Doodling - capturing your subconscious mind

Much of our creativity is deep within our subconscious. Finding this creativity and accessing it at will, is often easier said than done especially when we are under pressure or have time restraints. However, the reassuring thing is that our creativity is always searching for a way to express itself whether our conscious mind wants it to or not. One of the ways in which it does this is through our doodles.

Some people doodle incessantly - in a lecture or meeting, when on the phone, while doing a crossword or even when writing an article like this one! Sometimes these doodles are in the form of a symbol that can be universally recognised or sometimes it is a drawing or sometimes just a squiggle. Whatever it is, the only person who can decipher your doodle accurately is yourself.

Have a go:

Follow these short steps to see what your subconscious mind has to tell you.

  1. Get a blank piece of paper and a writing/drawing implement.
  2. Think about something you are hoping to create or an issue you'd like to resolve.
  3. Hold that thought but let your mind go blank. Try staring unfocused at a blank wall, the sky or simply your piece of paper.
  4. As ideas and feelings come to mind, doodle them on to your paper.

Or:

  1. Have a blank piece of paper and pen/pencil to hand
  2. Doodle while you speak to a friend or colleague about your issue or idea either in person or on the phone.

All the time, whilst doodling, allow your hand to follow your impulses. You might find that you are so engrossed in your thoughts or conversation that you don't pay attention to what your doodling hand is doing anyway.

When you are finished set the paper aside for a period of time and come back to it refreshed. Look at what you have drawn. You may find that you've unconsciously drawn a solution to your issue.

If you don't see an immediate connection between what you've doodled and your problem then one way to decipher what your doodles mean is to write down some thoughts.

For example, recently, I've found myself doodling windows and doors. I thought that they had no relevance to what is going on in my life until I looked a bit deeper. By brainstorming on the word 'door' I came up with:

I also brainstormed one of my actual doodles and came up with:

then taking it further, I noticed that I'd doodled a couple of low steps leading up to the door.

Now I can directly link my list of words to all kinds of questions I've been asking myself about both personal and work related issues.

Written by Pat Naylor and Leanne Norris