Create Your First Mind Map
In this guide, we will take you from creating your first document to capturing all your thoughts in minutes.
Create a document
Go ahead and launch MindNode on your device. If you're launching MindNode for the first time, the app will let you decide whether you'd like to start your own document or add sample documents.
Create a new document by clicking the "New Document" item in the toolbar (a rectangle with an overlapping pen symbol). Documents are stored directly in MindNode and sync automatically to all your devices.
Change the node title
When creating a new document, the document will open automatically. You should now see an empty canvas with a newly created main node.
The main node is already in "edit mode," so you can type the topic you want to work on. For this guide, we are planning a vacation, so we added "Summer Vacation".
Press the Return key or click/tap on the canvas to end editing.
You can change the node title at any time by double-clicking/tapping the node.
Mind Maps are very visual, so it's always great to have an expressive image in the center. Learn how to use Image Playgrounds to create an image for you.
Add your first idea
Now, we will create a new child node. When you hover your cursor over the main node, the node well - a plus-shaped button next to a node - will appear. When you use your finger for interaction, the node well always appear when a node is selected.
Select the node well to create a new idea. Add a title to it and begin adding more nodes.
- You can also drag the node well to have more control over where you want to insert your nodes.
- With a hardware keyboard, you can use the Return key to add a sibling node and the Tab key to add a new child node.
- With a software keyboard, you can tap Space three times to create a new child node and three times Return to create a sibling node.
Rewire and delete a node
Mind mapping is a very fluid process. You create new nodes all the time. Your ideas evolve, and your focus changes. Select a node and drag it onto a different node to change its position in the mind map.
When ideas flow quickly, some ideas are no longer worth pursuing. Delete a node using the context menu or the Backspace key. When you delete a node, all of its attached nodes are also deleted.
You open the context menu using Option-Click with cursor devices or tap-wait-tap on an unselected node on touch devices.
- Hold the Option ⌥ key during Rewiring to retain the current styling of the node.
- Use Option ⌥ + Backspace ← to only delete the current node. All attached nodes will be retained.
Build your mind map
Step by step fill in more content. Add tasks, stickers and style it your way.
