Mind Map

A Mind Map is a very useful technique for generating ideas or exploring methods that help you question and analyze anything.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mind_map

Mind Mapping is a technique that helps you write down ideas on paper with as few restrictions as possible, allowing your thoughts and creativity to flow freely. It encourages self-expression and the development of new ideas.

It also helps you analyze and reflect on ideas critically, providing mental distance and fostering a critical mindset. For example, if someone proposes an idea, writing it down in a Mind Map on a draft page can help you examine and question it independently—almost as if you were discussing it with someone else.

It can also simply be about trying to find limitations in order to develop an idea—trying to identify “the risks” behind an idea. In IT and management, this is known as Risk Management. The objective is to identify risks and limitations behind ideas and projects around you.

The downside of using Mind Maps is sometimes mentioned in the Cartesian School of Philosophy, a branch led by the famous philosopher René Descartes.

The Cartesian method is a very pragmatic way of seeing things. The goal is to measure and identify elements of reality to create a kind of cartography of anything—similar to a dictionary. This approach aims to define and categorize the world in great detail.

However, the Cartesian branch of philosophy has received criticism due to the risk of oversimplifying complex ideas. Not everything can be measured or defined so easily. To explain this, it’s like trying to summarize the universe in just a few ideas. Of course, the universe is much more complex than that. Still, in some cases, the Cartesian approach can be helpful—it allows us to create, study, or explain things that would otherwise be difficult to grasp.

Finding Ideas by Talking to Others

Another way to generate ideas is by speaking with someone else—or even with a group. As the French thinker Jacques Attali mentioned, “You can find ideas when speaking to others.” For example, not preparing a speech before an event or conference and instead improvising can help ideas emerge spontaneously. Speaking without a script can free the mind and allow new ideas to surface naturally.

Philosophical Walks

Some philosophers also encouraged walking as a way to engage in philosophy.

Plato, the famous philosopher, recommended walking as a way to support philosophical thinking—allowing both the body and mind to be in motion. When the body is in movement, the mind can engage more freely, helping with debate and reflection.

Much later, the philosopher Immanuel Kant was also known for his daily walks, always taken at the same time and along the same path every day.