Pablo Picasso once said, “Art washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life.”

In today's fast-paced world, we are constantly facing changes, uncertainty, and pressure. That can certainly be stressful and lead to mental confusion, even for the most well-adjusted individuals.

There are many ways to cope with these problems, and one of them is drawing.  

Therapy experts say drawing can calm the mind, reduce stress, and improve mental focus. All you need is paper and a pen, and you can find yourself in a world of creative expression where you can forget all your troubles.

Keep reading to find out how drawing can improve your mental focus.

Drawing Improves Your Memory

At the University of Waterloo, experts in the science of memory conducted experiments to better understand how activities such as writing, looking at pictures, listening to lectures, and drawing affect a student's ability to remember information.

They asked students to study lists of common terms—words like truck and pear, for example—and then either write down or illustrate those words. After that, those students remembered 20% of the words they had written down. However,  more than twice as many students—45%—remembered the terms they had drawn. 

This experiment helped establish the benefits of drawing on people's memories. It also showed that the benefits of drawing are not dependent on the student's level of artistic talent, suggesting that this strategy may work for all people, not just those who are able to draw well.

So, if you're ever struggling to remember facts or information, consider drawing it out. 

It Strengthens Connections Between Both Sides of Your Brain 

When you draw, you’re actually strengthening connections between the right and left hemispheres of your brain. This not only helps with problem-solving and creativity but can also lead to improved mental performance overall.

Science proved that the right side of the brain is responsible for creative thinking, while the left is more analytical. When they work together, you are able to come up with innovative solutions to problems and see things from a variety of perspectives.

Drawing also helps activate your visual cortex, the area of the brain responsible for processing visual information. When you draw, you train this area of your brain to become better at processing the information you receive through your vision. In other words, it improves your perception of things.

It Helps You with Strategic Thinking 

Another benefit of drawing is that it teaches you how to think strategically. While drawing, you have to think about what you want to create and how you’re going to do it. That is the core of the strategy.

Drawing requires coming up with a plan, making decisions, and then carrying it out, and this can be applied to many real-life situations.

It Teaches You Creative Problem Solving 

Drawing teaches you how to solve problems in a creative way and how to think outside the box and come up with new ideas. It helps you develop a better understanding of how the world works. Seeing how different elements, like shapes and colors, can be put together to create something new. 

It can help you come up with creative solutions to problems you face in everyday life. For example, if something you already drew doesn’t look how you want it to, you can redesign it. This way of thinking may be applied to real life: If something doesn’t go as planned, you should come up with a new plan.

It Encourages You to Learn New Things

The modern era of advanced technology has made it easy for us to slip into a state of passivity, with activities like watching videos or playing video games being commonplace.

Drawing can be a powerful way of getting back in touch with our creative and imaginative side and becoming more focused and productive.

Engaging in drawing can facilitate active learning and deeper engagement with the world around us. When we are given the opportunity to draw what we see, we can effectively process and understand the information in our own distinct way, which can lead to the discovery of previously unnoticed details and facts. It is very good to have drawing experiences as it may reflect on your other hobbies such as tattooing, however, do not worry if you mess something up, there is a highly efficient process for tattoo lightening, which can easily remove your tattoos.

Final Words 

Taking care of our brains is equally important as taking care of our bodies. Taking some time off to unplug and draw is beneficial not only to our mental health but also to our overall well-being. If you are a beginner at drawing or need some inspiration, click here and check out some great drawing tutorials.

So, the next time you feel stressed or overwhelmed, try taking some time to doodle. You’ll be surprised to see how effective it can be in helping you clear your head and focus better.