A Microsoft Word document can be a complex pile of words. Sometimes you need to polish it with crystal thinking and give it a clear direction. Outlining a Word document before you write is one option.

But have you considered a mind map instead? It's already easy to make mind maps with Microsoft Word, but there's a free web app that makes it even easier by turning existing Microsoft Word documents into easy-to-visualize mind maps.

Visualize Your Concepts

Let's imagine you have a huge chunk of information jotted down in Microsoft Word. The outline feature helps you see how one section flows into the next. In short, you can make sense with its logical direction.

Wiles Mind is a free web app that takes one extra step and gives you a bird's eye view of the entire document. At one glance it can help you see how the ideas expressed in the document fit together with each other:

"As your research, projects, or notes become more complex and inter-related, being able to visualize how different concepts are related and grouped will help simplify your document and reveal similarities that may not be immediately apparent."

Wiles Mind doesn't perform magic. It takes a Microsoft Word document's headings and uses that to create the mind map. It is another way of using outlines to structure your document in the right order, and this simple process illustrates why it is easier to edit the structure of your document in "outline mode."

If you have a Word document with well-structured headings, then try Wiles Mind to demonstrate your ideas with a mind map:

  1. Use the simple form on the site to upload your mind map.
  2. Prove you are not a robot by passing the (annoying but necessary) verification test.
  3. Give your email ID where the app will send you the secure Amazon S3-hosted link to your mind map.

The file is deleted from the server in 48 hours. Before that, you can download and print your mind map for offline use if need be.

Clear Your Thinking With Wiles Mind

Wiles Mind is a simple tool and a weekend project for the developer. But mind maps are good habits to get into. In my experience, I have found that a mind map exercise before I sit down to write anything helps me peel away layers I wouldn't have noticed otherwise.

Have you tried a mind map before any writing exercise? Which is your favorite mind map tool if it isn't pen and paper?