Thinking on Paper – instruction and illustration, on one page

Thinking on Paper – the notebook page

Thinking on paper

How to think on paper? Here’s an updated version of the method that works best for me.

I use the following three building blocks, which I can combine in different ways.

Building block 1 – the sheet layout:
I use an A4 sheet in landscape format and divide it in 3×3 boxes of equal size – there’s no need for exactness and I do it without a ruler.
Alternatively, I can use 3 columns and make boxes of different sizes – but at the beginning, 3×3 boxes are easier to handle.
I fill the boxes in column 1, then in column 2 and then in column 3.

Building block 2 – the box layout:
I use each box for a simple small mind map. The size limit of the box will come as a surprise, but it has a number of advantages which I will describe in a moment.
Instead of mind maps, I can use diagrams, ordinary text with indentations or math terms.

Building block 3 – thinking tools:
I can use thinking tools as topics for the small mind maps, to stimulate my thinking about the problem, like: What are key questions? What are my options? How can I split the problem into smaller parts?
I find a personal collection of thinking tools very useful – I have a corkboard over my work table and can access dozens of tools and stimuli with one glance.

For me, this process has four main advantages.
First, a conventional mind maps works best with a couple of main branches of equal size. In problem solving however, I often want to develop only one or two branches over many steps, and this leads to an unsymmetrical, unbalanced mind map.
Secondly, moving from one box to the next needs a moment of orientation – where do I stand, and what can I do next? This re-orientation happens much more often in the 3×3 layout than in an ordinary mind map.
Thirdly, I find it easier to reflect on a previous thought in a new box than in a branch of an ordinary mind map.
Fourth, the combination of mind maps and thinking tools seems very powerful to me.

Some remarks:
Depending on handwriting size, paper size and personal taste, we can experiment with 2×2, 3×3 or 4×4 boxes.
As a fourth building block I’m using a zettelkasten to organize my sheets – but that’s outside the scope of this comment.

Thinking on Paper – a new method

I use the following three building blocks, which I can combine in different ways.

Building block 1 – the sheet layout:
I use an A4 sheet in landscape format and divide it in 3×3 boxes of equal size – there’s no need for exactness and I do it without a ruler.
Alternatively, I can use 3 columns and make boxes of different sizes – but at the beginning, 3×3 boxes are easier to handle.
I fill the boxes in column 1, then in column 2 and then in column 3.

Building block 2 – the box layout:
I use each box for a simple small mind map. The size limit of the box will come as a surprise, but it has a number of advantages which I will describe in a moment.
Instead of mind maps, I can use diagrams, ordinary text with indentations or math terms.

Building block 3 – thinking tools:
I can use thinking tools as topics for the small mind maps, to stimulate my thinking about the problem, like: What are key questions? What are my options? How can I split the problem into smaller parts?
I find a personal collection of thinking tools very useful – I have a corkboard over my work table and can access dozens of tools and stimuli with one glance.

For me, this process has four main advantages:
First, a conventional mind maps works best with a couple of main branches of equal size. In problem solving however, I often want to develop only one or two branches over many steps, and this leads to an unsymmetrical, unbalanced mind map.
Secondly, moving from one box to the next needs a moment of orientation – where do I stand, and what can I do next? This re-orientation happens much more often in the 3×3 layout than in an ordinary mind map.
Thirdly, I find it easier to reflect on a previous thought in a new box than in a branch of an ordinary mind map.
Fourth, the combination of mind maps and thinking tools seems very powerful to me.

Some remarks:
Depending on handwriting size, paper size and personal taste, we can experiment with 2×2, 3×3 or 4×4 boxes.
As a fourth building block I’m using a zettelkasten to organize my sheets – but that’s outside the scope of this comment.

Here are some examples.

Another Example of the Matrix Map Method

The Matrix Map Method

Over the last few weeks I’ve done some experiments with arrays of small paper-based mind maps combined with thinking tools. 
It’s in an early stage, and feedback is very welcome.

Here comes a short description and some obersevations.
(As in my earlier ideas along these lines, these methods of “thinking on paper” are primarily intended for creating thoughts, not necessarily for storing them or for communicating them to others.)

Here’s the description.

• I use a blank A4 sheet in landscape format.
• I divide the sheet in 4 x 4 cells of equal size.
• An important technical remark: I use a mechanical pencil (0.5mm) and tiny handwriting, so I fit about 10 lines in one cell. Alternatively, I could use 3 x 3 or another number of cells, or use A3 paper to get a convenient “cell capacity” in terms of words per cell.
• For the layout of single cells, I can choose between small mind maps or ordinary text or diagrams.
  Mind maps are my default choice, but diagrams appear time and again.
• I can now fill the cells row by row and colum by column.
• To start a new cell, I often use small “thinking tools”. A present favourite is “F/P”, which stands for “focus and progress” – first I look for an aspect of my topic I want to examine closer, and then I try to make progress on this aspect – usually by asking questions, or by collecting ideas, or by applying creativity tools.
• At my desk, I have a “tool collection” in the form of about two dozens of sticky notes. They contain basic thinking operators like F/P, collections of idea generation stimuli (like the TRIZ principles, or verbs of modification), basic diagram types (like timelines, pie diagrams or decision trees), or basic “lenses” with which I can look at my topic (“look at points of transitions, look at points with special properties, look at quantiles…”). With many of these tools, I try to transfer a useful and sometimes even sophisticated general concept to my topic.

Here are some observations I’ve made during my experiments.

• First, the crucial point: The capacity of one cell is very limited. In my experience, this leads without extra efforts to a much higher frequency of refocusing, of asking questions and of doing useful forms of metacognition, in comparison with my ordinary mind mapping habits. For me, this is the main strength of the method.
• The threshold for writing down first thoughts is very low. It feels like I do not have to fill an entire sheet, but just one cell. And if I mess up with one cell, I can restart better in the next.
• Finding a convenient cell capacity may require some experiments. However, having a fixed cell size rather than a variable one seems to work better for me at the moment.
• If I have an idea overflow for one cell, I simply start the next on the same topic or on the particular branch I want to expand. This is of course a compromise, but in my present delight with the method I see it as outweighed by its advantages.
• I find it convenient to use flexible default tools like the above F/P that lead to insights in a broad range of situations.
• The method seems to work especially well with idea generation using stimuli.
• It’s easy to assemble a personalized “thinking on paper” method – by combining sheet organisation (in a ZK) and sheet layout and cell layout and tool collections with their architecture and their elements.

New pages on zettelkästen and problem solving

Here is “rock paper thinking”, my collection of ideas on how zettelkästen can help to solve problems.

Here’s my New Video: Some Ideas On Problem Solving

Note Assistants: Support for Solving Math Problems

Here’s my latest collection of ideas on note-making and math problem solving, presenting a four column layout, the concept of note assistants and of “paper software”, loads of math problem solving tools and much more.

One-Page Advice on Note-Making

Here’s my latest upload on note-making.

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