---
name: mindmap-workflow
description: How to create, view, edit, and manage brainstorming mindmaps
tags: [mindmap, brainstorming, planning, organization]
category: productivity
---
## Steps
1. **Create a new mindmap:**
   - mindmap new "<topic>" -t tag1,tag2 — creates a root node
   - Tags are optional (e.g. planning, research, dev)
   - Root gets auto-assigned a color from 7-color palette

2. **Add child nodes:**
   - mindmap add <parent-id> "<idea>" -t tag — add a child
   - Get the parent-id from mindmap show
   - IDs are 4-char random strings (e.g. a3f8, x7k2)

3. **View:**
   - mindmap show — full tree with Unicode box-drawing
   - mindmap show <id> — subtree starting at that node

4. **Edit nodes:**
   - mindmap rename <id> "<new text>" — change text
   - mindmap color <id> <color> — set color (red/green/yellow/blue/cyan/magenta/white)
   - mindmap tag <id> <tag> — add a tag

5. **Persistence:**
   - mindmap save <name> — save to localStorage
   - mindmap load <name> — restore
   - mindmap list — show saved mindmaps
   - mindmap delete <name> — remove saved

6. **Export:**
   - mindmap export [id] — Markdown bullet list output, auto-copies to clipboard

7. **When to use:**
   - Map out project structure, brainstorm features, organize ideas
   - Break down complex tasks into subtrees
   - User says "brainstorm", "diagram", "organize thoughts", "plan"