Recently, I started reading a great book called A Whack on the Side of the Head: How You Can Be More Creative. It’s a great book on how to expand your line of thinking, and it encourages different ways to come up with ideas. The author, Roger Von Oech, makes very interesting points in turning things upside down, or looking at things with different eyes. It’s been very eye opening to learn to look at problems differently.

As I read, I thought about how it was important to go through and get out ideas that you may think of first. The first ideas, generally, are the ones that are the straight forward and immediate ones that can come up to anyone. Afterwards, when the obvious is done, you can break through and put a new spin on different things. A friend of mine on Instagram, when asked what type of brain storming is his favorite to use, he said he liked to do brain dumps. Now a brain dump to him, was to get out any and every idea he could get out. Sounds familiar?

While my friend is a writer, the idea can be easily applied to arts of other kinds, especially drawing, or painting. What would be the equivalent of an artist brain dump? Of course, it’s the doodle!

Doodling not only keeps your pen or pencil from becoming idle, it also makes it so your brain can just dump out any ideas, bad or good. When you look back, you realize you have gotten rid of all the first thoughts. Doodling can be a great way to warm up before a good drawing session, opening up your mind to remembering how to use a drawing device. It can also break through all the boring first ideas you may get, and instead leave you open to the ones where you may have to turn the paper upside down, or look at a piece from a different angle.

Doodling is a type of brain dump, and we even do it when we’re studying! How many times have you found doodles in your margins or your notes? So don’t ever be afraid to doodle! It can have a lot of benefits to help your brain think outside it’s norm! Not to mention, doodle pages can look ultra fun!

Here’s a great video sent to me a while back about doodling by Jon Burgerman!

Cover art by Jon Burgerman, check out his youtube channel, as well as his instagram for some outside the box inspiration!