Kablingy

Getting started on a new project can be daunting sometimes. It can be difficult to know where to start when you first sit down with your customer and have to extract requirements from them in a structured manner. When I'm stuck, I mind map.

First I draw a central image with the project title.

Then I draw a branch for Users. I will start to ask about the different kinds of people that will use the application I'm about to build. These days subscription based web applications are all the rage, so that means there's usually at least  3 personas can be identified. So I'll sketch up Barbara the account owner, Julie the web application administrator, and Bill the customer.

Inevitably, that quick discussion will help me to spot at least 5 domain objects. So now I can do a little boxes and arrows diagram of the object relationships between User, Account, Subscription,Plan, Role. As we run through the scenarios of each users, more domain objects present themselves. During this discussion we might also identify more users which we can add on to the Users branch.

I usually draw a branch for business model also, as I really want to understand how the web application is going to make money. It’s a top priority for me that I build just enough software so that the client can get a ROI as soon as possible. Otherwise I run the risk of saying yes to every feature and building an application that doesn’t generate enough income to cover its initial investment. That's bad.

In mind mapping the business model, the users and their scenarios, and the domain model, the project will start to take shape very quickly. Mind mapping around the whiteboard is also a great way for your client to interact in this process. As you draw branches, she’ll immediately start to fill in the gaps of the map, and since it’s very visual and colourful, it sticks in the memory. You’ll find that you can wipe the board and redraw most of it from memory without even trying.

Give it a go – 4 markers and a whiteboard is all it takes. Don’t forget to take photos of it with your camera or phone before you clear it.