How Problem Solving is as Simple as Jigsaw Puzzle with Mind Mapping

The inevitable part of life is problems. Whether small or big, there are always myriad problems demanding our attention and action at every step of our waking life. There are different methods to overcome the different hurdles that we encounter in various areas of our life. One such time worn practice to understanding our problem and dealing with them effectively is SWOT analysis, otherwise known as Strength, Weakness, Opportunities and Threat analysis. As an elementary method, SWOT analysis has wide application in the business context. However, it is equally useful in individual context as well, as in self-development, where you need to analyze your true self to make appropriate changes and help move forward to success and happiness. As the name indicates, the process involves identifying your Strengths and Weaknesses, and exploring at length, the Opportunities and Threats you face. It is a particularly useful method as it helps you to uncover the hidden opportunities and successfully eliminate threats by understanding your areas of strengths and using them to your advantage, while turning weakness into potential prospects. The common way to forming a detailed SWOT analysis involves enlisting each aspect in a paper and then drawing conclusions based on them. But with Mind Maps, SWOT analysis can be a very enlightening experience as the process involves going beyond just listing them out under different heads. Instead of using long sentences to convey different thoughts, Mind Map uses non-linear method of key words or phrases. Long, running sentences clutters not only space, but also your mind. Mind Maps on the other hand, will help you glide smoothly from one part to another in a quick and efficient manner. All the relevant facts under different groups are noted down in key points and each of them are explored to the fullest. The mind is given a free play to register all the streaming thoughts so the raw and latent truths come to the surface. Because Mind Maps greatly encourage association, it becomes extremely easy to connect the different parts of our analysis and draw proper inference from them. While the normal listing methods stops with just putting them on paper, Mind Maps go beyond in providing vital links and cross-connections between the various elements of the SWOT analysis. You will be able to understand the reasons behind some of your attributes and find proper solutions to tackle the same effectively. Since Mind Maps offer a radiant and yet structured format where the different levels of thoughts are laid in an easy-to-grasp manner, you will be able to get a comprehensive picture of the outcome of the SWOT analysis. This helps you immensely in understanding the emerging picture gained from the analysis as well as to find creative solutions and ideas to tackle them. You can improve further by working on 'Action Plan' and 'Goal Setting' and assess whether the actions initiated were appropriate to the analysis. Mind Maps is a great device for looking at a problem at depth and finding right solutions to tackle them. The very format and the concept of Mind Maps are powerful enough to lead to quick and correct solutions to problems. Unless you use Mind Maps, the real significance of Mind Maps will not be apparent to you. Learn and use Mind Maps to know its true value.