Why Learn Visual Notetaking

Julia Bakay
Aug 26, 2023
3 min read

Updated: Jan 29

Visual Notetaking as a Learning Tool & as a Hobby!

Ever wondered how you could speed up time during a dull meeting? Why, when learning a language, the words just don’t stick? Or what to do with your urge to multitask while watching TV or listening to a podcast?

Well I’ve certainly wondered about all the above.

Until I discovered Visual Note-taking...

It’s funny looking back at old notebooks, as I see the idea and the desire has always been there. I always filled the margin area with my doodles, but I never dared to take it further!

Why?

Because I wasn’t encouraged; in fact, it felt risky. What if my teacher or boss picked it up and saw what I’d done with their words? Would they think I was mocking them… or just doodling out of boredom?

Well, as a professional Visual Note-taker, I feel it's both my duty and calling to debunk these misconceptions about Visual Note-taking.

Visual Notetaking is a Great Tool for Learning

Taking notes is a commonly accepted tool for learning, yet when you take it to a more creative (thus helpful) level, you might suddenly be accused of ‘doodling’.

With 65% of the general population being visual learners, I’m often amazed why Visual Note-taking is not the default.

Visual note-taking lets us interpret information in our own way; capturing wild associations, connecting the pieces that make sense to us, and mapping it all out in a way that genuinely helps us understand.

How can one learn Visual Note-taking?

You’d be surprised how little there is to teach here - to start with, we just need to open up these channels and see what happens. After all, Visual Note-taking, at its core, is something entirely personal. When we take visual notes, we follow our brain's flow and associations, and no one can do this for us better than us.

Your visual notes are only meant to help you make sense of the information, so don’t feel like you owe anyone any explanations. If your visuals happen to look good and you feel like sharing them - what a bonus!

Visual Notetaking is meant to be fun!

Having Visual Note-taking as my profession, I’m not always able to capture my true associations in the moment. When you do it for a larger audience, you can’t just draw a scene from your favourite film, or reference a family inside joke - you have to tailor your ideas in the moment so that your witty visual metaphors are understandable to everyone!

In personal Visual Note-taking, you can relax - no one will point at your images and tell you it doesn’t make sense, doesn’t look good, or (most awkward of all) is inappropriate or offensive. When practicing Visual Note-taking, you’re not asked to change the connections in your brain, it’s your time to notice them.

You don’t have to know how to draw for Visual Notetaking

"What if I can't draw?" - I get this a lot. Don’t you worry!

If you can draw these three shapes...

The 3 basic shapes of Visual Note-taking

you can draw everything you’ll need!

Sure, it might look slightly cubist in the beginning, but that’s OK! Once you feel comfortable with your basic shapes, you’ll begin to link the pieces and end up with some magic.

Here's an example of a drawing only using the basic shapes!

Learn Visual Notetaking for Professional Use

If you want to take your skills to the next level, you’ll need lots of practice. As you learn visual notetaking, it can become a demanding mental exercise, a mindfulness challenge, and a powerful practice of presence. But if you’re anything like me, it’s also deeply enjoyable.

When you find that sweet spot where the work is challenging yet rewarding, you enter a flow state; and from there, you keep seeking improvement. I haven’t been bored since I became a visual notetaker.

To get there, you need to soothe your inner critic and make friends with them, so you can learn to enjoy visual notetaking as an activity in your own accepting company.

Good Luck!