We have created this Doodle tool to help you create ideas, develop your creativity, relax and have some fun with a low tech pencil and paper. You will be very surprised at what doodling can do for you. Doodle Dude™ was created by a kid, to get you started and to work with you to develop more doodle activities.
You may have doodled without knowing that you where doing it. To doodle is to scribble, carefree drawings with no plan, or writing when your attention is elsewhere (daydreaming). You will probably find that you already doodle while you are talking on the phone, hanging out in your room, listening to music, or watching TV. If you aren’t already doodling, then grab your pencil or pen and get ready to doodle. Not only will it be fun, but you will develop some great skills along the way. Whether your doodling is drawn or written, it will help you develop your creativity, ideas, express yourself, relax and have some fun.
This website started as a few doodles and has developed into what you are using today. When the founder of TeachingKidsBusiness.com thought of ideas, he scribbled them down on paper by using words, diagrams and sketches of those ideas. After reviewing his doodles several times, adding to them, changing and redoing them, talking to kids about them, he eventually developed ideas that you see in the website today. After doodling many times and finding it an excellent way to develop ideas, he realized that this would be a helpful tool for kids to learn, develop ideas and to experiment with.
Like all other tools in TeachingKidsBusiness.com, the “doodle tool” will help you develop business skills. Doodling has a place in business. It can be a very useful tool if it is understood, practiced and used to develop ideas and creative talents.
Most doodling in business occurs when people are in meetings where they doodle as their mind wanders off. We are not about to teach you to doodle instead of listening in class or in a meeting.Your class and meetings arehopefully interesting enough to keep your attention, but when you do doodle, let’s help you make the most of it! If you learn to doodle as a toolthat you practice, learn from and have some fun with, you will develop a very helpful skill. Who knows? Your doodle skills may even lead to a career as an animator, cartoonist, artist and help you in many other career choices.
Doodle Approach to Creating Ideas
You probably think doodling is fun and it’s ok to do, but you may want to know why you need to doodle to develop and remember ideas. Have you ever had something that was bothering you and as you were thinking about it, you thought of something (an idea) that would help the situation, only to forget it later? You could have remembered parts of the idea later, but not enough to use it. If you figure out a way to remember your ideas (the doodle approach), you’ll find it very helpful. You might surprise yourself with the number of ideas you actually come up with if you keep track of them. Imagine you are thinking of things to do at a party you are planning. You may want to take some time and doodle them down, or doodle down your ideas as you think of them.
Doodle time is anytime. Set aside a pad of paper , a paper book, scrap paper, etc. Make some time while hanging out, watching TV, waiting for a download, listening to music, before bed, when you can’t sleep and doodle! Eventually you will find more time to doodle when it makes sense. You’ll discover that an idea may come to you when you are eating breakfast, taking a shower, walking to school etc. You will figure out a way to get your ideas down. I knew a person that carried a small pad of sticky notes and a pen around and jotted down ideas at all times of the day.
Doodle for Creativity
Many artists and cartoonists started their interest in drawing with doodling. A number of professional artists actually gave some excellent input to this section. We have all doodled, but probably called it drawing, sketching, or scribbling. It is a good way to develop creative skills and just exercise your mind in a creative way. Anytime you pick up a pencil and start scribbling something down on paper, you are developing creative skills. Don’t be afraid to experiment and don’t let anyone convince you that you are not creative!
Doodle to Relax
Some people like to doodle to relax. You may find that you need to give your mind a break from the many things you have been thinking about, so treat yourself to a little relaxing doodle time. Have some fun and relax, simply with paper and a pencil. This does not mean you need to generate ideas; just relax. It’s OK to think of your pencil and paper as a friend that you can spend time with and enjoy. You may want to doodle with friends, or recommend this to a friend or parent that needs to relax a little more. The next time you have a game night at home, try some doodling.
Doodle Hints
- There is no right, wrong, good, or bad doodling. (As a kid, did you ever think there was something like this?)
- Everyone will have their own doodle style – cover a small or large area, light, dark, thick, thin lines, etc.
- Don’t judge it or have it judged, but take some time and interpret your doodles to see what you can find in it.
- Here is a helpful way to interpret or review your doodles: Use the clouds in the sky as an example of a doodle. Haven’t you ever looked up at them and been able to see a figure or a shape? Well, the clouds are the sky’s version of a doodle. To find shapes within the clouds, you would have to sit back and think about what you are observing and use your imagination. Your mind will pull out shapes or lines within the clouds to create your picture. In doodling you use the same thinking approach as you would when you are observing clouds, but you can actually draw over the lines (different color or darker) to create a picture. This is considered to be the soul of your doodle.
- Don’t be afraid to turn your page upside-down or from side-to-side to interpret your doodle.
Doodle Activities
Join Doodle Dude™ and learn to doodle.Draw a picture of Doodle Dude™ to warm you up and then go for a little doodle. Let your pencil wander across the page. It can start as a scribble and take shape as you want it to. There are no rules and you can do whatever you think of. Don’t judge it and don’t have someone judge it. You may want to keep a file to save your doodles and look at them at a later time. Continue it later (add on), or interpret it (think about what you see in it). Have some fun with this activity as there is no good or bad, right or wrong. Click on Doodle Dude™ to get started.
Take a pencil, any pencil will do. Pick it up and start to doodle. Make a wild scribble. Sit back and look at the doodle and try and find pieces that start to form a picture. For example, you may take a different color and go over the lines that you think will create a picture from within your doodle.
This activity is the time limit doodle. Take a short period of time, around one minute and start to doodle. As you doodle, try and develop it into a drawing of anything that comes to your mind. You will find that your drawing usually comes out of something you see in your doodle. Adjust the time limit up and down and see what happens.
Take a look at our Just For Clicks Business Game. Try a little doodling to get you started on your kid’s online digital information product idea and your start in business.
Think of something that you need to plan for. Set out some paper and pen/pencil, or carry them around awhile until you think of your ideas. Take your paper and scribble out ideas that will help you in your plan. The ideas can be one word or many. The ideas can be a little bit of scribble/doodle and/or writing. You will know you are finished when you feel you have given your plan enough thought, or you have lots of ideas. Review your ideas, develop them further and write them out in readable writing. You now have a plan you have given a lot of thought to.
Doodle with a parent or friend. Start off with one person doodling on the page. Your partner takes over and adds to your doodle. You take a turn, look at the doodle and think about it for a short while and then add to your partner’s doodle. Keep switching turns until your page is full. Soon you both will have completed a pretty amazing doodle. Have some fun discussing what you have doodled.
Start to doodle by drawing something in the center of a piece of paper. Your starting point can be a scribble that is done with your eyes closed or the left (less dominant) hand. Your starting scribble can be mad and crazy, about 4-5 seconds long in a small space, say two inches (5 cm). Branch out from the center with other thoughts/doodles. Some of these branches may find their way back to the center of the page or wherever. Sit back and try to think of all the connecting doodles and see if an idea comes to you that brings everything together.
Try and see if you can find the soul of the scribble and draw over what you see (draw over with darker lines or a different color) to develop a picture from your doodle. The soul of the scribble is what you see it to be, or something that kind of pops out at you from your doodle.
Take a look at our kids-works-ventures program and consider using your doodles in this program.
Congratulations! You have developed another business skill!! Don’t be afraid to show it on your resume. Your resume will be one of the first to describe doodling as one of your business skills or interests.