Sketchnoting: Fixing Ideas Quickly and Brightly

Recently I have repeatedly heard about sketchnoting. You probably did, too. So what lies behind this word?

It is completely obvious that the name comes from ‘sketch’ and ‘note’. Yes, everything is that simple: notes in form of sketches.

Sketchnoting is an opportunity to capture ideas shortly and quickly, to make connections between them and present everything visually. This is a good way to think through all the details and look at the project from different perspectives.

How to start?

You may think that sketchnoting is extremely difficult and not worth an effort. Indeed, you are no artist at all, and the whole process is taking too much time. That’s what it may seem to a newbie. In fact, beginning is the most difficult stage of any creative work. If you like to draw or color pictures, everything else is just a matter of time.

Such notes are the best way of presenting information. They summarize the main idea in pictures made by hand and key phrases. Notes are more convenient than video slides and are treated better than ordinary tables. Moreover, an audience is getting interested more in any case. So, think about it again.

What are the pros of sketchnoting?

• If you keep records on something the speaker tells, it is much easier for you to memorize the content and to keep everything in memory longer.
• Coloring process helps to focus on the topic and think about the details.
• Choosing colors, organization and arrangement of elements, establishing links between them builds up a hierarchy in the tasks and helps to prioritize them.
• Thinking about how to portray a certain aspect helps to understand it better.
• Arrows between blocks combine not only visually presented information, but also define its place in the overall picture and links to other ideas.
• Your idea is gaining a material form and gets social, for sketchnoting is a specific kind of blog.
• You start drawing and expressing your thoughts better.

How to do it all

• Draw. This is the first and the most important step. Start with basic pictures and diagrams. They can always be improved later.
• Picture doesn’t need to be perfect immediately. Just remember to carry your notes with you to be able to add something as soon as a new idea or visual design comes to mind. Or simply download a special app (we will tell about those later).
• Edit. If you note listening to someone, there’s no need to write down everything word for word. Paraphrase it, make everything shorter and clearer, the way you will understand later. If the note is verbatim, do not forget to mark it as a quote.
• Divide into parts. Use separate blocks and sections for recording information. It is more convenient, as everything won’t be accumulated in lines and consequently will be perceived better.
• Work. You are to do several things at once – listen, paraphrase, and draw. At first, it may be difficult, but this process is a fair charging for the brain.
• Relax. If something refuses to stay on paper (drawings are awful, words aren’t appropriate), perhaps it does not have to. Wait until you hear / come up with something interesting again.
• Train. It is quite easy to develop sketchnoting skills. The main thing here is desire, hard work and a little time. Try to note movies, songs, personal conversations, record lectures and something like that. Draw simple things – it can be everything that you see around.

All you need is a pen and / or pencils and a good mood. Catch ideas, start new projects and tell us about them.