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Brainstorming diagram example

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 text you want the main idea to represent.
3. Select the Main Topic shape, and then, on the Brainstorming menu, click Add Subtopic. A subtopic connects to and is subordinate to the Main Topic shape.
4. Add more topics to your brainstorming diagram by doing any of the following:

Add multiple subtopics at once

1. Select the topic you want to add subordinate topics to, and then, on the Brainstorming menu, click Add Multiple Subtopics.
2. In the dialog box, type text for each new topic, and press ENTER after each one. When you are finished adding all the topics you want, click OK.

Add one topic at a time

• Select the topic you want to add a same-level or subordinate topic to, and then, on the Brainstorming menu, click Add Peer Topic or Add Subtopic.

Add a peer topic

• Select the topic you want to add a same-level topic to, and then, on the Brainstorming menu, click Add Peer Topic.

Notes

• A peer topic is a topic added at the same level in the hierarchy as the selected topic.
• You can also add topics, subtopics, and peer topics by clicking the appropriate buttons on the Brainstorming toolbar. If you don't see the Brainstorming toolbar, on the View menu, point to Toolbars, and then click Brainstorming.
5. Move topics by doing one of the following:

Move a topic to a different location on the same page

• Select the topic and drag it to the location you want on the drawing page.

If the topic has subordinates, they move with the topic and their connectors reposition automatically.

Move a topic and its subordinates to another page

1. Select the top-level topic in the section of your diagram that you want to move to another page, and then, on the Brainstorming menu, click Move Topic To New Page.
2. In the Move Topics dialog box, under Move to, click New page. Type the name you want for the new page, or keep the default, and then click OK.

The top-level topic stays on the original drawing page with an arrow symbol to indicate that it also appears on another page. To go to the moved topic from the original page, right-click the topic, and then click Go to sub page. To navigate back to the original page from the moved topic, right-click the moved topic, and then click Go to page containing parent.

Move a topic without its subordinates to another page

1. Right-click the topic you want to move to another page, and then click Copy.
2. Navigate to the page you want to add the topic to, then right-click the page, and then click Paste.

Tip

To move multiple topics at once without their subordinates, hold down SHIFT, and then select the topics you want to move. Then, right-click one of them, and then click Copy.

Move a topic to another level

• In the Outline Window, drag the name of the topic you want to be subordinate directly on top of the name of the topic you want to be superior.

All subordinate topics move with the topic, and the changes are reflected in your diagram.

Tip

If you don't see the Outline Window on the drawing page, on the Brainstorming menu, click Outline Window.

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