The Just-Right Visual
The Art of Applied Visual Thinking
The official newsletter of
Applied Visual Thinking SUPERHEROES.
Vol. 7 No. 1 January 9, 2026
Three Types of Discipline for Your Visual Practice
Holidays can be a challenging time in our communications, relationships, and vocations, add in our personal expectations, and it can be a lot. Self-care can help you balance all of these. However, not all discipline is created equal.
Last time, we talked about discipline as self-care - keeping promises to yourself. But here's what matters: your visual thinking practice needs different things on different days. Some days, showing up feels like brushing your teeth. Other days, it feels like stretching into something new. Still other days, it feels like coming home after too long away. These aren't moods. They are three types of discipline. And knowing which one you need changes everything.
The Three Types
MAINTENANCE DISCIPLINE -
Your baseline practice. The habits that keep you grounded.
GROWTH DISCIPLINE - The stretching practice. Where you expand your skills to push you outside of your comfort zone.
REPAIR DISCIPLINE -
The returning practice. Reconnecting after you've drifted away.
When you confuse these types, you end up trying to grow when you need to maintain. Or maintaining when you actually need to repair. When you name which type you need, you can:
- Stop judging yourself for needing different things
- Match your expectations to what's actually needed
- Know when to push and when to maintain or repair
How?
MAINTENANCE DISCIPLINE: Keeps the Engine Running
Your baseline practice—the habits that keep your visual thinking practice alive.
What it might look like:
- 10-minute morning visual journal
- One simple idea captured per day
- Keeping tools visible
Why it matters: This keeps you in the game. It's the compound interest of creative practice. Without this, you're always starting over. With it, you're building.
GROWTH DISCIPLINE: Expanding Your Range
The stretching kind—where you deliberately move toward discomfort.
What it might look like:
- Learning a new visual technique
- Tackling more complex visual explanations
- Trying new lettering styles
Why it matters: This is how your practice evolves. But you can't live here all the time.
REPAIR DISCIPLINE: Coming Back Home
The gentle kind—reconnecting after you've been away.
What it might look like:
• Reopening your sketchbook after weeks
• Starting over with basics
• Drawing anything (even "just" doodles)
Why it matters: Life happens. You will fall away. Repair discipline makes your practice sustainable over years, not just weeks. The biggest reason practices fail isn't lack of discipline—it's the shame spiral after falling away. Repair discipline breaks that cycle.
Try This: The Three-Type Check
(2 minutes)
Step 1: Ask yourself these three questions and jot down a few notes:
- How consistent has my baseline practice been?
- When did I last stretch beyond my comfort zone?
- Does my practice need mending?
Step 2: Reflect on the answers to the questions above, what type of discipline feels right for you now, MAINTENANCE, GROWTH, or REPAIR?
For example, if I haven't drawn in weeks, sitting down on January 2nd to sketchnote a complex podcast (GROWTH) is probably a recipe for frustration, leading me to quit again. However, if I start by just doodling while my tea steeps (REPAIR), that will be a gentler step in the right direction.
Step 3: Choose ONE action for this week:
- If MAINTENANCE is where you are: What's one tiny habit you can start this week? (Example: "Draw one icon three ways")
- If GROWTH is what you're craving : What's one small stretch you could do this week? (Example: "Sketchnote a TED talk")
- If REPAIR is where you're drawn: What's one gentle reconnection you could make this week? (Example: "Doodle while watching TV")
Step 4: Write it out. On a sticky note, write out your intention "This week, I'm practicing _____ discipline by _____." and place it somewhere you'll see it often.
Step 5: Draw something. Pick up your pen and dive in. The most caring thing you can do for your visual practice isn't to push harder. It's to know which type of discipline you need right now and to put it into action.
Sometimes self-care looks like maintenance - showing up consistently.
Sometimes it looks like growth - choosing discomfort that builds skills.
Sometimes it looks like repair - coming back with gentleness, not judgment.
All three are valid. All three are discipline. All three are steps in the right direction.
Your Turn
We'd love to hear what you discover. If you try this activity, what do you notice and what works well for you?
QUESTION FOR THIS WEEK: "What if the most disciplined thing I could do is exactly what my visual thinking practice needs now, not what I think I should be doing?"
Sometimes love looks like knowing the difference.
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