I’ve always been a visual learner. When I draw, I listen better. When I sketch, I remember more. And when I create my own visual narrative of a session or a story, I stay present. That’s what led me to sketchnoting—a practice that transformed the way I capture and process information.
What Is Sketchnoting?
Sketchnoting is a way to take notes that blends text with drawings. It’s not about making art. It’s about using simple visuals to reflect how we understand and connect ideas. The term was coined by Mike Rohde, and it refers to any note-taking that includes diagrams, shapes, icons, and structure drawn by hand. What matters isn’t beauty—it’s clarity and presence. You don’t need to be a designer. You just need a pen, a blank page, and the willingness to slow down your thoughts enough to translate them into visuals.
The beauty of sketchnoting lies in its flexibility. You can sketch a concept map, a metaphor, a visual story, or even just arrange things spatially on the page. It doesn’t follow a single rule. Instead, it gives your brain room to connect pieces of information while your hand gives those connections a shape.
Why It Helps You Learn
When you’re sketchnoting, you’re doing more than capturing information. You’re interpreting it in real time. This active engagement boosts understanding and retention. Drawing forces you to filter: what’s essential, what connects, and how you can symbolize it with a line, a box, or a metaphor. That filtering is the learning.
Sketchnoting also builds a personal archive of meaning. When I review my notes, it’s not just text—it’s a visual map back to the moment I captured it. I remember more not because I copied every word, but because I processed what I heard.
The practice changes the way you show up in meetings, talks, or workshops. You’re no longer passively listening. You’re translating ideas as they come, and giving them shape. This makes you a better listener and a more focused thinker.
Building Your Visual Vocabulary
Every visual notetaker has a personal library of doodles, shapes, and structures. This isn’t something you’re born with—it’s built over time. You can start with a “visual alphabet” of a few basic shapes: circles, lines, arrows, boxes, stars, blobs. The goal is not to make them pretty, but to make them fast and expressive.
Here’s one of the few moments where bullet points help:
- A triangle can mean growth, conflict, or priority
- A spiral can mean confusion or depth
- A lightning bolt might signal surprise or breakthrough
- A cloud could represent uncertainty or brainstorming
Once you practice assigning meaning to these symbols, you’ll be able to use them instantly without thinking. That’s when the flow begins.
Structuring the Page
The hardest part for beginners is not the drawing—it’s the layout. Without structure, your page quickly turns into a mess. That’s why I teach people to decide on the layout before the pen hits the paper.
There are many ways to organize your page. You might start with a mind map if the talk is broad and branching. Or use a timeline when the session follows a clear sequence. A metaphor—like a mountain, iceberg, or road—can anchor abstract ideas in something visual. It doesn’t have to be literal. It just needs to help you frame the story the speaker is telling.
I often sketch using a layout I call “presentation mining.” I set anchor points for main ideas and let branches grow organically from there. That way, I’m never stuck figuring out where the next idea fits—it already has a place.
Tying It Together
After the ideas are on the page, use visual structure to group and connect them. This is the second and last section where bullets actually help:
- Use blobs or boxes to contain related ideas
- Draw arrows between cause and effect
- Add color to separate themes or speakers
- Use numbering to show steps or priorities
These small touches turn chaos into clarity. They guide the eye across the page, and help you remember not just what was said, but how the ideas were connected.
How To Practice
Start small. Listen to a 5-minute podcast or watch a short video. Before you hit play, decide how you’ll lay things out. Will you use a column, a circle, a metaphor? As you listen, sketch only the key concepts—not every word. Use your visual alphabet. Let go of perfection.
Here’s a simple challenge to try:
Sketch a 10-minute TED Talk. Use a central title, draw at least 3 key concepts, include one visual metaphor, and connect everything using arrows or containers.
It might feel clumsy at first. But with repetition, you’ll build fluency. And more importantly, you’ll start enjoying the process of listening visually.
Sketchnoting as a Way of Thinking
When I teach others how to sketchnote, I’m not teaching art. I’m teaching a mindset. It’s a way of staying present, of owning what you hear, and of making meaning visible—not just for yourself, but sometimes for the group.
Sketchnoting makes you a better facilitator, a better learner, and in many cases, a better thinker. It shifts note-taking from something you have to do to something you want to do. Something that leaves a trace.
If you’re curious to learn more, here are the slides I use when teaching sketchnoting:
Or better: bring your notebook to the next session and let’s sketch together.