You want to know how to draw diagrams in Word to visually represent data, relationships, processes, charts, etc. in reports or other documents. This article will introduce you to how to draw diagrams in Word using the available tools.
1. Benefits of Drawing Diagrams in Word
While composing text, knowing how to draw mind maps, organizational charts, and diagrams in Word has many benefits, such as:
- Helping you present ideas, processes, and data clearly and vividly.
- Helping you attract attention and increase the effectiveness of your reports and presentations.
- Allowing you to customize the size, color, and position of shapes and elements in the diagram according to your preferences and purposes.
Although drawing diagrams has many advantages, many people still do not know how to draw diagrams in Word, especially mind maps and organizational charts. If you are one of them, save this guide below to improve your editing skills!
2. How to Draw Diagrams in Word using SmartArt
Using SmartArt is a way to draw diagrams using pre-designed templates in Word. With this tool, you only need to choose the chart shape you want and fill in the required information in the predefined cells. Drawing organizational charts in Word using SmartArt is favored by many people because of its visual appeal, convenience in content division, beautiful form, and easy customization.
Step 1: In the Word interface, choose “Insert” on the toolbar and click “SmartArt”.
Step 2: A dialog box with many chart options will appear. Find the type of chart you want to use.
Step 3: After choosing the chart type you need, click “OK” at the bottom right corner of the dialog box.
Step 4: Now, the selected chart will appear in the Word interface. Your task is to fill in the text in the prearranged cells.
Step 5: To make the chart more visually appealing, you can add options above to decorate your chart.
3. How to Draw Diagrams in Word using Shapes
In addition to the tool that helps create mind maps in Word using automatic templates, you can also manually create your own diagrams according to your preferences. To do that, refer to how to draw mind maps in Word using Shapes.
Step 1: Open the Word document you want to draw the diagram in, choose “Insert” on the toolbar, and click “Shapes” to start.
Step 2: Select the appropriate shapes that match your diagram idea.
Step 3: Click and hold the left mouse button to resize the shapes as desired.
Step 4: Similar to step 3, arrange and customize the size of the shapes to create your own diagram.
This method takes more time than using available templates. However, you can be more creative, combine shapes with each other to implement your ideas. To link shapes together in order, you can use the arrow shapes in the selection box.
Step 5: To enhance the effect of the diagram, you can choose to edit colors, borders, shadow effects, bolds, etc.
4. How to Draw Diagrams in Word using Drawing Tools
Another way to draw mind maps in Word quickly and conveniently is to use Drawing Tools. Using Drawing Tools makes the process of drawing diagrams in Word simpler, diverse, and suitable for different types of diagrams.
Step 1: In the Word toolbar, choose “Insert” and click “Shape”. Select “New Drawing Canvas” at the end of the dialog box.
Step 2: Now, the drawing canvas will appear. Draw the appropriate shapes in this canvas.
Step 3: From here, the steps to add shapes, customize colors, borders, add text are similar to using Shapes.
5. How to Draw Diagrams in Word using Charts
You may already know how to draw charts in Word, but have you ever used these features to draw mind maps or organizational charts in Word? If not, try the guide below! This is also a very convenient and interesting way to draw diagrams in Word that you can refer to.
Step 1: In the toolbar, click “Insert” and choose “Chart”. A dialog box with various types of charts will appear. Find the chart type suitable for your information.
Step 2: Click “OK” at the bottom right corner to select the chart type you want.
Step 3: After selecting the chart type, an Excel table for entering data for the chart will appear in the Word page. The editing part of the chart is at the top, right below the toolbar.
6. Some Rules to Follow when Drawing Diagrams in Word
To create comprehensive and visually appealing mind maps and organizational charts in Word, you need to know some rules. Following these rules will make it easier and save time when using the different methods to draw diagrams in Word.
When starting to design mind maps or organizational charts, you need to have an idea of the position of each block and cell. If you have time, you can make a rough sketch of the frame of the diagram on paper to get an overview first.
For diagrams with multiple ideas, you can arrange them in the center, coordinate with effects, colors to make them stand out, and arrange subordinate and supporting ideas around them in order to avoid confusion and make it easier to grasp the main ideas.
A small tip for you: when drawing mind maps in Word, it is advisable to leave some white spaces empty. Doing this can make it more flexible for you to add ideas to the document without having to create too many blocks and rearrange them from scratch.
7. Some Questions about Drawing Diagrams in Word
7.1. Which versions of Word can draw diagrams?
Currently, most versions of Word can draw mind maps, organizational charts, etc. directly in the application. The main difference between versions lies in the graphics, colors, editing options, etc. With each upgraded version, this feature is improved to allow users to freely create according to their preferences.
7.2. Can I draw diagrams in other applications and then import them into Word?
According to our research, some other applications support drawing diagrams relatively conveniently, but whether you can import those diagrams into Word or not depends on the compatibility of the applications. Before proceeding, you can test to know for sure!
Conclusion
Thus, the article has revealed many ways to draw diagrams in Word. With the above instructions, you can create unique diagrams that accurately represent your ideas quickly and easily. Save these methods to improve your office computing skills!