Jump-Start Your Art: Doodle to Stay Inspired

Welcome to Redbubble’s Jump-Start Your Art. In this feature we’ll hit you with regular recommendations and challenges that can help you give your creative life a kickstart!

You may recall that earlier this year we shared some tips on How to Break Out of a  Creative Rut. It’s no accident that doodling can be found at the top of that list of tips.

I’m a prolific doodler. I can’t even begin to tell you how many times I’ve felt the need to explain to fellow attendees of meetings, that I’m not being rude or ignorant, it’s just that the doodling helps me to focus on the topic, and I’m better able to understand what is being said.

Once considered to be the random and inane scribblings of the hopelessly bored and uninspired, the last few years have shown us that doodling actually serves a very real purpose, and is far from inane.

A study done by the University of Plymouth found that doodling helps your mind to remain focused on a task. Not only that, doodling was proven to help people retain information and relay that same information to others more efficiently in the future. Doodling changes the way in which we’re able to solve problems and helps our brain to process information in a more effective way.

Not only is it fun, but doodling can also be an invaluable tool for both finding and building upon those fleeting glimpses of inspiration that come to us.

So now we’d like to offer you a short creative challenge. Are you up for it?

Cool. Here’s what we’d like you to do.

Start a doodle journal. We want you to grab a sketch book, some pens, pencils or crayons, and doodle your thoughts and activities for the day. This part is important – don’t use traditional written words, just use your doodling to express your thoughts and feelings.

To fully get a feel for it, make a commitment to add to your doodle journal for a week. Chances are, it might feel so good that you’ll start to do it every day.

We’d love it if you shared your doodled journal experiences with us. So in the comments, show how you’re doing, and let us know what you think.

If you want to hear more about the awesomeness of doodling, we recommend taking six minutes to watch what Sunni Brown has to say about it in her 2011 TED talk.