to use. In

essence, it's about you being more prepared to use the

information around you to make a finished product.

Everyone has good ideas, but it's successful people who take

action and finish things on a consistent basis.

It doesn't need to be perfect right away

Here's the key to becoming a visual mapping superstar, or at least

the key to becoming very good with any aspect of visual thinking.

Don't worry about it!

If you want to be productive, prolific, and pro-like, you just need

to start writing down all your ideas and thoughts and get them

out of your mind. When you keep this in mind, you'll get further

ahead. Your thoughts and plans don't need to be perfect, at least

not right away.

Like the old saying goes, "People who are perfect, are perfect at

practically nothing."

The goal of visual mapping, or at least in the sense that I want to

get across to you, is record your ideas, organize them, and then

use that list to take action toward your goals.


Think of it like high school

I liken visual maps to your final marks from high school. When

you're involved in the process, you think it’ll last forever, but in

reality, in a little while nobody's going to care.

In 20 years, nobody's going to say, “I wonder what they got on

that math exam.” What they care about is your ability to use the

information you've acquired over the years, and your ability to put

ideas together.

The process is important, but it's the end result that

everyone sees.

Productive visual maps are "Working

Documents"

I highly recommend you look at your visual maps as "working

documents." A working document is something you use to get


the job done, and then get rid of it. A grocery list is a good

example of a working document. After you’ve gone to the store

and bought all the food, you don’t go home, frame the grocery

list, and put it up on your living

room wall to show your friends. I’m

asking you to use the same

approach with visual maps.

The reason why it's important to

look at your maps as something you

can throw away is because this way

you won't be scared to add a new

idea. Perhaps you've thought of

something that seems a little crazy.

If you knew someone would be

going over your ideas and

scrutinizing them, you might decide to leave it off.

Great ideas is a numbers game

If you know that your ideas are being written down merely for the

purpose of getting them out of your head, then you'll probably

take a chance and write out something that seems far-fetched at

the time. Coming up with great ideas is a numbers game.

If you write out 10 ideas, you don't have very good odds of

coming up with an exceptional idea. Unless, of course, you're a

genius. However, if you're a genius, why wouldn't you write out

1000 ideas, and then pick the best one.

Do you get what I'm saying?

No matter who you are or how brilliant you think you are, you'll

still be better off putting more ideas down on paper.


I would also challenge anyone who says that the first idea that

comes to mind is always the best. Sometimes the first answer will

be the best, and sometimes the first answer will work (although it

might not be the best), but the majority of the time, the most

novel and innovative solutions come after you've exhausted all

the easy answers. You don't have to believe me, you can prove it

yourself.

Try doing some Daily 21's for a few days and you'll quickly see

just how many amazing ideas you have stored inside you.

You'll also find that your brain might "feel" tired, yet energized.

It's a cool experience.

My 3 Favourite Visual Mapping Tools

When I teach visual mapping, I like sharing my 3 favourite ways

of doing it. I like using visual strategies on paper, with white

boards, and on the computer. I think it's a good idea for you to

try out more than one tool, as you may find you like one more

than another. Keep in mind that what works for you might be

different than what works for me, so feel free to experiment and

make up your own visual thinking solution.

I use a combination of all three (paper, white board, computer)

depending on how I'm feeling and where I'm located.

Paper

The most basic way to visual map is on paper. It works fine, but

it's my least used method. When I have a choice, I'll generally

either use a white board or an electronic version. I simply prefer

http://youremakingme.com/6-ways-you-can-be-more-creative-with-a-daily-21


the size and tactile nature of whiteboards as opposed to paper

which can feel small and confining at times. I still use paper a lot,

but I'll generally write out the information in a traditional manner,

rather than going with a visual map.

If I'm able to, I do

like pulling out huge

sheets of paper

from time to time

and working on

them. It gives me

something big to

work with. I can

either lay it on a

table and start

working or use a bit

of painters tape and hang it up on a wall while I get the ideas out.

I use flip chart paper a lot when I'm working with companies,

because it really gets people involved, and you can take it away

with you when you're done.

White Boards

I'll normally use a white board when I'm trying to be creative.

I've gone as far as to turn a whole wall in my office into a giant

white board. Now, whenever I feel like I want to get something

out of my head, I can go into the office and think visually for a

while.

I find it's a great way to quiet my mind when I have ideas circling

around in my head. After spending 30-60 minutes with the white

board, I usually feel like my mind is free. Then, I can walk away,

feeling good that I've captured everything necessary.


I especially like using my white board at night when I can't sleep.

I just head into the office, put my ideas onto the wall, and then

head back to bed, calm and ready to sleep.

The obvious limitation to white boards is that you either have to

take action on the items right away or transfer what you've

written somewhere else.

Three Ways to Deal with White Board Info

1. Handle it right from the white board. As you perform an

action, delete it (or mark it as complete).

2. Transfer it to digital. This sounds like a lot of work, but you'll

be surprised how quickly you can move an hour of good ideas

into a digital solution.

3. Take a picture and save the picture in case you ever need it.

You can even save it in Dropbox.

Most of my ideas eventually find their way into an electronic

form, but others will just get acted on, and some of the OK ideas

can be saved as a picture, lying in wait for the day when I can dust

them off and put them to use.

How I made my whiteboard wall

Like I said earlier, I made a whole wall in my office into a giant

white board.

I love my whiteboard, and I can (and have) spent hours working

on and staring at it. It provides a huge creativity surface, which

gives a feeling of creation from its tactile nature. I feel like I can

create huge ideas and plans when I'm working on it.


There's something naughty about writing on a wall and getting

away with it. It's also nice to show off to people when they're

touring the house. You can say, "Oh, that's my white board wall,"

and carry on, like everyone has one.

The biggest problem I have is keeping it clean, as my kids like to

beautify it every chance they get.

Low odour markers

Not all whiteboards are created equal and not all whiteboard

supplies are worth using. I would suggest that you look for low

odour markers when you're at the store. Unless you're in a well-

ventilated area, the "regular" strength smelling markers will make

you higher than a kite. The terrible smell they give off won't help

your creativity either. The low odour markers still smell, but

they’re easier on the nose.

I've tried a number of different alternatives, even dry erase

crayons, but the low odour markers still work the best for me.

A warning about whiteboard paint

If you plan on using whiteboard paint, make sure you test out the

markers you plan on using before you get ambitious and draw all

over your new whiteboard with something that won't come off.

When I first put the paint on my visual mapping wall, I thought

I'd be able to use colourful markers. I went out and bought a

huge pack of different colours, and I excitedly waited to use

them.

Luckily, I tested out the colours before I did too much. Although

the markers looked beautiful, I wasn't able to erase them from the

paint. I'm not sure if it was because of the composition of the


paint, but unfortunately the coloured markers didn't work on it. I

ran for a pail of soapy water and washed the marker off.

Unfortunately, only black markers work on my whiteboard, but

it's still an amazing resource. (I’ve had plenty of people tell me

that their white board paint lets them use colours, so feel free to

try.)

If the paint idea doesn't work for you, you can also look for some

large whiteboards. Some hardware stores carry them in sheets as

large as 8' x 4'.

Just imagine having an entire wall to dedicate to your amazingly

gigantic ideas.

Do They Have to Look Pretty?

Colours

There's a lot of discussion about the use of colours in your maps.

If you ask some people, they'll tell you that colours are what

makes the difference between good visual maps and great visual

maps.

I find that some people get obsessed with changing colours,

adding images, and doing all sorts of other things that "People"

say will make their visual map better. They end up spending more

time fiddling with their visual map, than actually spending the

same amount of time creating amazing ideas using the mapping

format.

I'm not telling you to avoid colours, but what I am saying is that

you should spend most of your time focusing on the information.

Creating and using great ideas should be your sole purpose when


using visual maps.

I suggest using as much colour as necessary, but no more. Using

1% of your time to modify the look of your map is probably fine.

It's when you start spending 20% of your time adjusting colours

that I think you'll need to reassess your process.

If you'll be presenting your ideas, then it's certainly worth the

time to make sure everything looks crisp, and that you're ideas

really pop, but please don't get caught up in the colours.

Pictures and Images

One way you can make your ideas even more visual, is to add

pictures or images. Pictures are nice to look at, and they can also

add to the understanding of your visual map.

If you have an image in mind, and you can find it quickly, it might

be something for you to look at. Remember that not all images

are universal. An image that means something very clear to you

could have a completely different meaning to others looking at

the very same image.

A good example of how images

can mean something different

would be a sports team. If you add

a picture of your favourite team

holding a championship cup, it

could signify accomplishment

based on the trophy, the famous

person whom you think everyone

in the world should know, or even

the location where the picture was

taken. For you it's clear. It might

Do They Have to Look Pretty? 23

also be clear to others from your own city, and possibly your

country too, but you would be surprised. To someone else, your

picture could simply refer to the sport being played or the gender

of those pictured. All I'm saying is, "Be careful." By the way, the

picture I’ve included shows me standing next to the Grey Cup,

the top prize in Canadian Football.

Experts say you should add images

Most people who claim to be "Experts" on visual thinking will try

to tell you that you must have images and pictures because they

enhance the experience. I know, because I've had people try to

argue this point with me. They almost always cite "People," or a

book as the reason they KNOW this fact. I think that's ridiculous.

Until you try out some of these techniques for yourself and see

what works for you personally, you won't know what's best for

you.

If adding an image will make a presentation more spectacular, or

effective, then I'm all for it.

Images are "Slow"

I usually avoid pictures and images in my visual maps.

My reasoning is that while I'm working, I'd rather spend time

writing out new ideas instead of sitting there searching for images.

Sure, the images might help in some places, but the 5 minutes it

takes to find a new image, and the 20 seconds it takes to insert,

move, and resize the image doesn't always pay off for me.

My aim is to always get the most done in the least amount of

time. That usually means I start by pouring out all the


information from my head, and then organizing those items so I

can take action.

When I'm getting the info out of my head and into the visual

map, I try to keep things short and succinct. In other words, I try

to be pithy as I create the content. If you’re unsure how to make

something short and to the point, don’t worry about it. Getting

the meaning across is more important than saying it well (at least

in the beginning).

If the end goal of the content I’m creating is going to be a new

product, or an email, or a speech I'm planning, I might not want

to use an image at all. Adding a flower to a visual map might

mean one thing to me, but it would be crazy to add that same

image to an email, and think the person on the other end of the

conversation would understand me. Text would work much

better in these cases.

Lines and bubbles

When it comes to organizing your mind, you can pretty much

design a visual map however you want. Let me give you an idea of

how I use lines and bubbles, and you can make up your own

system.

It generally makes sense to have thicker lines or larger (or thicker)

circles showing the major ideas, and then have both the nodes

and connecting lines get thinner and smaller as you radiate out

from the central topic. It's an easy way to show relationships.

Just don't go overboard.

Do They Have to Look Pretty? 25

I see a lot of people who try to make the lines look funky by

modifying colours and tapering the line. I find that people who

try to do too much with the connecting lines in their maps can

inadvertently make the maps look cluttered. I also find that too

much playing around with lines takes focus away from the most

important thing - the content.

I recommend you make the lines similar in look and thickness.

You can still modify the size, length, and colour, but keep it

tasteful, while maintaining a strong focus on the content.

Lines/Bubbles on Paper

If I'm using paper, I'll usually put a square around the main idea,

and then I might have bubbles around the topics one level down.

The benefit of circling the ideas is that it gives the ideas some

separation when you're working with them. For the third level of

topics, I simply underline the ideas.

On paper, you'll find that your writing automatically gets smaller

as you radiate outward, because the main topic takes up a lot of

room on the page. The next level of ideas takes up another

significant portion, and the third level brings you so close to the

edge of the paper, that you're doing whatever you can to cram all

the pertinent information into the map.

Productivity

They're fast!

The beauty of visual maps is that they help you work quickly.

This means you can easily take an idea and brainstorm it, organize

it, and then present your results.

Visual maps have relationships already built into them, allowing

them to communicate a lot of information with relatively few

words. The visual structure lets you see how important one idea is

in relation to others around it. As an idea moves more levels away

from the central hub, its importance (relative to the main idea) is

reduced.

Sentence Fragments

Sentence fragments are your friends.

You can easily jot down a couple of words, and still know exactly

what was meant by the idea. This means you don't have to sit


around writing out sentences and paragraphs to get the idea

across. This strategy sounds strange to a lot of people, especially

those who remember teachers ingraining "proper" structure in

writing. When you see one of your own visual maps in action,

you'll be amazed at how much understanding is conveyed using

only a handful of words.

Fast is Good

Another benefit of visual maps is that sometimes rushed work

can be good work.

You may have noticed something like this in the past. Think back

to a time when you were working feverishly on something. You

probably felt unstoppable. The ideas were flowing out of your

head, one after another. You might say you're "In the zone," or in

a "Flow" state.

The other benefit of getting the ideas out is that it frees up your

mind to start thinking newer and better ideas. You'll hear me talk

about this over and over, but when you spend a little bit of time

to take the ideas floating around in your head and put them on

paper or a visual map, you'll start thinking differently. I

recommend you try it for yourself.

What normally happens in many people’s lives is they sit there

and think about the same ideas over and over again, sometimes

the ideas will improve. Most of the time they won't.

Using a system, like visual maps, lets you get the initial ideas out.

Then, you're able to build on the existing ideas with new ideas.

The visual aspect lets you see relationships you might not have

noticed before, and the fact that the ideas are now out of your

head frees up your brain to start thinking new ideas.

Productivity 29

Since you can start (or continue) a visual map with little or no

preparation, this strategy works particularly well as a primary

location for you to store your ideas. This type of storage location

is commonly referred to as a capture system.

The Childhood Clipboard Incident

Have you ever had one of those nights where you couldn't stop

thinking?

You probably had several ideas floating around in your head and

you were so excited thinking about the possibilities that you

couldn't sleep.

It's times like that where a good capture system comes in handy.

I remember back when I was a kid and I actually installed a

clipboard next to my bed. I had found an old clipboard of my

dad's, and I wanted to put it to good use.

I was even allowed to nail the clipboard to the wall, which I

thought was awesome, because my parents usually didn't like me

hanging things on my walls (They weren't in to the "pin cushion"

look).

The very first night I had it up, I went a little overboard. I had a

lot of good ideas. That meant each time an idea came to me, I

had to sit up in bed, pull the clipboard off the wall, grab the

pencil (handily attached via string), and write out my idea.

I was having a great time.

Unfortunately for me, my parents’ bedroom was on the opposite

side of the wall. That meant that each time I fumbled around in

the dark to pull the clipboard off the wall, they could hear it.


Every time I put the clipboard back, they could hear it as well.

Eventually my dad took the clipboard away from me because I

would just sit there all night writing down cool ideas, instead of

actually sleeping. It was keeping me up, but it was also keeping

them up.

I had an amazing time with my clipboard, but instead of helping

me sleep, it kept me awake dreaming. I had solved part of the

problem by having a location for my ideas, but I was just slowly

dripping out the ideas. It wasn't until years later that I realized the

way to get a good night's sleep when you have ideas is to put all

the ideas out somewhere in one big push. Once you can clear out

your head, sleep comes more easily.

That was my first experience with designing idea capturing

systems.

Having a way to take care of the high volume of information

coming at you these days is absolutely critical. It's impossible to

keep track of everything in your head. It just doesn't work

anymore. You'll go crazy worrying about every detail that's

coming into your life.

I'm going to show you how to use visual maps to bring

information in, record it, store it, and make it your own.

Capture System

Let's talk for a moment about how you can take all the

information you get on a daily basis and turn it around to make it

useful.

The first thing you'll need is a system in place for getting ideas out

of your head and onto something tangible. Your system can be

paper-based, electronic, or some other media. It might end up

being a combination of a few options. Once you figure out what

you’ll use, it’s time to get started.

Amazing Ideas Are Easily Forgotten

You might not believe it, but you've probably forgotten some

exceptional ideas.

You may think, "What do you mean? Every time I have an idea

it's always perfect."

Really?

Would you agree that amazing ideas often come to you at weird

times?

It could be when you're falling asleep or out for a walk. You


might be having coffee with someone, or simply sitting on the

bus to work. You immediately say, "Wow, what a great idea. I

should write it down. I should remember it." Then, you do

nothing.

Two days later you think to yourself, "What were the exact details

of that idea?" There's a chance you've drawn a complete blank,

and can't remember the idea. There's also a chance that you

remember part of what you were thinking about including a few

details, but some of the sheen may have come off of the initial

idea. The worst case scenario is that you may have completely

forgotten about it.

By capturing ideas the moment they come to you, you at least

have something to work with. The idea will probably be in a raw

format. It's probably in its most basic form, but ready to be

worked on.

I've had plenty of great ideas that I've later forgotten. Let me give

you an idea of how easily things can go wrong.

When I originally come up with an idea, I feel like I'm going to

change the world, but life eventually gets in the way. As the day

goes on I'll get distracted by other important things. The work

I'm doing for clients, and my family are good examples of daily

distractions.

Then, at the end of the day, I might try to think back to my new

idea to try and develop it, but I can't quite remember exactly what

it was. If it's one of those days where I've completely forgotten,

I'll spend time wondering how I let it happen.

When you have an overload of ideas floating around in your head,

it's more likely that new ideas, no matter how great, will get lost in

the shuffle. That means they might simply be ignored, or worse,

forgotten altogether. When you have a capture system that's easy

to use, you now have a way to crystallize the essence of the

Productivity 33

message as soon as it comes in. Now you have it somewhere, and

you can go back to it later when you have time to focus on it.

Mind Dumping

Mind dumping is easy to explain, but you'll need to try it yourself

in order to see (and feel) the benefits. When you mind dump, all

you need to do is sit down in front of a keyboard (or with pen

and paper) and get started. You do that by writing out everything

you're thinking.

Simple, right?

Yes it is. The key with mind dumping is to keep going until you

feel like you're completely out of ideas.

I even have some rules for you to remember when you're mind

dumping.

1. Write down everything, absolutely everything.

If it comes to your mind, write it down. What you're going to find

is that you probably have the same (or at least very similar)

thoughts day after day. The process of writing out everything

you're thinking is a way to acknowledge those thoughts, so you

can move on to bigger and better ideas.

2. Write down Wacky and crazy ideas.

I always seem to come up with a lot of crazy ideas. There are two

reasons why you want to write them down. First, it's to get them

out of your head. If you don't write down your funny ideas, they'll

end up consuming your thinking for the next five minutes.

Writing it out eliminates that. The second reason is that many

times, a goofy idea will sometimes lead you into thinking about a


new way to solve old problems.

3. If you think the same thought, but with slightly different

wording, write it down again.

By writing down very similar ideas, you're telling yourself, "OK, I

understand that this idea seems important. I've written it down

for analysis later. I'll take a good close look at it when the time

comes." Your goal should be to dump out all of the old ideas

taking up space in your head.

4. Don't judge or evaluate any ideas.

Don't judge, and don't evaluate any ideas as you write them out.

This aspect is similar to brainstorming, but it's different. All we're

doing is taking everything you think about, and putting it on

paper.

5. Don't give up.

Keep going until you're out of ideas. At first you might think,

"This is silly. I'm never going to be able to write everything out."

That's OK. Just do it anyway. For some people, it might take 10

minutes the first few times. Other people take 20 minutes, and

some will go an hour or more.

After a while, you start thinking more clearly, and the clutter

drains out of your mind. When that happens, you start having

opportunities to think bigger and better ideas.

Putting ideas on paper makes them real.

Benefits of Mind Dumping

Getting ideas out of your head opens your mind up to have new

thoughts. The new thoughts are usually fresher, and in my

opinion, they are often better ideas than the ones you've been

Productivity 35

rehashing over and over again during the last few days, weeks, or

even longer in some cases.

Mind dumping is also an excellent way to initiate the idea

refinement stage. While it's great to have ideas in your mind, it's

even more useful to put them in a place where you can take them

to the next level. Give it a try and you'll see that this is where the

real idea generation and the molding starts to happen.

A benefit of using visual maps for mind dumping is that you can

save ideas for later. During the course of mind dumping, you will

inevitably come up with several ideas that don't relate to anything

you're doing right now. That doesn't mean they're not useful. It

just means they're not useful yet. A visual map provides an ideal

location for you to store your ideas in an easy to find location


until they're needed in the future.

As you can see, I keep encouraging you to write out as many ideas

as you possibly can. You might think that the ideas will overrun

and trample the good ideas, but that's usually not the case. It's

easy to identify the really good ideas. After you're done getting

everything out of your mind, you can go back and move the best

ideas to the top. I also find that some of the weaker ideas end up

supporting the better ideas, so I'm able to drag and drop them

into a child node (one level down) position from my new idea.

Your goal should be to look at mind dumping like you're mining

for gold. Like the old saying goes, you need to mine a ton of ore

to get an ounce of gold.

It's the same with your ideas. I think you'll agree that it's worth

listing out a few "average" ideas if the end result provides one or

two exceptional ones. From my own experience, and the

experiences of people I've coached, I can tell you with quite a bit

of certainty that the more ideas you come up with, the better the

chance that those ideas will be great.

Thinking is like everything else in life. If you make a habit of

doing something you'll get good at it. When you really make a

habit of thinking, you come up with more ideas, and the quality

of those ideas will be better. It only takes a few sessions for you

to see results, so just go try it. That's the best way to sell you on

the process of thinking – just try it.

Remember the amazing ideas

Let's say (as an example) that you might have 200 good ideas over

the course of any given month. That sounds like a lot to most

people, but when you break it down, it's much more reasonable.

Productivity 37

On a daily basis, that averages down to around 7 ideas per day. I

can almost guarantee that you're currently coming up with 7 (or

more) good ideas every day.

Not every idea is created equal,

so we all know that all 200 of

your ideas won't be perfect.

Your goal shouldn't be to only

come up with perfect ideas.

Your goal should be to

remember and develop the 10

(it could be more or less)

amazing ideas out of that 200.

You do that by copying them

down somewhere so that you

can move forward and action

them in an intelligent manner.

The simple act of writing down

your ideas gets you started.

Using a visual map takes things

to the next level, by allowing you to organize and prioritize what

you're coming up with. You don't necessarily need to use a visual

map to remember your ideas, but I feel it makes the whole

process simpler. The other benefit is that you can quickly add

new information because your thoughts are set out visually in

front of you.

Try This!

1. Start writing down everything.

2. Move the best ideas to the top of your visual map and the


weaker ideas to the bottom.

3. Combine any ideas that are similar, by dragging and dropping

the weaker idea so that it's attached as a child node to the better

idea.

It's impossible to act on every single great idea you have, but what

if you were able to find the 30 greatest ideas you've had over the

past six months and rank them. Could you do something now?

Now you have a starting point from which you can choose the

most relevant ideas to act on.

The process of dumping the ideas and ranking them isn't

something you can do in your head. It would take too much work

to do that. It's much better to spend your time refining what you

already have, and having more creative thoughts to solve new

problems that come up along the way.

Substandard ideas waste brain time. Get every idea out and then

only focus on the best of the best.

Your groupings turn into goals

When you get a lot of ideas written down you'll start to see

similarities. At that point, it's time to group those similar ideas

together. The good news is that those groups will often turn into

upcoming projects or goals you can work towards. This is why

mind dumping can be so much fun. The things you daydream

about aren't always structured as well as they could be. Having

your plans in a visual map lets you organize, structure, and take

action towards making your dreams a reality.

At first, all you need to do is look for similarities and make some

groups. Once you have your ideas in place, you can go ahead and

spend time organizing. Organizing your ideas will take a

Productivity 39

surprising amount of time. Don't be afraid to spend some extra

time at this stage, because the framework you're designing will

determine how easy it will be to accomplish what you're setting

out to do. If you don't know where to put something, just create a

category called I don't know, or miscellaneous for now.

Once you get over the feeling of using visual maps to record and

organize your ideas, you're going to start crushing it. You still

have to take action towards what you want, but having your

dreams laid out step-by-step in front of you will put you light

years ahead of where you would have been without one.

Are you able to delete ideas?

Like I said before, visual maps are most effective when looked at

as a "working document." When you're being effective, it should

be easy to add new information. It should also be easy for you to

remove information that is no longer required.

When I'm using a visual map, I put everything I can think of into

it. I'm a big believer in quantity over quality during the idea

generation stage.

Your initial reaction might be to disagree with this statement, but

it's true. Think about it like this - people who won't write

anything down except perfect ideas will usually sit and stare at a

keyboard for an hour before typing out two good ideas.

Now let's look at what might happen if that same person were to

use the working document mentality. Instead of waiting for the

perfect idea, they write down every conceivable idea and thought

associated with the problem they're trying to solve. Many ideas

are good, some are above average, several are terrible, some are


repetitive, a few are goofy, and then there are a few absolutely

brilliant ideas.

By the time an hour is out, our person has generated several

ideas, moved them around into groups, and then prioritized the

ideas by moving the best to the top, and the weaker ones to the

bottom. In addition to that, the "extra" ideas can be turned into

tasks and still play a vital role in accomplishing the solution.

After all that is done, you are left with a choice. You can delete

some of the ideas, or keep them for later. If you still don't have

the solution completely mapped out, you can keep the crazy ideas

somewhere else, but once you start completing tasks, it might be

time to take a good look at your system and decide what can be

eliminated.

Deleting ideas as you complete goals

Something I love doing when I start accomplishing tasks is to

delete the corresponding node when I'm done.

Every time I delete a task, I can see myself moving closer to

completion.

Eventually there's nothing left but a blank screen, and that's when

I delete the map. Removing the map means you're done. It's an

exciting time (at least it should be). It means I accomplished what

I set out to do.

Accomplishing your task should always be the objective. The

finished product is what other people see. Only your high school

math teacher cares about the steps it took you to get there. Yes,

it's small steps that get you to your goal, but in the end, it's the

goal that matters.

Productivity 41

No way Kevin. I can't do it!

Does deleting your ideas freak you out?

I know it probably sounds scary. In the past, you've likely been

taught to value all of your possessions. For many people, that

extends to every idea they've ever thought of.

Here are a couple of common reasons I hear:

What if I need to do the same job again?

If there is a task or a set of actions you think you'll need to repeat

in the future, you should just make a Standard Operating

Procedure (SOP). A SOP can be something complex, but you can

also set it up as a series of steps in your visual map. Then,

whenever you need to perform the action again, you can go to

your SOP section and paste it into whichever project you'll be

working on.

Who knows, you might even create a template for upcoming

projects. It might include some of the key features you have in

every project. If you're thinking that no two projects are the same,

you might be right, but there are usually similar steps involved in

working through solving the problem and implementing its

solution.


What I mean to say is that most people have used a similar style

of problem solving no matter what type of problem they're

dealing with. A good template will probably work for you 60-80%

of the time (That's just an estimate from me, but I bet it's pretty

accurate.

Ask yourself three simple questions when you finish a task:

1. Is this task part of a current SOP? (If yes, does it need

updating?)

2. Should this task be part of an SOP? (If yes, add it immediately.)

3. Should I make a new SOP?

I want to keep a record of what I'm doing

If the thought of deleting tasks freaks you out, then don't do it.

I'm not trying to give you a panic attack. I just want to you to be

as productive as possible.

If you absolutely can't delete tasks from your list, I'll give you a

solution.

First, go back and review the three questions to ask when you

finish a task. If that still doesn't work, try one of these solutions.

1. Copy the list somewhere else at the beginning - Most visual

mapping software will let you copy the entire topic and paste it

somewhere else.

2. Collapse the topics as you complete, or insert a marker (a visual

image) so you know it's done. I’m not a fan of this because

although it seems fast, it eats up time. Leaving completed tasks

also makes your map looking cluttered.

Productivity 43

3. Move things as you complete them - Time consuming, but

effective.

Emphasize your ability to finish projects

If you hang around me for a while, you'll hear one phrase over

and over. I'll tell you, "I don't care how hard you work. I'll only

care about what gets done."

You don't get paid (or promoted) for half-done projects. That

means your focus should be firmly fixed on being a finisher.

I'd love you to use this approach when you're using visual maps.

Replace Your To-do List

Replace your to-do list

Visual maps are great for replacing to-do lists. I know. I use them

every day.

I have projects laid out in detail with all of the tasks prioritized

based on a combination of importance and urgency. Then I cut

and paste approximately one week's worth of work over to a map

where all my day-to-day actions reside. I call the day-to-day map

an "Action" map. When something gets moved to the action

map, I'm committing to doing it. Only having a few days’ worth

of tasks to look at helps keep me focused on important tasks, and

it keeps me moving forward toward my goals. Then, I do

everything on the list before repeating.

Let me give it to you in a bit more detail.

Step 1: Make lists of your projects and goals

First, you'll do what we've talked about in previous chapters.

Begin by writing everything down. Once you get all of the tasks

down into a visual map, you'll never have to spend time each day


re-writing your to-do list. If you're planning a project, your list

should tell you exactly what you want, and how you'll get there.

Step 2: Prioritize

Prioritizing is simple. All you do is drag-and-drop each of your

tasks either up or down. The higher up on the list tasks are more

important. Tasks near the bottom of the list are not as important.

As you move tasks up or down the list you're setting their level of

importance.

You might find that a lot of lesser tasks make their way to the

bottom and just sit there. If that's the case, I recommend you

have a good hard look at those tasks and ask yourself if you really

need to complete them. If a task really isn't needed, then I

recommend you clean it off the list, and by clean I mean delete. It

might seem scary to delete something, but it's like growing grapes.

You need to prune the vines to make them productive.

Step 3: Cut and paste one week's work into an action map

If you take care of the important things in life, the less important

ones will usually find a way to get done no matter what.

Replace Your To-do List 47

You could technically work away at tasks directly from your

projects list and still be productive. The reason why I suggest

moving a handful of tasks over to your action sheet each week

can be distilled down into one word. Focus. When you look at a

list of five or six tasks, you quickly get an idea of what needs to be

done. If you decide to take action on those tasks a little out of

order, it probably won't make much of a difference.

On the other hand; if you try to work directly from a visual map

containing 8 different projects, which all have hundreds of

individual tasks, you're going to find it hard to focus on what's

important. Your eyes are constantly drawn to fun tasks, which

probably aren't the most important. You might also start to

reorganize the ideas in your map, meaning that you could end up

spending hours playing on your map without getting real work

done.

Start making it a habit to only move tasks you plan on

completing. Then do the work.

Have a way to archive your information

If you don't already have a plan for archiving your information,

now’s the time to put one in place.

Having a systematic archive system does two things. First, it

keeps extraneous information out of your day-to-day decision

making. Second, it lets you quickly find information, so you can

use it, or add on to it.

Don't feel like you have to keep everything together.

It's okay if you use a second program to archive your data, as long

as you're consistent in how you do it.


YWriter

A program I love using for archiving is called yWriter. It's not

really designed for archiving, but I like it nonetheless. YWriter is

designed for novel writing. The reason I like it so much has a lot

to do with the structure the information is kept in. You start out

by grouping your information into books, chapters, and scenes.

A book can be any kind of topic you're working on. The chapters

will then be the logical headings you want to include about your

topic. Then, the scenes are where the content is stored. When

you're working with individual scenes, you can make up several

topics, and easily drag-and-drop them afterwards if you want to

change up the sequence.

Another benefit of yWriter is that it doesn't use a proprietary file

system. All the files are stored as in Rich Text Format (RTF) files,

which can be opened by any word processing software if

necessary.

Perhaps the number one feature of yWriter, that's sold me on

using it as an archiving system, is that each day you open a


yWriter Book, the program automatically creates a backup. That

means the more often you use yWriter; the more often it is

backed up. That’s a great solution for you if you're looking to

archive information. If you only used a particular yWriter Book

once a year, then the program only creates a backup, once a year.

If you use yWriter book every day, you'll have several different

backups to make sure you never lose any information you're

working on.

The best part of yWriter is that it's based on donations. You can

download it for free, and only pay for it if you find it useful. I

recommend you chip in a little towards the next version of

yWriter if you find it useful.

Evernote

Evernote can be a great place to archive things. It has a powerful

search, and it's accessible on the go, as well as at home. The price

is right for this tool, as the free version of Evernote will work fine

for most people. If you choose to go with Evernote, you can

create a notebook with the name Archive. Then, it’s as simple as

adding one more layer of categories inside of the Archive

“Notebook.” You can also add tags to find relevant content later

on.

Use a database

If the thought of yWriter or Evernote doesn't work for you, you

can consider using a database. A good example of this would be

Microsoft Access. You may even have it installed on your

computer already, as some versions of Microsoft Office come


with it.

The power of using the database is that you're able to search

through everything you've put into the database for ideas you've

previously archived.

I don't personally recommend you use a database, because they're

a little less intuitive, and can be hard to setup. If you feel

confident using a database, it can be a very powerful tool.

I used MS Access a few years ago for my primary database, but

when I came across yWriter, I chose to move everything over,

and I've been happy with the changes. What I've lost in the way

of ability to search, I've gained in simplicity.

Combine short to-do list with big projects

Using a short to-do list combined with big projects is a huge tip I

want to share with you. The combination is very powerful. The

biggest reason why I recommend a short to-do list is because it

leaves you nowhere to hide. With only a handful of tasks on the

list, either you do the task, or you do nothing. The short to-do list

keeps you focused on what you'll be doing every day.

You don't need to break down or rewrite your list every single

day. You just see what's next and you do it.

The bulk of your upcoming tasks will be kept on a big project list.

The benefit of having a list of all your projects on a separate sheet

is that you can go into extensive detail about what needs to be

done for any project to be completed. Each of the projects

should have tasks listed in the order of priority.

I generally have 3 to 5 main projects going at any given time. You

may have more or less, but don't try to be a hero and run 20 big

projects at once, or you'll end up doing a bad job on all of them.


I like having a topic called Queue. It's a list of future projects, and

other ideas. You can call the extra topic anything you want, but

it's important to have something like this. Having a queue folder

gives you an outlet for putting new tasks that are important but

not relevant to main projects. This keeps your attention firmly

focused on completing the main projects.

Once I've completed all the tasks on my to-do list (I call it an

Action List), which is usually about once per week, I'll transfer

another weeks’ worth of work over into it.

My goal is always to clear the list.

If you’re worried about finishing everything on your to-do list

because it's so short, that's fine. Finishing early means you get to

go into your project list and pick something to do. It's usually

going to be the next most important task to move your project

forward, but sometimes it's nice to give yourself a bit of a mini

reward and do a fun task before getting back into the important

things.

That being said, you're probably going to have too much work on

your weekly plan, since most people overestimate how much

work they can do, and generally underestimate the number of

interruptions.


Don't put tasks directly into your task list

If it's possible, try to put tasks onto your project list first. Then,

make the new ideas and tasks fight their way onto the to-do list.

What I mean is, just because you get an email and someone asks

you to do something, it doesn't mean you should drop everything

and start that new bit of work. That email could very well be the

most important thing you could be doing at any given time, but

it's always good to take a quick step back and ask yourself, "Is this

really something I should be spending time on right now, or

would it work better with other task that I plan on doing in a few

days or a few weeks."

It'll only take you a couple of seconds to decide and then copy

and paste the task into the appropriate spot on one of your

project lists, or potentially the Action to-do list.

The crucial aspect of scrutinizing new tasks is to prevent you

from just blindly putting things onto your to-do list in a spot it

doesn't deserve. If you put an unessential task onto your to-do list

ahead of important jobs, you're preventing yourself from being

productive.

You can also create a list called “Next Up,” or one of a similar

name. This lets you quickly add new tasks to what in essence is a


placeholder for upcoming actions. Anything on the Next Up list

will still need to be questioned before it’s moved to your Action

map, but it gives a location to store up future actions that don’t

quite fit into any of your major goals.

Overall, the point I want to get across is that it can be easier to be

a time management superstar if you first look at the big picture,

but then have a way to zero in quickly on what's most important

right now. Visual maps also save you time because you're not

constantly rewriting lists. Instead you know exactly what needs to

be done, so you go ahead and do it.

Sometimes, a certain project might all of a sudden become more

important than the others. If that's the case, you can easily see

what your next step is, because the project list makes it simple to

move from one project to the next. Since everything is arranged

in order of importance, you always know what the next several

critical actions are. Since you don't have many tasks moved to the

to-do list, you can easily switch gears and get started on the new

priority.

I'm known for telling people that it doesn't matter how hard you

work.

Working hard doesn't mean anything. Unsuccessful people work

hard all the time.

What matters, is what gets done.

If you use a visual mapping program for your ideas, it will help

you stay focused on the important things. When you focus on the

important things in life, that’s when you raise the chances of

getting more done, quickly, with good final results.

Learning

Now that many students have either a laptop or mobile device

with them at school (or wherever they’re learning), there’s a real

opportunity to leverage that technology to really apply a visual

thinking methodology to learning.

Using your device, you can create large maps where you can easily

see relationships, and have everything at your fingertips so you

can quickly review what you’ve learned, instead of searching

through documents or scribbled notes.

Note Taking

I bet you already have a system in place for studying.

It probably works alright, but you may have been using the same

system since you were 12. Let's talk about how you can update

the way you study using visual maps.

A big benefit of visual maps is the ability to speed everything up.


It lets you take notes faster, and allows for lightning-quick review

sessions.

Visual maps are great when you record your notes directly into

them during a lecture. You can find solutions available for

laptops, tables, and phones (Phones can work, but the screen size

is the obvious limitation).

During a lecture, you're able to add new information, show

relationships, take photos of visual props (and insert them into

the map), and you can call up information from previous lectures.

Most classes have projects or essays due during the year, so by

having a topic set aside for each one, you can easily add more info

during class.

The power of visual maps might not be immediately clear as I list

off all of the benefits. That's probably because you can do all of

those things using other types of software, or even the old

standby, pen and paper.

Visual maps stand out in their simplicity, speed, and fluidity of

use. While you're sitting in a lecture, you'll find it very easy to

move information around, letting you prioritize the information.

Teachers will often remember information out of sequence,

which can throw off your notes. Since information in visual maps

is laid out as topics, you can quickly drag and drop the new

information to the proper spot when you have a spare second or

two. Compare that to cutting and pasting the same information.

A visual map lets you organize the information in a way that

works best for you.

I know I shouldn't have to say this, but I'm going to say it

anyway. Don't go overboard by trying to type out every single

word being said. Visual maps are great for conveying similar (or

greater) meaning with fewer words. I recommend being pithy

Learning 57

when you write out topics in your visual maps. When something

is pithy, it says it like it is and gets to the point right away. It can

be challenging to unlearn the habit of copying down every single

word, but it's worth the effort. Once you get used to only

recording the relevant information, you're going to see the power

of this Technique come to life.

Remember More of What You Learn and Read

Think back to a time when you read a great book. When you first

read it, you we're excited about it. Then, about 3 months later,

someone asks you a few questions about the book, and you can't

really remember the details anymore. You likely spent hours or

days or weeks reading, but for some reason, you can barely

remember anything now.

If this situation has happened to you, relax, you're normal. The

good news is that by using a few simple and straightforward recall

techniques (and a marginal amount of effort); you'll stand a better

chance of maintaining what you've learned.

What I'm going to get you to do is write out what you want to

learn, and then review it several times. Simple, right? This age-old

approach isn't new, but the use of visual maps makes it quicker,

and more intuitive. It might not be glamorous to sit down and go


through your mind map, but it's 1000% more fun than the

drudgery of reading though a pile of old-fashioned notes in a

binder.

If you don't try this out, you'll probably just laugh it off. After all,

I bet you've tried this yourself in the past. I can also guess you

only had mixed results, even after reviewing the material several

times.

This is another technique you have to try for yourself. Please just

suspend your disbelief for a while, and try it out.

You can use this for remembering:

Lectures

Books you've read

Meetings

Important phone calls

I really like using this approach for books. I actually find it very

useful to record ideas from books where I want to remember the

contents (including text books). You can group the information

by main topic, or you could do it by chapter. How you store the

information should be related to how you plan on using it going

forward. For instance, you might want to have the information

laid out by chapter, if you'll need to study for a chapter quiz or

unit exam.

It's also useful if you just simply want to look back at what you've

learned or read.

Learning 59

Here's how you can review for maximum

results

Review a lot at first. Then, reduce your review frequency as time

goes on. When you first hear how much I want you to review, it'll

sound crazy. Trust me, you'll be able to review information so

fast, you'll barely notice the time it takes. All you're doing is

quickly scanning over the information from your visual map.

It's not an in-depth study of the book over again. Instead, it's

designed to maintain the key information from that topic. When

you want to go back and review anything in the future it will

make it that much easier, because you already have a good recall

of the major points.

The list below will show how and when to do your reviews. It

looks like a ton of work, but it's not. The list is very simple, hardly

takes any time, and it's 100% intuitive. There's very little effort

involved in doing this.

If you want to study with barely any effort, review AFTER:

1 Hour - Review immediately after your class, session, lesson, or

whatever you want to remember.

2 Hours - Review after a short delay. If you're in school, you

could review after the next class. It will only take you a minute or

two.

4 Hours - This could be a quick review before the afternoon

begins, or at the end of the day.


End of Day - In the evening, spending a few minutes reviewing

everything you've learned. The review will go quick, because you

still remember most of it (you should, you've already reviewed it

three times).

1 Day - This could be done in the evening on the following day.

The gaps between reviews start to widen here, but they're still

quick because you're retaining the info.

2 Days - At this point your brain is screaming at you that you

already know everything. You're response, "Good. We'll just

review it quick anyway."

End of Week - This is a good review for Saturdays. Look over

everything learned during the week and search for similarities and

connections between the information.

1 Week Later – If you’ve gone through each of the steps above,

you’ll remember a surprising amount of information when you go

to review it a week later.

1 Month - Review at the end of the month, and every month

after that if you want to maintain the information.

I used to create visual maps and review them for every book I

read. It was a good exercise, and at the end of the year, I could at

least remember what I had learned. Even if you stop doing

reviews, you'll still have a visual map of the book that you can go

back and reference.

So give it a shot. Go ahead and make visual maps of the

important things you want to remember this year. It's not hard to

do, and they don't always have to be super in-depth. The map for

a book you're reading for fun doesn't need to have as much

information as one for a university course.

Sometimes there are only three or four major ideas in any given

book. Other times there's one major idea per chapter. Sometimes

Learning 61

you'll come across books which have several large important ideas

in a chapter. It all depends on the type of content, and what you

are looking to get out of it.

Planning a speech

Speeches are made up of a collection of ideas that support a

specific point. Visual maps are great for helping you organize and

prioritize ideas. When you put those two ideas together it means

that using a visual map is one of the biggest upgrades you could

make to your speech planning routine. I've personally used visual

maps to plan hundreds of speeches, podcasts, and other types of

presentations.

Let me tell you why I get so excited about this topic by looking at

the process of preparing a speech.

One of the best parts about preparing a speech is the chance to

lay out all of your ideas on a particular topic. That's usually the

fun part of speechwriting. The challenge comes in when you need

to find a way to organize your ideas and stories in a logical way.

What gets really hard is when you need to figure out which ideas

will stay in the presentation, and which won't make the cut. That

means you have to remove or delete some of the information that

you have. Deleting good ideas is tough, but often necessary. If

you've ever tried to take a speech from inception to completion


using a word document or a piece of paper, you know how

challenging it can be. It's hard because there are times when you

need to copy and paste, move things around, all the time reading

a sentence here and a sentence there to make sure you're at the

right part of the speech. It's not impossible to use this method,

but visual maps provide a simpler solution.

From my personal perspective, I like the fact that I can write

down all of my ideas in a huge list. If I come up with some

supporting points for an idea, I can attach them to the main idea

immediately. That means that if I decide to move the main idea,

everything attached goes with it. I don't need to spend time

highlighting exact words, and making sure I copy the period at

the end. With a visual map, I can grab the main topic and move it

wherever I want.

Learning 63

After I have my ideas out in front of me, I can now go through

and divide the ideas up into different sections. I usually have an

idea of how the speech will break down before I write out my

ideas, but sometimes I'm able to come up with a new story, or a

new way of looking at things that changes my initial assumptions.

Once I have my main content areas in place, it's time to take the

ideas from the list I've created and start dragging and dropping

the ideas into relevant categories. If I was using a Word

document for this, it would be a lot of work. By dragging and

dropping ideas in the visual map, I feel like I'm at least 4 times as

fast at this (I'm estimating, but the difference is significant).

If I come across a speech idea that's nice but doesn't support the

main point, I don't worry about it. I make an extra category for all

my uncategorized ideas. I might call it "Ideas," or "Extra," or

sometimes I call it "Delete Me," because I'm looking for an

excuse to get rid of it, but I can't. The extra content in the Ideas

category might be deleted eventually, but it lets me have a place

for it to sit while I figure out exactly what I'll say. Moving the

extra ideas to a category moves them out of the main list too, so

it helps you see progress as you organize the speech.

As I'm working through the speech, I'll also look for

opportunities to trim and reduce the number of thoughts or ideas

in each category. I look for ways to combine similar ideas, and

opportunities to move a supporting story under a main category.

By far, the biggest problem with most people's speechwriting is

the curse of too many ideas. I can tell you from experience that

when you think of great stories, there's a compulsion to want

each one of them included in the finished speech. The hard reality

of speaking is that any story (no matter how good) or any pithy

remark (no matter how witty it is) should not go into a

presentation if either it doesn't support the purpose of the


speech, or if it will make your speech too long.

Once you have your ideas out, and have spent time organizing

and prioritizing, you'll be able to sit back and admire the speech

you've created. I enjoy being able to visually see the main sections

of the speech, and all the supporting ideas a level below the main

idea. It shows me how much support I have for each of the

individual ideas. From that point forward I can now continue to

develop and refine the speech inside the visual map.

In case you're wondering when we'll write the speech out word

for word, I'm happy to report that we won't. For the most part,

good speeches aren't written out word for word. It's certainly

possible to do that, but the downside to having everything

scripted is that you can lose your place when you speak. A bigger

downside is that most people sound like they're reading a scripted

or rehearsed presentation. If you memorize your speech by saying

it over and over again, you suck the emotion out of the speech.

Good emotion is the key to connecting with your audience. It's

frustrating to watch people telling a story about their own life and

seeing them read it off of note cards. If you lived the story, you

don't need notes!

I found visual maps to be a great resource for rehearsing

speeches.

When I'm working on new material I like to run through it all

several times before I perform in front of a live audience. By

running through, I'm referring to me looking at the sentence

fragments I've put into the visual map, and then talking through

the speech. I actually say what I plan to say out loud. After a few

Learning 65

run-throughs, the stories get smoother and the ideas tighter.

As I feel more confident with a particular topic, I can start

collapsing the topics down so I can't see the supporting points

anymore. I'll keep doing this over the course of a few days until

all I'm looking at are the main topics of the presentation.

Brainstorming new ideas

Brainstorming is fun to do, and it feels good to come up with

cool ideas. The benefit of using visual mapping software, beyond

the fact that it's fast, is that you have your information in a usable

format, so you can start organizing and using it right away.

When you're brainstorming, you can readily combine ideas from

several people in your team or group. You can have all the ideas

in one big list, or you can separate it, showing each person's

contribution. When you hold a meeting with your team members,

you can start to visually move ideas and information around, so

they can see their contributions being made part of the final

product. You simply start dragging and dropping the ideas onto

major topics.

The biggest value in brainstorming with visual maps is the ability

to show how the contributions are all being used and transformed

into the end solution. Good brainstorming doesn’t include

judgement of the ideas when they're being generated. Once the

ideas have been recorded in the map and moved around a few

times, they start to become part of the collective knowledge of

your solution. I would recommend having a topic in your map for

ideas that don't have an immediate fit. You could call it

something like "Novel Ideas," or "Cool Thoughts." The idea

behind the naming is twofold. First it provides a location for great


ideas that aren't relevant to the current problem you're solving.

When you review the list later, you might be able to take some

ideas from the brainstorming for one project, and use them for a

completely different project. The second reason why you use

positive wording on the topic is to prevent anyone from feeling

like their ideas are being singled out. If you’re leading the

evaluation session, it probably wouldn't hurt to start by dragging a

few of your ideas into the "Novel Ideas" topic to show that

there's nothing to worry about.

If you try to move an idea into the Novel Ideas topic and the

person who originally suggested the idea starts making a fuss and

tells you to delete it, you can made a judgement call on how to

proceed. I like saying something like, "Oh really? I like keeping

every idea, especially the fun ones. It's amazing how many times

they inspire new ideas. Why don't we keep it for now?"

Like I said above, once you move ideas around a few times, see

them attached to other ideas, move them around again, and

finally move them to a Novel Ideas topic, they become much

easier to delete. If you try to step on someone's idea too soon,

they may pull back from the session. Evaluating ideas that have

been brainstormed can sometimes involve a little ego stroking.

Once the team has gone through the exercise a few times, it gets

much easier to let go of pet ideas (usually).

Problem Solving - The Excuse Game

I'd like to share a simple way to solve problems with you.

When you hear it described, it's going to sound really simple, but

don't let that fool you. It's actually a powerful way to get to the

bottom of problems. I call it the Excuse Game.

Learning 67

What I'd like to you do is write down the main problem you're

trying to solve in the middle of the visual map. Next, add all the

reasons why you haven't been able to solve the problem yet. List

all of the things that are between where you are now and where

you need to be to solve the problem. You might list out common

issues like logistics, personnel, training, technological

shortcomings, or anything else you can think of.

Now comes the fun part.

The way you play the Excuse Game is to look at each of the

reasons you listed for not solving the problem yet. Then, go wild

and list off as many excuses for not getting the work done.

If you try this out, you'll see how much fun it can be to list off

excuses. As always, I recommend that you include all the excuses

you can think of. That includes the funny and absurd excuses too.

You never know what will inspire the perfect solution, so put

everything down until you're sure.

Now, go around and start answering all of the excuses. When you

start answering the excuses, you start finding ways to move closer

to your goal.

Let's talk about a quick example. Let's say that one of our excuses

is that you don't have enough sales. Your answer to that could be

to do more advertising, or make more phone calls. Perhaps it's

time to reconnect with existing clients. Once you think you've

exhausted all the ways to answer the excuse, you then move on

until you've answered every excuse.

Many times you'll start seeing a pattern, which should at least give

you a place to start. Other times, the act of turning the problem

on its head, helps you see things in a different light, paving the

way to a solution.


The Excuse Game is fun to play too. You'll often hear an excuse

that people quote when talking to customers, but seems absurd

after you've analyzed it using the game. You'll be amazed at how

often you'll find simple solutions to your excuses. When you start

solving excuses, you start moving closer to solving the bigger

problem. The more excuses you solve, the better your chances.

Project Management

Simple Project Management

You can use visual maps to quickly setup and organize a project.

It's simple to plan your project, do the work, and finish tasks all

within the same program.

One of the benefits of using a visual mapping tool is that the

system is lighter than a "Professional" project management

program. Planning out a project with a visual map won't provide

the same depth, but chances are good that you're not using the

map to build a bridge or skyscraper. Visual maps are powerful

because of their simplicity. Most of the time, all you need is a list

of the activities that must be completed, arranged in a neat,

prioritized list. Then, work your way through the list.

If you want a little more robustness, you'll find that some visual

mapping programs let you set the start and end dates of the

various tasks during the process. Not all programs provide this

option, but it's available.

Setting up a project

Planning and monitoring projects is really a breeze once you


understand how to use visual maps. It's as simple as figuring out

what your plan is. Then, detailing exactly how you'll get there.

You make a list of all the activities you have to complete in order

to get your project done.

Next, you look for similarities between tasks, so you can make

groups of tasks that can be performed together.

From there, you go in and prioritize everything in your list(s) so

that the most important tasks are at the top of the list, and the

least important activities are near the bottom.

Now all you need to do is start at the top and work your way

down.

By having everything in the list, you can quickly see what needs to

be done. More so, you can see what the next several tasks are. It's

so simple that it works.

I like detailing as much as possible in the project. By that I mean

taking the time to list out specific steps that need to happen. The

more detail you provide, the easier it is for you to complete the

task. It's also beneficial if you're working in a group, as the group

members won't have to ask for clarification on every detail if it's

already included in the visual map.

Too much info is always better than too little. With too little info,

people will constantly be searching for clarification. With too

much info, you can simply ignore or delete anything extra that

Project Management 71

isn't necessary. That's not to say that you should waste time

adding useless information. What I recommend is that you go

slightly beyond the level of detail you think you might need to

ensure the task is done right.

When you make a visual map of a project it's going to look huge.

Don't worry about it. When you're working on a particular area,

you can zoom in or Drill down (a feature on programs like

XMind to focus on a child topic). This lets you see the small tasks

and decide on what needs to be done next. Most good visual

mapping solutions will also let you open and close the individual

topics in order to focus on what's important at any given time.

How to use a visual map for project

management

1. Make a list of all your projects.

2. Under each project, make a list of everything you need to do.

3. Look for opportunities to group things together.

4. Take some time to organize your ideas and drag-and-drop

around ideas on the list and make sure that they're in the proper

spot.

5. Prioritize your items. The higher up on the list it is, the more

important it is.

6. Start at the top and work down.

In reality, using a visual map for project management isn't

anything different than you might have done in the past. It just

makes it better by putting the whole project in a visual space so


you can "see" where you are in the process, and what has to

happen next.

Making New Products

Making new products for your business

For most people, creating new products is very tough. They

probably think they can't do it, and they would be right. The

reason why it's so tough is because it can be difficult to organize

the information, and then have a plan to follow all the way to the

finish.

If only you knew of a way to quickly organize and execute tasks.

Oh yeah! Visual maps.

Think about how nice it would be to easily plan upcoming

content for your company website, sales brochures, or even just a

product you plan on selling. This could even be the start of the

book you've always planned on writing.

I have a whole visual map dedicated to new ideas for blog posts

and podcast episodes. I keep adding more to it all the time, so I

don't think I'll ever get to the end of my lists. It's like we've talked


about before. Your brain is more creative when you have a place

to get your ideas out. It's also good to write out a lot of ideas, and

then let the best ones percolate to the top.

I can never understand how people say they're out of ideas. The

only way you could be out of ideas is if you stop thinking. When

someone says they're out of ideas, it usually means they don't like

what they're thinking about right now. The good news is that if

you don't like how you're thinking, you can change it. When you

start writing your ideas down, the new ideas start flowing. That's

why it's good to start outlining new products and information

you're working on for your business. You'll be surprised at how

much you can outline in a very short amount of time.

Obviously outlining ideas doesn't create finished products. You'll

still need to work your way through the outlines to fill in all the

gaps with a lot of content.

Let me explain it to you like this - your high school English

teacher was right. Do you remember when you were told to make

an outline first? I'm not sure if you ever believed your teacher, but

I know I didn't. I remember thinking that was a silly idea. I

figured I already knew what I wanted to say, so that made an

outline a waste of time. It took me a long time to figure out that

starting with an outline, and then adding detail was the simplest

and easiest way to produce content you can feel proud of in a

reasonable amount of time.

I have enough content ideas that I could be creating for the next

hundred years and never get through it all. I’m always out of time

well before I'm out of ideas. Luckily, having more ideas than time

is a good problem. It gives you the opportunity to select the

cream of the crop when you have a glut of ideas.

Wouldn't it be nice to choose ten ideas out of your top hundred,

rather than having to pick the best idea out of two? The luxury of

Making New Products 75

choosing from a large number of ideas helps you select the best

ideas to work on. That, in turn, helps you be more productive

because you're focusing your time on products that have a better

chance of succeeding.

Once you choose the best idea, you can now get fully devoted to

producing your best work.

To create a new product you use the same basic structure as most

of the other topics we've covered in this book.

1. Write out your main idea or headline as the central topic.

2. Start adding topics below that you think are the most important

3. Copy and paste liberally from other sources. Just make sure

you document where you're taking the information from. If you

don't document it, and try to find the source later, you might have

a tough time. When you copy and paste use a Note if possible. It

lets you attach text to a topic in your map. It keeps the map

looking clean.

Dictate your dream product

I want to let you know about something that most people don't

know about. It's the power of dictation. If you own a smart

phone or if you have a computer these days, there's a good

chance that you already have software built in that will let you

dictate part or all of your book. I dictated this entire book, Visual

Productivity, using SIRI on my iPhone.

There are 3 key steps to dictating a product:

1. Outline - Use a visual map to plan out your product. The

technique for creating a product is the same as you would use for


anything else. Get the ideas out of your head, organize by

dragging and dropping, and prioritize.

2. Dictate - The power of dictating is that, for most people,

talking is easier than writing. Use the Outline to dictate your

product.

3. Edit - Editing will take some time and effort. You can choose

to do it yourself, get friends to help, or pay someone to do it for

you.

I'll go deeper into the three steps in the following sections.

Outline your product using a visual map

I recommend outlining the book first using a visual map. You

already know that it will help you get your ideas clear. Having a

clear plan before you start dictating is important because it will

significantly cut down on the editing required.

I recommend you start with a mind dump. Enter in all the

content you think will be relevant. If you're working on a big

project, it might take several sessions before you have all the

content you need.


I began working on Visual Productivity in February, and kept

adding to my outline all the way until July, when I dictated the

book. I could have gone through the whole process faster, but I

had other priorities in my life at the time. I like the fact that I

didn't feel rushed. I slowly worked on the book, until it was at a

point that I wanted to move forward.

You could just as easily sit down and spend a weekend outlining

and dictating the book. The downside to rushing is that important

content could be left out. I did two podcast episodes for the

You're Making Me Podcast that deal with creating content

quickly. Episode 27: How to Write a Book in 3 Days, and

Episode 29: The 3-Day Book Challenge.

Looking back, I think I prefer taking things slow and steady, as

it's a more doable approach, but if you're energetic enough, high

quality content can be produced quickly.

If you're even considering writing a book, or creating a new

product, start now. Make a visual map with your ideas and start

working on it. When you have the map created (or at least a topic

in a map), you now have a spot to add ideas and references. As

you work on other priorities, you can stop in from time to time to

organize or add content.

Outline tips:

Use open ended questions to prompt you.

Write down all your ideas. What's true now, may not be so in 1

year.

Keep a lookout for new ideas that you can copy into your visual

map

http://youremakingme.com/Episode27

http://youremakingme.com/Episode29


Dictate, using the outline as a reference

The second step is to dictate your product. As long as you have a

detailed outline, all you need to do at this point is "talk" your way

through the content. The outline will serve as your guide. The

point isn't to mindlessly read off the text, but rather to use the

ideas in the outline to keep you on track as you dictate the

content.

Choose a Dictation program

If you want, you can leave the outline where it is and create a

whole new document, or you can copy the outline into a program

like Google Docs, Evernote, or a regular Word document.

You can dictate right into your computer if you know how to use

the feature for your particular computer. I prefer using a mobile

device, because I find the transcription is higher quality. When

you're using a mobile device your speech is transmitted to the

company that designed the app (Apple, Microsoft, Google, and

Dragon). Some people I've told worry that their ideas are being

listened to, but I don't think you have anything to worry about.

I used SIRI

I dictated Visual Productivity using the SIRI feature on my iPhone.

SIRI is available for iPhone 4S and above. I dictated into an app

called Drafts. The benefit of this setup was that I could dictate a

whole section, and then choose to have it sent to my Evernote

account with the touch of a button.

I also used a special lavaliere microphone to help pick up my

speech better. I didn't buy the microphone for the book, but


since I owned it, I used it. You can feel free to hold your phone

up, or just put on the ear buds (as long as they have a built in

microphone).

I spent time over 3 days dictating the content. I recommend that

you limit the amount of time you spend dictating until you know

how your voice will take it. If you're not used to speaking a lot,

you might find your voice feeling strained, so watch for the signs

and stop if you feel any discomfort. You can also continue

recording the next day.

I used my iPhone because I like moving around. I looked at visual

map on my laptop for reference, and talked my way through

Visual Productivity. I was able to walk around the whole time and

enjoy the process.

I tried a number of other options. Some show a lot of potential,

but in the summer of 2013 when I wrote Visual Productivity,

using SIRI to dictate was the best by far.

Automatic transcription from audio/video files

I spent a lot of time trying to find something that would

transcribe a video or audio recording, but we're still a few years

out on the technology for that. YouTube automatically tries to

transcribe their videos, but it's probably only 70-80% accurate. I

tried another system too, but the result was about the same. If

you think 70% sounds like it's accurate, it is, but not accurate

enough. I transcribed a 20 minute video, and ended up spending

about 5 hours doing some heavy editing. 70% accurate means

that 3 out of every 10 words are wrong. I had to keep going back

to the video to hear what was said. In the end, I could have just

listened to the audio and transcribed it faster.


Speaking clearly reduces errors

As you dictate, do your best to speak clearly and at a moderate

pace. That will help to make the dictation more accurate. Right

now, the biggest downside to dictating content is accuracy. Most

programs do a good job at figuring out what you're saying, but

since everyone speaks a little bit differently, it might not

understand what you say. If you mumble, just use a little more

time and care as you dictate. You shouldn't have to articulate

every word in slow motion to get the app to work. Just take your

time, and watch the pacing.

Pay Someone

There are scores of people on fiverr.com, odesk.com, and similar

sites who will manually transcribe your work. It's relatively

inexpensive when you factor in your time, as long as you can find

someone who can understand you and do a good job.

If you're considering paying someone, don't send them the whole

book and set them loose. It's better to send your text in small

pieces. You don't want the price spiraling out of control and

feeling locked in.

Most transcriptionists will do a good job, but keep an eye out for

people whose written language skills are lacking (in English or

whichever language you're writing in). It might turn into a

frustrating experience for you, for them, and often for both of

you.

Edit what you've created

Editing usually takes longer than writing the info. That means


that the clearer you are when you create the content, the less time

you'll need to spend in editing. No matter how careful you are

though, there will always be editing to do. Don't wait until things

are perfect before you start working on your book. Start now, but

do your best work from the start.

During the editing stage you'll fix typos, clarify your wording, and

insert quotations or references to beef up your product.

When you've done all the editing and correcting that you can find,

it's time to get someone else to have a look at what you've

created. You can enlist the help of friends and family for this

phase or you can hire a professional editor to help make what

you've created as powerful as possible.

The reason why you need to have someone else look over your

work is because whenever you create a written work, especially a

large one, there's a good chance you've made several mistakes that

you're probably not able to see. It's a weird thing. You could read

a paragraph five times and think it looks fine, but then someone

else sees the same paragraph and finds two typos. Once they

point them out to you, you can't believe you missed the typos.

You might be nervous to have someone look over it (out of fear

of being judged), but it's an important step.

Read out loud

A tip that works great is to read your book out loud.

When you read in your head, your mind starts problem solving. It

might fill in words that aren't there, and the text might sound

more reasonable to you. You wrote it after all.

Reading out loud takes a little bit of time, but it's worth it. When

you hear the text through your ears, it's almost like you're


experiencing the material for the first time. Speaking the text also

keys you in to awkward phrases, redundant content, and you

might find areas where more clarification is needed.

If you plan on self-publishing, reading out loud is something you

absolutely have to do.

The other upside is that it should help save you money for editing

fees. The more you're able to tighten up the writing in your

product before you start paying people the better.

Listen to your book

I recommend you go one step beyond reading your book out

loud. What I suggest you do is use a text to speech tool so you

can hear your book being read word-for-word by the computer.

If you're using yWriter, there's a little button you can click that

starts reading out loud. That's the easiest way to listen.

Otherwise, unless you're using an obscure operating system, you

already should have a text-to-speech feature built-in. If using the

built in feature doesn't suit your fancy, you can do a web search.

There are plenty of web sites and mobility apps that can do text

to speech.

The biggest reason for listening to your book (after you've read it)

is to listen to how the computer reads it. The computer reads the

text exactly how it's written. If there is something that's still

unclear in your writing, this will help to expose it. It's also kind of

cool to sit back and listen to something you've created.

So take a few minutes to relax and enjoy the quality of what

you've written. It'll feel good, and it's another opportunity to look

for areas needing editing, and to perfect the content you’ve

created.

Standard Operating Procedures

(SOP)

For some reason, there's this new trend going around the internet

where people are pretending to reinvent procedures. They're

making up fluffy names, and pretending that creating a system of

procedures is going to revolutionize your business.

Let's be clear. Procedures aren't new, and they're not a magic cure

for your business.

Let me explain.

First of all, if you've ever worked for a big company, chances are

you've been given a procedures manual. They've been around

since the beginning of corporations.

Second, written procedures don't work for most companies. The

problem with most procedure manuals is that they're poorly

written and out of date, so nobody uses them. The manual usually

sits on the shelf collecting dust.

You can call them SOPs, which is short for standard operating

procedure, or simply procedures. I'm used to saying procedures,

as I've had the pleasure of consulting with numerous not-for-

profit boards and "Procedure" is the most common term.


What's a procedure?

In essence, a procedure is you stating exactly how to do

something.

For instance, if you're creating a procedure to instruct employees

how to wash their hands, you would include instructions telling

them to wet their hands, apply soap, perhaps specific instructions

on how to rub hands (hand over hand, fingers interlaced), rinse

their hands, and then dry them (hopefully with a clean towel :).

You can see from the example above that even a basic set of

examples can get lost when written in paragraph form. If you

were trying to follow along, step-by-step, you would probably

need to read the section several times, even though you already

have a good idea of how to perform the procedure.

Procedures are great for making sure you don't ever skip a step.

They're also good for helping you plan for growth in your

business, especially if it's only made up of a handful of employees.

If you have good procedures in place, you won't have to hover

over your employees shoulders when they take on a new task.

You should now be able to use the procedure during a coaching

session, and then send the employee on their way with detailed

instructions in hand. You're actually encouraging them to take

action and responsibility for their own work.

What's even better is when you give them the power to comment

on or make changes to the procedure. It would still be a good

Standard Operating Procedures 85

idea for you to review changes, but allowing input means it keeps

your procedures as living documents. This prevents your

procedures from growing stale after a few months or years.

Procedures are important to keep up to date too. If you actually

have useful procedures, you can use them to help train new

employees, or help an employee who's filling in at a different

position. A current step-by-step guide means they can jump on

board and at least have a fighting chance of doing the job how

you want it done.

Visual maps are perfect for making usable

SOPs

Let's talk about why visual maps are a great way to draw up, and

potentially execute, your Standard Operating Procedures.

Our goal is to make something that people can both use, and

enjoy using. There's no use wasting your time writing a book if

nobody will read it. The same goes for procedures. The end goal

is to help them do something consistently, at a high level.

The structure and simplicity of visual maps helps you do this.

Now, when you start doing the work, you simply open up the

right visual map and work your way down the list. I recommend

copying whichever SOP you're working on into the current map

you're using. By working on a copy of the SOP, you can delete

each step as you complete it. If you walk away from the task and

come back later (or if someone else takes over), you can quickly

see what needs to happen next.

It may seem funny to you that I'm recommending writing down


your procedures, but it makes a lot of sense when you sit back

and think about it. Having procedures written out is especially

important when you're delegating.

The 2 biggest problems with delegation in

business

The following content was originally posted to my blog on

August 30, 2011. I think it's still super relevant, so I've included it

here.

My good friend Brenda likes to quote the famous line, “Good,

Fast, and Cheap. You can have any two, but you can’t have all

three.”

I love it, because it applies to most things in life, including soft

skills like delegation. Too often leaders try to force good work to

happen, which just ends up in frustrating everyone involved.

Problem #1: When a boss, with 10 years of experience,

expects a worker with 1 year (or 1 month) of experience to

do the same quality of work as the boss

Huh!

If you think you were amazing at every part of your job from the

beginning, you’re probably mistaken, unless your job is really easy

(and I doubt that).

I’ve talked to plenty of bosses who complain that their

subordinates just don’t get it. They tell them how to do

something over and over, but they never do it right. In some

cases, the boss starts doing the work again to “Make sure it’s

done correctly.” That’s crazy. How are you ever going to get

ahead if you keep going back and doing the work that someone

http://youremakingme.com/the-2-biggest-problems-with-delegation-in-business/


else can be doing.

In order to get good at something you have to do it a few times.

It’ll take longer at first and the quality might not be there

immediately, but you have to let people start somewhere.

The biggest thing to remember is that they’re not you. Don’t

expect them to do everything you do.

Problem #2: Everyone thinks they’re a pro at delegation

(but most are terrible)

I’m very serious when I say EVERYONE thinks this. From my

experience, at least 95% of managers will tell me they have

delegation under control. Of course, I never believe it until I see

it.

Let me tell you a story…

I started my first real company when I was in university. I

thought I’d be an amazing leader right out of the gate. Growing

up, I’d been involved with sports teams and other activities where

I’d taken on a leadership role. I told myself, “This’ll be easy. I’ll

just delegate in the way that I’d like to be delegated to.”


It turned out to be a disaster. People didn’t like my style and I

was deeply hurt. Luckily I was able to get advice from some

successful business owners and I learned a lot from my university

textbooks. It wasn’t an overnight solution, but I was able to

improve my delegation skills.

When I dig deeper with managers, I normally find something very

similar. They think that they’re already skilled in the art of

delegation. Unfortunately, what they think is delegation usually

boils down to them asking someone to do a task as they pass

them in the hallway, and then expecting it to be done perfectly

the first time.

The scary part is that most people have never been trained in

delegation techniques, which blows my mind, as it’s such a

valuable business skill to have.

How to delegate better

Take the time to learn a little about delegation, but just be careful

what you read. After doing a quick web search; I’m shocked.

From what I’m seeing, I don’t think most of these people have

ever delegated in their lives. They’ve ripped off strategies and

made them more complicated in order to make them look

original.

3-part audio series on delegation

As a follow-up to "The 2 Biggest Problems with Delegation in

Business" post, I did a 3-part audio series on delegation.

You can head over to the links page

(YoureMakingMe.com/Visual-Productivity-Links) if you're


interested in learning more.

How to Delegate - Part 1: It’s a Process

I address the common question - "I had to learn the hard way, so

why can’t they?”

I also go over the four levels of delegation.

How to Delegate - Part 2: What to Delegate

I talk about what to delegate, the ABC method to tasks, and how

to ramp up complexity.

How to Delegate - Part 3: 7 Steps of Effective Delegators

I cover the 7 steps delegators should be using to teach new tasks.

It's a good review, even if you already know them.


Make a SOP for a job you only do periodically

Has this ever happened to you?

You're working on a particular project where there's a task that's

new to you. You spend time looking up how to do whatever it is.

You might have even learned how to format a document in a

special way. After you've learned how to do this new skill, you

think it's drilled into you.

Then you carry on with life, and don't use any of those new skills

for a whole year.

Now you need to do the same task, but you can't remember all of

the steps. You feel a little silly, and you start looking everything

up again.

I know it's happened to me before.

A good example for me was doing interviews for my podcast. I

did my first one, and had to learn how to take the audio track

from my Skype conversation, and split it so I could edit each side

individually. Then I added extra audio like the intro and outro.

When I finally tried to export it, I had to learn how to re-connect

all the audio.

It took me a long time, but I figured I had it burned in.

Unfortunately not. The next time I had to put up an interview, I


felt silly. I knew it was an easy fix, but it wasn't coming to me. I

ended up spending a few minutes doing a search, but it was

wasted time. I should have made a quick SOP for when I record

interviews on my podcast.

I already have an SOP for my podcast, so adding a small section

for when I do interviews would have been a simple solution.

When I record a podcast without an interview, I simply skip over

that choice and move on. If I need it again, I can quickly expand

that topic to refresh my memory if I haven't done that particular

task in a while.

After listening to my example, can you think of something you

(or your company) do somewhat infrequently, which might be

helped by a short SOP? You may think that you'll remember

everything in detail when you go back five or six months later,

and there's a chance you might, but the more detailed the work is

that you're performing, the harder this is to pull off.

The SOP will only take a minute or two to create, but will save

loads of time, if you ever have to go back.

The other reason why it's good to document everything,

especially infrequent tasks, is because they're usually the ones that

are the easiest to delegate. If you have an assistant, a new

employee, or a virtual assistant, a SOP (even half-done) saves you

time in the delegation process.

Just do yourself a favor and start recording procedures. The best

thing that can happen is you'll transform your business, and

become a corporate legend. The worst thing that can happen is

you'll have spent an extra two minutes typing when you could

have been chatting with co-workers at the water cooler.


The Process of Creating a SOP

Creating a SOP is very similar to making anything else with a

visual map. It's all about getting the ideas out, grouping them, and

putting them in the right order.

Here are the six steps to creating a SOP:

1. Group all similar SOPs together so they're easier to find.

2. Write out every step needed to accomplish your task. If you're

the only one who'll be using the SOP, you can be a little lighter

on detail. If this will be used by someone who's new to that style

of task, you should consider erring on the side of providing too

much content. What's clear to you is not always clear to others.

3. Write out a task, then describe how to do it one level down

from that node. That way, once the worker understands how to

perform that part of the task, they can leave it collapsed.

4. Be Specific. Write out the exact web site you want them to go

to. It might be a certain brand name of a product you want them

to buy or use. You could even include a phone number to call, in

order to save them a 30 second internet search.

5. Encourage the use of the SOP. Remember, there's a reason

why pilots use checklists. It's because they need a result that's

close to perfect every time.

6. Keep the information up to date. The more accurate the SOP

is, the easier it is for you to delegate the work. If you're serious

about building your business (or career), it's worth it.

How to Plan and Run Meetings

Plan meetings

Running effective meetings comes down to doing several small

things well. Enlisting the use of a visual map is an effective way of

taking care of a lot of those "small things."

In order to run an effective meeting, it's important to know what

you'll be discussing ahead of time. You can save yourself a lot of

headache by using a simple visual reference that shows what

needs to happen, and the length of each section.

A visual map is an incredibly simple tool for creating meeting

agendas. It's as simple as listing off everything that needs to be

talked about. Then, like any good visual map, you prioritize

everything so important topics are covered before the least

important topics. As you're discussing a particular topic, you can

start adding notes and tasks to the map.

It's good to set time limits on your topics. One of the features I

like about the XMind Pro version is the ability to set a

countdown timer. This allows you to set a timer right on the

screen. Most meeting attendees clue in pretty quickly when they

see time ticking down, and you'll be amazed at how much more

productive you can be when you're on the clock.


Attendees can send info ahead of time

You can ask for meeting attendees to send information ahead of

time so it can be added to the visual map. Then, when you get

together, you're able to look at the information and drag and drop

it into appropriate categories.

This strategy also works in reverse. During the meeting you can

designate who will act upon a particular item by moving the topic

around inside the visual map. You might also consider creating a

topic called "Action," or something similar. As you figure out

who needs to do what, you can add their names under the Action

topic. Then, all it takes is a quick drag and drop to show who's

doing what.

After the meeting, they may already have the updated map ready

for when the attendee returns to their desk, or it make take a

quick email depending on the visual mapping tool you're using.

When assigning tasks, it's usually fairly evident if there's an equal

amount of work assigned. Equality of "Assigned Work" may or

may not be an issue in your office, but it may cause conflict if

meeting attendees start keeping track. Clearly, some jobs do take

longer than others and can be more in-depth, but seeing assigned

tasks visually can be a decent yardstick (usually) to use in

determining who is being assigned the most work. If there comes

a point where someone has had too many tasks assigned to them,

it's easy to transfer that task over to someone else.

Seeing your thoughts added is powerful

It's funny how ideas seem to come alive when people can see not

only the information on the screen, but are able to interact with it.

How to Plan and Run Meetings 95

If you come up with a great idea, you probably want to share it. If

you're like most people, you'll probably agree that it feels good to

have your ideas recognized. The simple act of seeing your ideas

being entered into a visual map and interacting with the current

info can give you a lift for the rest of the day.

I'm a big believer in adding a lot of suggestions to maps when I'm

running meetings. One reason is to enlist the meeting attendees as

solution providers. When they're part of the solution, there's a

better chance they'll up their game. The other main reason I like

including suggestions is to clear the ideas out of people's minds.

It's like when I recommend you write everything down when

you're mind dumping. The reasoning behind writing down

marginal ideas is to prevent attendees from sitting around

thinking about one idea for 30 minutes instead of working on a

better solution.

An added benefit is that typing in new ideas adds a visual

component to the process. Most meetings are 90% auditory. A lot

of meetings are all about people sitting around hearing what

needs to happen and who needs to do it (while they madly

scribble notes).

A visual map lets you "see" exactly what need to happen, and

who's expected to do it. It's a small change, but it's actually very

liberating. When you add relevant visuals, you should see interest

and engagement rise.

About the Author

Kevin is a productivity expert who teaches individuals and

companies ways to turbo-charge their effectiveness. He says the

key to becoming a better time manager is to gain clarity on exactly

what you’re doing, before making dozens of lists or downloading

iPhone apps.

Kevin has three major curricula

Mega Productivity – Relevant advice on Time Management and

Personal Productivity, broken down into a 7-step system, where

you learn how to focus more effort on what getting done, rather

than just working harder.

Visual Productivity – Part of the Mega Productivity system, but

there’s been so much demand for it that it’s now on its own.

Beyond this book, there’s a full keynote and training package.

Diamonds and Silver – Learn ten real-life ways to extract more

enjoyment and success out of your life. Each lesson builds on the

one before and teach you important lessons for business and

person success. The book is an easy read, but it’s packed with

information.

You can follow Kevin on his blog at YoureMakingMe.com.


Image Credits

Visual Mapping Images – Taken by Kevin using XMind

Pine Cones - Snapwiresnaps.tumblr.com/

Hand on mouse – Death to Stock Photos

2 Colour Shoes – Gratisphotography.com

Kissing Sailor – Snapwiresnaps.tumblr.com/

Filing Cabinet – Death to Stock Photos

http://snapwiresnaps.tumblr.com/

http://snapwiresnaps.tumblr.com/