Pen and Paper

Hello, reader! If you don’t own a notebook and a nice pen, please do yourself a favor and stop reading this and go out and buy one. Make it a habit to use it. You’ll soon realize how much easier it is to vet and articulate your design ideas. We can wait…

“Inspiration is everywhere, whether you’re at Denny’s eating breakfast or sitting on the couch watching TV before bed. Constantly thinking of work can lead to stress overload, but that doesn’t mean you can’t enjoy good design in all its forms. Once you learn the art of design, it has a way of influencing your thought process, providing input whenever possible.

Carrying a notebook, or simply keeping one beside your mousepad if you prefer, can help you immediately capture those fleeting bits of inspiration or unique thought processes. If you’re not much of an artist, don’t worry about it. This process doesn’t necessarily lead to detailed drawings. Your notes can be words, doodles, and scribbles of any kind. The point is to have something handy for capturing these ideas as they come. Nothing can match the simplicity and convenience of the good old pen and paper.” — Joshua Johnson