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Brainstorming sessions are a great way to generate ideas and come up with creative solutions to problems. But when ideas start to flow, it can be really hard to capture and organize them all without breaking the momentum of the group.

With the new Main topic shape in Visio 2003, capturing ideas is easier than ever. Simply open the Brainstorming Diagram template, drag the Main topic shape onto the drawing page, type the main idea, and then quickly enter the related ideas that people have. When your meeting is over, you can reformat your brainstorming diagram for a more polished, professional look, and then share it with your team.

You can find the Main topic shape on the Brainstorming Shapes stencil. The Brainstorming Shapes stencil opens automatically when you open the Brainstorming Diagram template.

Note  You must first open the Brainstorming Diagram template if you want to use all of the features of the Main topic shape.

To use the Main topic shape

1. On the File menu, point to New, point to Brainstorming, and then click Brainstorming Diagram.
2. From Brainstorming Shapes, drag the Main Topic shape onto the drawing page. With the shape selected, type the main idea.
3. Select the Main Topic shape and then do one of the following:

   Add multiple subtopics at once

   1. Right-click the Main topic shape and then click Add Multiple Subtopics.
   2. In the dialog box, type text and press ENTER for each new topic, and then click OK.

   Add one subtopic at a time

   • Right-click the Main topic shape and then click Add Subtopic.

   Note  To add or edit text in any shape in the brainstorming diagram, select the shape and type.

4. To change the appearance of the brainstorming diagram, do one or more of the following:

   Change the appearance of a topic shape

   1. Right-click the topic and then click Change Topic Shape.
   2. Under New shape, click the shape type you want and then click OK.

   Change the layout and/or connector style

   1. On the Brainstorming menu, click Layout.
   2. In the Layout dialog box, under Select a Layout, click the layout style you want.
   3. Under Connectors, click Curved or Straight.
   4. Click Apply to view the changes in your diagram without exiting the dialog box, and then click OK when you are done.

   Note  The layout and connector style applies to the current drawing page only.

   Add a theme

   1. On the Brainstorming menu, click Theme.
   2. In the Theme dialog box, under Select a theme, click the theme you want.
   3. Click Apply to view the changes in your diagram without exiting the dialog box, and then click OK when you are done.

   Note  The theme applies to the current drawing page only.

   Change the color scheme

   1. Right-click any empty area on your drawing page, and then click Color Schemes.
   2. Under Choose a color scheme, click the name of the color scheme you want.
   3. Click Apply to view the changes in your diagram without exiting the dialog box, and then click OK when you are done.

   Note  The color scheme applies to all pages in your diagram.