5 Surprising Benefits of Learning to Draw

You might think of drawing as an artistic endeavor pursued by a select few who chase dreams of artistic greatness, but it’s actually much more than that. Anyone can draw, especially if they start with a simple training program like this Fundamentals of Drawing Bundle -- available in our store for $39, which is 94% off the cover price.

And once you get started, you’ll reap all kinds of amazing personal benefits from this hobby. Benefits like...

Improved Memory

According to several pretty comprehensive studies, drawing has a large impact on your short and long term memory capacity. In fact, it’s even better than writing, because it requires “seamless integration of semantic, visual, and motor aspects of a memory trace.” So if you struggle to remember the location of your keys or who the actor from that thing is, drawing might be a good way to get in better mental shape.

Better Coordination

Whether you’re moving your pencil in long, slow strokes across the page or doing small, meticulous shading, the act of drawing is always improving the dexterity, mobility, and fine-motor skills in your hands. On top of that are all the ancillary tasks associated with drawing, like molding your soft erasers and tearing paper, which also improves your eye-hand coordination and other basic skills that help you in everyday tasks.

It should go without saying that these benefits are even more important for children. Developing these skills in young minds helps raise their physical ceiling for these skills in later life.

Communication Skills

Because there are no words in drawing, sketching regularly forces you to think up new ways to communicate. Any artist will grow to more thoroughly understand facial expressions, body language, and the simple emotional impact of colors and shapes. The way this impacts communication skills are obvious: since you’ll be more in tune with what facial expressions mean when you draw them, you’ll be more likely to notice them in other people during conversations.

Improved Problem Solving

Doodling, an inherent part of the artistic process, probably helps with your problem-solving skills. The act of putting lines on paper and allowing your brain to free-associate with color and change like that helps you imagine different solutions and perceive your life from different perspectives. All this can help spur the “A-Ha!” moments that allow us to perceive the solutions to life’s most perplexing problems.

Stress Relief

Doodling, or drawing, stimulates blood flow to the front of the brain. Meaning that doodlers relax, forget their problems, and get all the low blood pressure associated with peace and wellbeing. One study found that 75% of people engaged in creating art found that they were more relaxed and peaceful than those who weren’t -- and best of all, it didn’t even matter if they were any good!

If these benefits sound exciting to you, then there’s no reason not to grab your pencil, a scrap of paper and -- if you’re feeling particularly ambitious -- this Fundamentals of Drawing Bundle from the Goalcast store, on sale for just $39. Who knows, this could be the start of your new favorite pastime.