These are topical areas of interest to any student who desires to excel. I never thought there was more to the use of my mind till I read "Use Your Head". I hope to improve upon the use of my head from the use of the techniques in the book. Great job, Tony.


I sent mine back   July 24, 2005
 16 out of 36 found this review helpful

This book keeps promising to tell you the secrets of using your mind efficiently, but what it really does is a) fill up lots of pages with superfluous charts, diagrams and blank spaces for you to make your own notes (!), b) blather on at great length about how Mr. X became President of the World as a result of buying this book and c) share just a little of the crucial information with the reader, while explaining that in order to get the full picture, you'll have to splash out on the other books in the series too. I wasn't impressed, it didn't help me, and I got my money back. I bought another Hellboy collection instead and got more out of that - there's food for thought.


Mapping works.   May 30, 2005
 10 out of 10 found this review helpful

I saw the original TV series for this book over 20 years ago. It persuaded me to buy the book, as an A level student wanting to make a success of my exams and my time at university. This helped more than any other single book. It seems a bit old hat now, teachers and students everywhere have taken the message of this, but, in its simplicity it remains one of the most effective aids I know to becoming an effective student and thinker, and in making knowledge your own.
Buzan's books in general repeat ideas from book to book and this is occasionally a bit tedious and frustrating for anyone who has bought more than a couple of them, but mind mapping is the single most effective technique that I have ever used and, eventually, made my own. If you are a student and bored by your teachers' use of mindmaps, brainstorms, spider diagrams or whatever, you will not succeed in using these techniques until you make the process your own and get a bit of the reasoning behind it.
Thanks for the help Tony!


Think about it !   August 28, 2003
 75 out of 80 found this review helpful

Having reached the dizzy heights of A levels with little application I suddenly discovered that I had no idea how to study. Academic processes in this country are based on the fallacy that studying is a natural process which can be aquired without tuition. A couple of hours with this book will convince you not only that you are capable of studying more effectively, but also with practice you can do it without angst. This is the definitive self empowerment manual - a complete toolkit for ensuring that you can utilise your own capabilities in the most effective manner.


A summary of his other books   September 24, 2002
 15 out of 16 found this review helpful

I've bought 'Speed Reading' and 'Using your Memory' by Tony Buzan, and I found that they help quite a lot.

I was disappointed to find that this book simply summarises the content of his other books. Tony doesn't even go into much depth about any of the subjects of memory and reading.

If you have any of Buzan's books don't buy this one.

If you are new to the subject, you won't be displeased - his methods actually work.