Mind maps are graphical representations of a specific thought structure. They aim to help a person to think more efficiently by using associations and, at the same time, to have some available adequate picture of his thinking. At the same time, it should be said at the outset that their very definition is somewhat ambiguous. Tony Buzan considers himself their inventor and lays down a slightly restrictive procedure for creating them. However, the actual practice is more prosperous, and many mapmakers do not use or neglect some of their rules. We will also work with a somewhat looser definition in the text than Buzan's.

In general, mind maps combine association work and graphical representation. Associations are one of the essential principles of memory work and the mind in general. Whatever you remember is included in a specific relationship with other information, and you also recall it in its context. For example, when the word "mother" comes up, some people will certainly recognise their real mother, what she looks like, or perhaps their birth house or room, a childhood experience, etc. Information is not stored in the brain in isolation but in a specific structure that needs to be worked with in learning or remembering techniques. Working with associations is also the basis of many creative processes.

It is essential to know how the mind works, What images or concepts they associate with, etc. This experience of how one's thinking works is a necessary springboard for learning and self-reflection.

Buzan and other authors of creative techniques emphasize that creativity lies in the ability of a person to have the densest possible associative network on the one hand and to have surprise. And unexpected connections arise on the other side. These two parameters are vital for idea generation or creative thinking in general.

Interestingly, these connections have a partly logical structure, but they can also have surprising connections connected with a specific personality setting, story, etc. Then, during the evaluation phase of creative thinking, those that fit a particular critical structure or logical requirements are selected from many ideas.

The second important point in mind maps is the graphical representation of thinking, the thought process or associations between concepts. Idea mapping emphasises the role of images and individual words as thought elements that are further worked with in the maps. A proper map, Buzan writes, has just one word at each point. The word is thus the basic thought structure. In addition to words, a map can also consist of images, which can also support or evoke associations. However much of their necessity is emphasized, it is clear that words are the primary building block.