THE DOODLE REVOLUTION

A noted visual literacy expert reveals how doodling can transform the thinking process in both individual and group contexts.

Doodling is a universal human practice that can manifest through kinesthetic or mental activities like drawing, walking and daydreaming. Yet it is considered inappropriate in all but the most personal contexts. In this fun, lavishly illustrated book, Brown (co-author: Gamestorming: A Playbook for Innovators, Rulebreakers, and Changemakers, 2010), one of Fast Company’s 100 Most Creative People in Business, explodes the myth that doodling is a “mindless” waste of time. Celebrated thinkers and creative people—including Albert Einstein, Nikola Tesla and Steve Jobs—actively used it to promote concentration, stimulate the imagination and facilitate problem solving. Doodling also accommodates all major learning modalities and offers what the author calls the “Three Ps: [cognitive] Power, Performance, and Pleasure.” Brown advises readers on how to move past their biases against this activity and instructs them on how to produce the basic shapes she associates with the “visual alphabet” of doodles. She also introduces the concept of “infodoodling,” which transforms “data, information, and conversation into a more rich, immersive representative of itself.” With its ability to boil large quantities of information down to simple, easily accessible formulations, infodoodling can empower all knowledge-based businesses, education, and media communities and increase output and overall efficiency. As methods to help readers better understand the infodoodling process, Brown provides stimulating games and sequentially ordered exercises designed to engage the power of “the collective brain” for maximum meaningful creative output. Both practical and inspiring, Brown’s book reminds readers of the revolutionary power of simplicity in an information-overloaded world.

A gold mine for readers interested in learning more about the benefits of increased visual literacy.