Brain Dancing: Work Smarter, Learn Faster and Manage Information More Effectively (Paperback)

by Patrick T. Magee (Author)

Editorial Reviews

Excerpt. © Reprinted by permission. All rights reserved.
"Meta" means above, so I use the phrase "going meta" to describe the process of rising above. There are two main ways of applying this distinction to knowledge work:

* Traversing the structure of information, facilitated by tools such as Mind Maps.
* Traversing the structure of your thoughts in order to optimize key mental processes.

The emphasis in this chapter is on training your mind to stand apart and examine its own "program." Specifically, this chapter is about fine tuning the mental software you use to learn and interact with information.

If you find yourself doing something repeatedly, it may be worthwhile to periodically examine the process you use. I once read a study that calculated the number of hours the average person spends tying their shoes over the course of their lifetime. The amount of time was so huge that I became determined to figure out how to reduce this number. I explored ways of tying my shoes faster, then eventually started wearing shoes that just slip on and off so I don't have to tie my shoes at all. In addition to optimizing a mental process, sometimes there are ways of organizing yourself so that certain activities are no longer necessary.

The amount of information that knowledge workers must interact with has increased significantly throughout my career and this trend is likely to continue. This chapter presents a number of distinctions you can use to optimize frequently performed processes while interacting with information in ways such as reading, remembering and learning.

These ideas, and indeed this entire book, were inspired by Tony Buzan's book, Use Both Sides of Your Brain. Buzan taught me that it is one thing to read a book about a specific topic such as science or math, and quite another to read a book that improves the way I read every book from that point forward. Buzan's ideas took me from reading fifty books every couple of years, to extracting useful information from fifty books every couple of months. This increase in my information metabolism led me to four other metalearning books:

* Accelerated Learning, by Colin Rose
* Mastering the Information Age, by Michael J. McCarthy
* Remember Everything You Read: The 7 Day Evelyn Wood Speed Reading Program, by Stanley D. Frank
* The Brain Book, by Peter Russell

This chapter explains just a few of their ideas that I've found valuable in my work.

Product Details

• Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Braindance.com (August 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0964626020
• ISBN-13: 978-0964626027
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.3 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 14.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #1,059,018 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

32 of 34 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Learn HOW to learn., April 16, 2000

By	Enrico Alvares - See all my reviews

In this age of rapid technological change, one of the mostimportant intellectual tools to have is the knowledge of *HOW* tolearn.

I discovered this book via it's website ( ) which came up as a hit for the search-term "MindMapping"---the technique of information organization and stimulation of creative thinking invented by Tony Buzan.

For me, one of the wonderful things about this book is the way MindMapping is but one component and technique in a harmonized and co-ordinated system for learning ...which WORKS! The proof I offer is the series of successfully passed MCSE exams I have under my belt. I am a professional violinist ( ) with no previous professional computer science training to my MCSE studies. Even though I was a computing enthusiast for two decades before my study began---and therefore was not a complete newbie---I can honestly say that without:

1) the theory and practise of the Alexander Technique ( ) 2) MindMaps 3) and last but not least, the learning framework, techniques and strategy expounded in 'Braindancing'

I would not be having this level of success with my MCSE studies.

The book's main theme is the management of the mental "dance" between four complementary modes of thinking, which if used and co-ordinated well inevitably lead to great study---IOW highly effective study. The four pairs are: -conscious/subconscious -individual thought/dialogue -"left-brain"/"right-brain" -detailed thought/high-level thought

Visit the site ( ), buy the book, digest the ideas contained therein; you will then have learnt HOW to learn...something worth many, many times the price of the book.

Highly recommended. END

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A whole new dimension to Mind Mapping..., March 18, 2000

By	William Reed "taproot" (Tokyo, Japan) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Thank you Patrick, for writing such a brilliant book. I discovered your website while browsing for new material on Mind Mapping. I have been familiar with Mind Mapping for some years, but your book and website put an entirely new dimension on it for me. Long in search of a way to integrate my interests in this area with work on the PC and the Web, I was delighted to find that you have written an encyclopedia about it!

You have applied the best ideas from various systems without getting trapped in the systems themselves. Moreover, the book presents strategies that help preserve humanity and sanity, without sacrificing productivity in a computer-driven world. The ideas you have brought together in this original format will definitely boost my productivity and creativity manyfold. Looking forward to more great products from Braindance in the future!

5.0 out of 5 stars Cutting edge techniques to learn faster and absorb info., November 5, 2004

By	Sundav "David" (Edmonds, Washington USA) - See all my reviews

My interests are psychology and the power of the mind, and this book will always have a place in my library. I find that I frequently re-visit this book to review techniques for handling information overload. When we focus on anything, or any subject for a period of time, we suddenly attract so much information that it can become overwhelming; and "Brain Dancing" demonstrates ways to absorb information quickly. The author delves into techniques derived from the fields of computer science, NLP, Mind Mapping, Mnemonics, Silva Mind Control, systems management, etc. He also shows how diet, exercise, meditation, and many other techniques can be used to achieve a clear, receptive learning state of mind.

What Patrick has done with "Brain Dancing" is compile information from a number of sources and show how they are interconnected, and he gives us tools and exercises that I find very useful for improving my ability to learn and grow.

This book is definately worth the investment. I also find his web site www.braindancing.com a good source of information.