Big Thinking Requires a Big Marker
Put down the pen. Seriously, stop doing all your big thinking with pens in your hand or detailed drawing tools. The level of detail we are capable of shapes the level of detail we try and use. Even if that level of detail isn’t to our benefit.
Let me explain.
A few weeks ago, I picked up Rework by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson from Basecamp (previously 37signals). Great book and I highly recommend it. It is a quick read full of insights and ideas.
One of their suggestions is to get real with whatever it is you are trying to explain. They suggest drawing things instead of writing them up.
That had me reflecting on my own planning process. Too often, when it comes time to think big, I grab a pen or my keyboard. Instantly, I start putting words to paper or keystrokes to screen. Inevitably, I wander down rabbit trails of details that eventually have no relevance to the end result. It is too early for that level of detail. When ideas are just getting started, they should be free-form and BIG!
If you don’t get the big ideas right, no amount of detail is going to redeem the value of the idea.
So, change the tools in your hands and watch how it changes the direction of your thinking.
Here is how I did it. A quick trip to Target landed me with a sketch book. The pages are 11x14. I also picked up a big, fat sharpie. Not the little ones with a fine point tip. Nope, the big ones. Sharpie Magnum.
That’s it. Two items and my thinking changed. It cost about $15 in total.
I then sat down with my sketch pad and my big-ass marker and started thinking about the problem at hand. My thoughts didn’t get down into the details of page layouts, subject lines, headings, menus, or colors. I had one color. Black. I had one size. Big. Everything had to be simplified. No words. Just a letter or two. No long prose, just a label here or there.
With this small investment and a tiny little change, my brain let go of the details and I was able to think big picture. Once the big picture is captured and agreed upon, then…and only then, should the details be worried about.
Try it. Change your tools and see how your thinking changes too.
