Sketching: An easy, rewarding hobby

One of my favorite hobbies has always been sketching. Not full-on illustration or painting or even drawing, with its elaborate cross-hatching and attention to detail. Just sitting down with a pad of paper and sketching something, be it a scene or an object or something I can't stop thinking about.

These informal drawings are both fun to create and a great record of your life. Paging back through my old sketchbooks, I am instantly transported back to the time and place when I drew each doodle or casual scrawl.

Sketching is also an excellent lesson in mindfulness. In order to draw something well, you have to really look at it - look with your eyes, not your mind. What you see with your eyes is often (usually) not what you "see" with your mind. The most ordinary objects and circumstances become fascinating, even engrossing when you sit down to sketch them.

When I had a Proper Office Job, I used to carry a small sketchbook to work with me. At lunchtime I would go somewhere and sketch something small while I ate. Sometimes it was an apple or a stray leaf, other times it was the next bench over, or a pigeon that bumbled past. It didn't really matter.

We all loved to draw when we were kids. But somewhere along the line, we lose that love. We become too critical of ourselves, and it costs us a valuable means of expression. You can reconnect with yourself through sketching. No one ever has to see what you sketch - in fact, I urge you to guard your sketchbook's privacy with great vigor - because that's the best way to protect your burgeoning artistic talent. People are all too eager to offer criticism, and this is not the time for it.

Drawing on the Right Side of the Brain is widely recognized as the best resource for people of any skill level who want to improve their skills. But the best way to do it is the simplest: Grab a pen and a sheet of paper, and draw what you see. It's an easy, cheap and incredibly satisfying hobby.

Image courtesy Flickr/Guudmorning!