Mind map tool

Open the mind mapping tool

A mind map is a graphical way of thinking: the topic sits in the middle and thoughts grow outwards from there like branches. Tony Buzan described the method in the 1970s, modelled on how our thinking actually works – not in lines and lists, but in connections.

Because key words, colours and spatial arrangement come together, a mind map addresses several channels of perception at once. That makes complex relationships easier to grasp and the result easier to remember. Whether for clarifying goals, analysing a problem, planning a project or generating ideas – a mind map makes the knot in your head visible and brings order to thoughts that stay hidden in continuous text.

What the mind map editor can do

• Branches with colours that are inherited by sub-branches, and with symbols. Several branches can be moved, copied and re-levelled together. Branches may sit freely on the canvas; to re-attach one, drag the connecting line to its new parent.
• Notes on every branch – with headings, lists, tables and images. This turns the mind map into a complete document rather than a sketch.
• Cross-links between any two branches, in one or both directions, with a label and a freely shaped curve. In Word, OpenDocument and PDF files as well as in presentations these become clickable links.
• Drawings directly inside a note: shapes, symbols, freehand lines and connectors.
• Dates and resources per branch – start and end date plus assignments, useful for project planning.
• Export as a Word document (.docx), OpenDocument (.odt) or PDF, with branches becoming headings, bullet points or numbered lists – optionally with the mind map as an image. Also as SVG and PNG.
• Presentation at the touch of a button for PowerPoint or LibreOffice Impress: title, overview and content slides, one slide per branch, notes optionally as speaker notes.
• Import and exchange: existing Word, OpenDocument and PDF documents are converted into a mind map via their headings. Files in MindManager format (.mmap) can be opened and saved again in that format.
• Project folder: on request the editor remembers a folder holding your mind maps and offers them for selection when you open one.

Getting started

Click the link above and the tool is there. No sign-up, no installation, no account. Write your topic in the middle; the Tab key creates a sub-branch, the Enter key another branch at the same level. Everything else – colours, notes, connections – is available at whichever element you have selected.

What it is good for

In coaching for clarifying goals and analysing problems. In projects for work breakdown structures, minutes and preparing presentations. In study and training for working through and revising material. And wherever an existing document needs to become an overview quickly: open the Word file, the headings become a mind map, rearrange it, hand it back as a presentation.

Your data stays with you

The mind map editor is a single HTML file that runs entirely in your browser. It loads nothing from the internet and sends nothing. What you enter lives in your own files on your own computer; in addition, the browser keeps an interim state so that nothing is lost if it crashes. The tool is free of charge and is free software under the GNU General Public License (GPL-3.0-or-later) – you may use it, study it, change it and pass it on.

Related tools and topics

If you would rather show relationships spatially than as a tree, the systemic board is the way to go. For decisions with several possible paths there is the tetralemma and decision scales, and for inner contradictions my inner team. You will find an overview of all tools under Resources and Experimental – to try out.

If you would also like to bring order to goals, processes and responsibilities in your company, I am glad to support you with IT-supported organisational consulting – get in touch for a free initial consultation.