Have you caught yourself scribbling and drawing absent-mindedly? Well, you’ve been doodling.

And psychologists, graphologists and others who’ve analysed doodles have said that often these doodles can carry a great deal of meaning, and reveal the emotional state of the doodler.

So get your samples of doodles and see what they say about you.

Faces

Interpretation partly depends on whether the face represents you or someone else. A genuine ‘smiley’ suggests a happy-go-lucky nature. Beautiful faces are often drawn by girls, some analysts suggesting these are idealised self-portraits. A beautiful face can also indicate a sociable ‘people person’. Conversely, and ugly face can show a dislike of people and a bad temper.

Eyes

It may suggest a frustrated artistic talent. They are sometimes regarded as showing a wish to be desirable. A feeling of being watched might be shown by a staring eyes, or an eye through a keyhole.

Stick figures

Stick figures tend to indicate artistic development being stalled very early. Interpretation depends on the amount of detail, who the figures are, and what they are doing.

Houses

Houses are regarded as representing the home life — a nice, neat house says you are happy at home, while untidy lines, asymetrical shapes or an absence of windows suggests an unhappy home life. Smoke from the chimney represents a welcoming fire, though this is probably culturally linked.

Flowers

Doodles of flowers indicate a gentle personality, a love of nature, sometimes childlike innocence or wistfulness. They represent the feminine, passive aspect of the universe. Some flowers, with a starlike structure, represent the sun/son. Roses with sharp thorns can indicate

betrayal of love.

Geometric shapes

Regular patterns from geometric shapes tend to indicate an organised and efficient mind.

Triangles are a geometrically stable shape but also suggest direction and sense of purpose.

The circle appears in every culture as an archetypal form representative of the eternal whole. With no ending or beginning, it revolves in an eternal cycle and is linked to the sun-disk and the attendant concepts of the yearly cycle, the moon, and the wheel.

The square represents the formal, mathematical, scientific order of the universe. The square represents earthbound matter, and correspondingly, with its two sides delineating a two-dimensional surface, may symbolise the earth or ground, or a field.

Boxes

3-D boxes indicate an ordered mind and love of routine. Often drawn by people with a good sense of spatial relationships. A stack of balanced boxes might indicate great stress — especially if the stack is at risk of toppling.

Ladders

Doodles of ladders may indicate ambition and a desire to succeed, whether it is the corporate ladder you are climbing, or some other personal or professional goal. A firmly-drawn and regular ladder might suggest a firm resolve, while a shaky and uncertain ladder may indicate uncertainty. Got your ladder set against a wall? Perhaps you see obstacles in your way — but you also have the means to surmount them.

Spiritually, the rungs on a ladder represent levels in a hierarchy, and so can symbolise levels of spiritual awareness. A ladder may indicate communication between levels, or ascension to a higher spiritual plane.

Arrows

Arrows represent direction and ambition. Drawn aggressively, they represent a desire for action. Drawn in careful outline, they indicate a desire for progression or advancement, especially if pointing upwards. Arrows traditionally have masculine associations. Drawn with a heart, it becomes cupid’s arrow.

Bricks

A box divided into a brick pattern might suggest an obstacle in your path. Remember it can be scaled with a leg-up or a ladder. Brick walls can suggest a sense of restriction or limitation, or of being figuratively jailed for some imagined or real misdemeanor. There might be unresolved guilt that needs to be addressed.

Celestial bodies

The sun may suggest a sunny, childish disposition. Stars are drawn by ambitious people and may suggest a desire for self-promotion. Little stars indicate optimism, while asymmetrical stars suggest excess energy.

Game boards, mazes

Game grids such as chess and noughts-and-crosses suggest a competitive nature and desire to win — or a love of the game! Mazes can suggest a feeling of being lost with nowhere to turn, being unsure of which direction one ought to take, or may indicate mental disorganisation.

Hearts

You’re in love... generally, hearts are drawn by people in love, but may also indicate a romantic disposition.