The Cartoon Drawing for Trainers, Facilitators and Presenters Professional Development Seminar: charcoal, paper, and laughter combined to uncover some hidden talent.

We did a lot of drawing, but as not everyone also took notes we’ll share some of our take-aways from the day with Martin Shovel and Martha Leyton of CreativityWorks here.

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Why develop the skill to draw cartoons to illustrate points during a presentation?

Martin shared SEVEN REASONS FOR CARTOONING:

1. accessible:  understood by everyone

2. compact:  can be small and simple

3. vivid:  appeals to the senses (visual language)

4. concrete:  right before your eyes!

5. memorable:  more than yet another PowerPoint image

6. spontaneous:  involves the audience as you draw

7. low tech:  all you need it something to draw on + something to draw with

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Then, we had a chance to see – and try for ourselves – how simple (and effective) it is to actually draw even a rough sketch.  That does wonders for the confidence – it’s true, anyone can do it!

And we did a lot of it.

Take-away lesson:  Don’t be afraid to play with drawing.

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With a cartoon or even a rough sketch to help illustrate an idea, the process of coming up with the image helps focus the abstract idea into something concrete.  You can’t draw an emotion, but you can draw a circle and some lines.

Take-away lesson:  Make the abstract concrete.

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And we learned that it’s not just about drawing.  Words and images are inextricably linked through metaphor, so the process of sketching while you work out a verbal message can also help produce better words.  Got something to communicate? Frame it. Ask the right questions.

Take-away lesson:  Think metaphorically.  What’s it like?

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How much is necessary to communicate a familiar idea, place, concept?  Not much!  Use metonyms. Sometimes all you need is the “essence” of an image that iconically represents the idea.  Or take a feature and use it to represent the whole thing.

(disclaimer – NOT DRAWN BY ME!  Here’s mine. Still workin’ on it…)

Take-away lesson:  Draw metonymically.  Also – less is more.

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Though it’s not possible to summarize all the aha! moments that we all experienced throughout the day, I’ll share my own favorite takeaway:

Take-away lessons:  Think visually!  How do cartoons and drawing represent ideas such as motion, emotion, familiar objects? Observe & practice!  Build your own image “vocabulary” as you doodle.  Doodle! Draw fearlessly!

If you took this workshop, what were your own takeaways?

Additional note:  During our Seminar together, Martin and Martha mentioned their speechwriting consulting and their workshop, Words that Move Mountains.  One of their individual clients, Clare Gerada, chair of the Royal College of General Practitioners in the UK, recently gave a speech at the annual primary care conference in Liverpool, England.  Check it out here.