Abu Dhabi Oil Refining Company (TAKREER) was established in 1999 to take over the responsibilities of refining operations from Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC).

Forward Training and Consulting, LLC (the Middle East Idea Mapping team headquartered in Amman, Jordan) was responsible for negotiating this 2-day Idea Mapping Course and we will be working on this project together. This class will be held September 22-23, 2010 and is closed to the public.

Other oil companies in the Middle East (including Aramco – the largest oil company in the world) have begun requesting Idea Mapping and Memory workshops. I’m so excited to bring this unique learning to the Middle East!

If you want to attend a public Idea Mapping Workshop you can join us Oct 10-11, 2010 in Amman, Jordan for our third 2010 workshop. Register here. Enjoy a 3-minute YouTube video from the first workshop in Jordan Feb 2010.

Idea Mapping helps three final Luther College students. The first posting for this Spring’s Idea Mapping Experiment at Luther College was May 19 where there is more background. Now get ready for Part 7!This will wrap up all of the examples from Dr. Schweizer’s students. Next examples will be from the Fall 2010 class.

Dr. Tim Schweizer spent one 60-minute class teaching them the concepts and guidelines of Idea Mapping. They read chapters 2-5 of the Idea Mapping book, and then spent a second 60-minute class practicing and applying their new skills.

Their assignment was to create an idea map that would be relevant to them either personally, professionally, or academically. He gave them several topic suggestions and allowed for either hand drawn or computer generated maps.

Above you will find Idea Maps #255 & #256. The top one was created by Mike Redig about the sport Ultimate Frisbee. The second one is from Kendal Van Der Poest Clement. This idea map looks at the cultural differences between the USA and New Zealand. The third and final example is from Victoria Yin and it is about her. Thank you for sharing these!

Remember: If you are a project manager and have either considered taking the PMP exam, are in the process of studying for it, have passed the exam, or gave up on the whole process — this is your chance to share your experience in this survey which takes less than 10 minutes. As a “thank you” please enter the drawing for free Amazon gift cards, free MindManager 9 software (which just came out) or an autographed copy of Idea Mapping by Jamie Nast. Full story here.

Here are a few more photos from the Idea Mapping Workshop I taught in Jordan in May 2010. You can find additional photos and idea maps from this event in the June 29, 2010 posting, the June 12, 2010 posting, the May 27, 2010 and the May 10, 2010 posting.

The first photo was taken in the conference room where we held the workshop at the Landmark Hotel in Amman. This was a beautiful piece of poetry in Arabic that I needed to have the Forward Training Team translate for me. The second photo is of Forward Training team member Suhail Zrekat who coordinates a good portion of the workshops we teach in the Middle East.

The third photo was taken during an activity where participants were creating an idea map of a summary of a book. People featured in this photo are (left to right) Umiah Fakhouri (an Implementation Consultant), Safwan Nazer from GTZ, Waleed Rasheed from Palvest, Wisam Shamroukh from UGU, and Ahmad Ayesh from Structure Consulting.

The fourth photo  is an example of Umiah Fakhouri’s portrait drawing. This activity uses a learning model to show participants that they can do impossible things (drawing) that they don’t think they can do. The last photo was me signing certificates of the completion for the workshop! PMP’s earned 15 PDU’s under category 4.

Registration is now open for the next Idea Mapping Workshop in Amman, Jordan which will be held October 10-11, 2010.  Contact Forward Training if you have any questions.

Idea Mapping helps two more Luther College students. The first posting for this Spring’s Idea Mapping Experiment at Luther College was May 19 where there is more background. Now get ready for Part 7!

Dr. Tim Schweizer spent one 60-minute class teaching them the concepts and guidelines of Idea Mapping. They read chapters 2-5 of the Idea Mapping book, and then spent a second 60-minute class practicing and applying their new skills.

Their assignment was to create an idea map that would be relevant to them either personally, professionally, or academically. He gave them several topic suggestions and allowed for either hand drawn or computer generated maps.

Above you will find Idea Maps #255 & #256. The top one was created by Ryan Bouslog who was trying to determine where he should spend his Spring Break. You can see that he selected four possibilities and then captured the Pros and Cons of each choice. The second one is from Teresa Procter. This idea map outlines her plans for the summer of 2010.  Thank you for sharing these!

Remember: If you are a project manager and have either considered taking the PMP exam, are in the process of studying for it, have passed the exam, or gave up on the whole process — this is your chance to share your experience in this survey which takes less than 10 minutes. As a “thank you” please enter the drawing for free Amazon gift cards, free MindManager 9 software (which just came out) or an autographed copy of Idea Mapping by Jamie Nast. Full story here.

Is your resume boring? Does it blend in with thousands of others?

On August 2, 2010 I introduced something we call profile maps which are basically summaries of information that can be shared with others using Idea Mapping. It’s a non-linear, visual, non-boring and whole-brain way of communicating information. In this case again I’m sharing the resume of Eric Giosa who is looking for his first post-graduate job after playing professional hockey. This whole idea originated with my husband Kevin Nast when he created his own profile map to share with clients.

Want to spice up your resume? We can help. Give us a call at 1-734-207-5287 or email us at info(at)ideamappingsuccess(dot)com.

Whether you are considering the PMP certification, in the process, given up on the whole PMP, or have earned your PMP Certification — your feedback is essential to us. Please participate in a short survey to assess your personal experiences and perceptions in the PMP certification process. The purpose of the survey is to identify areas of potential improvement for those who have or are aspiring to get their PMP certification.

5 Random participants will receive a license for the new MindManager 9 software product. 10 Random participants will receive $5 (USD) Amazon.com gift cards. 2 Random participants will receive a signed copy of Jamie Nast’s book, “Idea Mapping: How to Access Your Hidden Brain Power, Learn Faster, Remember More, and Achieve Success in Business“. Many thanks for your contributions.

The PMP (Project Management Professional) Certification is one of the most valued credentials in project management. The PMP credential assures an organization that employees are committed to project management. According to a 2005 article I found on the PMI (Project Management Institute) website:

“PMI’s (Project Management Institute) PMP credential is considered by many as the “gold standard” of global project management certification. This credential, which is ISO 9001: 2000 compliant, connotes the holder as one who has demonstrated the knowledge, experience and leadership skills required to competently practice project management. During 2005, PMI has experienced an extraordinary increase in the number of practitioners taking the PMP examination, resulting in 86,925 PMPs being certified during this 12 month period…”

Some of our clients are using this format exclusively and others are providing employers with both the standard resume AND the Profile Map.

If you want your resume to stand out from the crowd, we at NastGroup, Inc. can provide you with this service along with continued updates. Prices start at $199. Email us at info@ideamappingsuccess.com.

Idea Mapping helps two more Luther College students. The first posting for this Spring’s Idea Mapping Experiment at Luther College was May 19 where there is more background. Now get ready for Part 6!

Dr. Tim Schweizer spent one 60-minute class teaching them the concepts and guidelines of Idea Mapping. They read chapters 2-5 of the Idea Mapping book, and then spent a second 60-minute class practicing and applying their new skills.

Their assignment was to create an idea map that would be relevant to them either personally, professionally, or academically. He gave them several topic suggestions and allowed for either hand drawn or computer generated maps.

Above you will find Idea Maps #251 & #252. The top one was created by Aaron Schmaltz about Shakespeare’s play Hamlet. The second one is from Kirsten Hash. This idea map outlines her research on the history of what was happening during the 1960s.  Thank you for sharing these!

Remember: If you are a project manager and have either considered taking the PMP exam, are in the process of studying for it, have passed the exam, or gave up on the whole process — this is your chance to share your experience in this survey which takes less than 10 minutes. As a “thank you” please enter the drawing for free Amazon gift cards or an autographed copy of Idea Mapping by Jamie Nast. Full story here.

The Forward Training and Consulting Team in Amman is excited to bring Jamie Nast’s Idea Mapping Workshop back to Jordan for the third time this year.

Registration is now open for the October 10-11, 2010 workshop taught by Jamie, author of Idea Mapping: How to Access Your Hidden Brain Power, Learn Faster, Remember More, and Achieve Success in Business.” For questions contact our team at Phone: +(962-6) 4611277 or Email: idea@fwdtc.com

Forward Training and Consulting believes that a good team is not good enough. So they became business-artists, whole-brainers and  risk-challengers.  They also KNOW that techniques are not everything so they strive to become sophisticated and genuinely articulate … and have done just that!

Listen to this 3-minute video featuring professionals who participated in the first Idea Mapping Workshop in Jordan. You can also rate this video on You Tube.

Above you can see Liz’s Idea Map which summarizes the book “How to Teach Your Baby to Read.”