MindManager 7 review gets to the core of why mind mapping software is so valuable

Kickstartnews.com just published a review of MindManager Pro 7, which was very positive, calling it "an unusually useful and amazingly creative product." But that’s not what I want to highlight in this post. What’s most significant here is what author Mark Goldstein has to say about the real value that mind mapping software provides to business people today. I think he has articulated this quite clearly (he mentions MindManager 7 repeatedly here, but keep in mind that his comments can also be applied to most commercially available mind mapping programs):

"We’ve been getting along just fine for all these years, developing plans and ideas, creating designs, making agendas and so on. So why on earth do we need to add yet another tool or layer to the process? The answer is unusually simple. In fact, for whatever business or effort you’re involved in, MindManager Pro 7 can used to effectively and productively reduce the number of layers in your design, planning and development processes. Our view is that MindManager Pro 7, if you fully embrace it for use throughout your business (no matter what size business—from one employee to thousands), can provide a versatile foundation for planning and development. From simple maps such as meeting agendas and sales projections, to deeply complex expression of new ideas, MindManager Pro 7 provides you with ability to physically demonstrate the way in which you visualize a particular idea or plan. At its core therefore, MindManager Pro 7 is a tool to help others understand what you’re thinking about, how you thought it up in the first place, and all the things you think are important and relate to the main point you’re trying to make, thereby providing the means by which people can see your thoughts from your perspective. That’s gold baby—pure gold."

To summarize, what Marks is saying here is this:

1. Mind mapping software is a versatile platform for business planning and development. Because of its inherent flexibility – the way in which it "encapsulates" information and ideas so they can be easily manipulated, annotated and rearranged – there isn’t another genre of software that comes close!
2. Mind mapping software exposes the thinking behind your ideas, and places them in context with one another, which increases your ability to share them more effectively.

I couldn’t have said it better myself!