Exercising Creativity with Doodles

We’ve all viewed doodling as an act of disrespect to the teacher in a classroom and the Board in a Boardroom meeting. We have also had our stint with doodling if the pen and pad ever bestow on us the pleasure of their presence while we’re on a telephone call. However, a not very recent research provides reason for us to embrace doodling as a tool for creativity and link it not just to memories from mild rebellion in school.

Sunni Brown, the author of Brainstorming: A Playbook for Rule-breakers, Innovators and Changemakers, spoke in her TED talk at Long Beach California about how the general perception of doodling is "to dawdle, to dilly dally, to monkey around, to make meaningless marks, to do something of little value, substance or import or to do nothing." She further states that our culture is so intensely focused on verbal information, that we’re almost blinded to the value of doodling.

Brown states that out of the five ways to absorb information for learning viz. visual, auditory, reading, writing and kinesthetic, at least two should be used together for better retention and recall, or an emotional experience should be linked to any one of the methods. And, doodling causes the learner to engage in all of these learning techniques, with the possibility of an emotional experience.

The Webster’s Dictionary beautifully summarizes Brown’s idea in its definition for the word as “making spontaneous marks to help yourself think”.

A “scientific research” or simply put, a study that appeared in Applied Cognitive Psychology in 2009 suggests that doodling acts as a preemptive measure to stop from losing focus. Thus, people who doodle retain more of what is being discussed than others, who remain more susceptible to distractions. The study was conducted by psychologist Jackie Andrade of the University of Plymouth in England who observed that people who doodled had 29% more retention than those who did not. Andrade concluded that contrary to popular belief, doodling helps quieten the inner dialogue and keeps people from daydreaming. It is said to be helpful in problem-solving too.

In related business news, Nike CEO Mark Parker carries a notebook to every meeting like most of us organized managers. However, his notebook is full of doodles. Parker says that doodling helps him clarify the brainstorming process. The Wall Street Journal backs the claim too and states how a blank page serves as an extended playfield for the brain, allowing people to revise and improve on creative thoughts and ideas.

Doodling is also said to help in expressing emotions that are hard to put into words. Don’t forget to visit the Google homepage on your birthday next time, and you’ll know what I mean. I’m sure you have a fair idea from viewing the search engine giant’s creative doodles all year round. Well, they don’t call Google “smart” for nothing!

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References:

http://www.thestylus.net/news/view.php/415899/Doodling-dilemma-distracting-or-helpful-

http://articles.chicagotribune.com/2013-04-23/features/sc-fam-0423-doodle-20130423_1_doodling-jackie-andrade-new-book

http://www.everydaysociologyblog.com/2009/04/common-sense-and-doodling.html

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2009/02/090226210039.htm

http://content.time.com/time/health/article/0,8599,1882127,00.html

http://blogs.discovermagazine.com/80beats/2009/02/27/bad-news-for-teachers-research-says-doodling-boosts-concentration/#.U9vL3-OSznQ

http://www.education.com/magazine/article/power-of-doodling/

http://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/arts-and-health/201401/doodling-your-way-more-mindful-life

http://www.businessinsider.in/Nike-CEO-Mark-Parkers-Success-Secret-Doodling/articleshow/39435340.cms

https://www.ted.com/talks/sunni_brown

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