One thing school accidentally teaches us is that absurd ideas are bad ideas.

When you're a child, that's not how you think.

A fish can fly.

A tree can grow upside down.

A cloud can have a door.

Nobody cares if it makes sense.

Then we grow up.

And little by little, we start filtering our ideas before they even have a chance to develop.

The funny thing is that many creative ideas begin exactly this way.

They begin as something absurd.

Something that doesn't make sense yet.

Something that feels slightly ridiculous.

The problem isn't that we don't have creative ideas.

The problem is that we often reject them too early.

So here's a small challenge for yourself:

The next time you have an absurd idea...

Don't kill it immediately.

Stay with it for a few minutes.

See where it takes you.

You might be surprised.

Thank you!
Dario Paniagua
Visual Thinkers Coach

School taught me to look for the right answer.

Creativity starts when you stop looking for it.

Think about most school exams.

The goal is simple:

Find the correct answer as quickly as possible.

Now think about creating something original.

A visual metaphor.

A story.

An illustration.

A new workshop.

A business idea.

Suddenly, searching for the "correct" answer becomes a problem.

Because originality rarely arrives looking correct.

In fact, the first interesting idea is often the one that feels strange, uncomfortable, or slightly ridiculous.

Many people tell me:
"I can't come up with original ideas."

What I usually see is something different.

They come up with unusual ideas.

Then reject them too quickly.

Not because they are bad.

Because they don't look right.

School didn't teach me this:
The fastest way to find an original idea is often to stop searching for the correct one.


Thank you 

Dario Paniagua
Visual Thinkers Coach

In visual thinking, a metaphor is more than decoration. It’s a bridge between abstract ideas and concrete images, a way to help people see meaning instead of just reading or hearing it. When done well, a visual metaphor transforms a complex concept into an image that feels both intuitive and surprising.

But what exactly makes a metaphor visual, and how can you create one that actually works?

Icon vs. Metaphor: What’s the Real Difference?

An icon shows what something is. A metaphor shows what something means.

If you draw a light bulb to represent an idea, that’s an icon. It refers directly to a known symbol. But if you draw an elephant whose trunk forms the shape of a lightbulb, you're not just talking about "ideas" anymore. You are adding layers of meaning and weaving a story around it.

This doesn’t mean icons don’t work. It’s just better to use icons for explanations and metaphors for stories.

And remember: it’s better to have a story to look through life than an explanatio...

Another way to make it easier to create metaphors using the out of context technique is by combining it with another approach: blending.

Imagine placing a roller coaster in an unexpected setting, on someone’s head. 

Instead of simply placing it on top, we blend it into the head so that the integration feels more seamless and natural.

Now, let’s take a moment to appreciate how powerful the out of context technique really is. In this case, it helps us visually express a person’s thoughts or emotional state. 

We are transferring the qualities of the out-of-context element to the object or person it’s applied to.
Speaking of which…
What keyword or short phrase would you associate with this image?

Thank you,
Dario Paniagua
Visual Thinkers Coach

Another way to create metaphors using the out of context technique is by dressing the subject of an image in a completely absurd way for the situation they’re in.

This immediately grabs the viewer’s attention.

Remember, we can never predict what meaning our audience will assign to an image, but we can anticipate what questions they will ask. In this case, they’ll likely wonder: Why is a medieval knight surfing a wave?

We don’t know what meaning they’ll give it, but one thing is certain, they’ll create a mini story in their minds to make sense of the absurdity.

Thank you,
Dario Paniagua
Visual Thinkers Coach

Another way to create metaphors using the out of context technique is through substitution. 

Instead of changing the setting where we typically see an object, we replace one element with another.

For the substitution to work, there needs to be a connection between both elements.

In this case, the snake takes the place of an ear, but also adopts its shape.

In fact, the form and position of the object we use as a substitute play a crucial role. We see a snake, but we also see an ear, even though the ear isn’t actually there.

When you use substitution, you're taking things out of context while adding a new layer of meaning.

What keyword or short phrase would you associate with this metaphor?

Thank you!
,
Dario Paniagua
Visual Thinkers Coach

The 'out of context' technique allows us to create surreal situations. 

Sometimes, to place an element out of context, we can play with exaggerating its size, making something absurdly large or unusually small and then placing it in an improbable setting.

In this case, the bird on the power lines is disproportionately tiny compared to the woman using her dental floss.

Another detail to notice: here, the 'out of context'  is also based on the 'blending or joining' technique. The wire where the bird is sitting is also the floss the woman is using. A single element becomes two things at once.

Now, what does this absurd scene mean? Whatever you want it to mean.

When we don’t assign captions to our images, we leave space for the audience to create their own interpretations.

What does this metaphor mean to you? Can you describe it in a single word or a short phrase?

Thank you,
Dario Paniagua
Visual Thinkers Coach

Have you noticed the musical note inside the hole of the guitar?

Most people miss it. Why? Because no one spends too much time examining our images. 

Attention spans are shorter than ever, and what isn’t noticed in the first few seconds often gets overlooked entirely. 

But that’s okay. 

What matters first is having a strong concept that’s immediately understood. 

Once that’s in place, you can add additional details, knowing they’re not crucial for the initial impact.

Now, let’s return to the main image. As you can see, I’m continuing to explore the theme of cages. Here, without altering the object itself, we’ve transformed it into something entirely new.

Who is the person inside the guitar?

Why is the musical note part of their face?

What does it mean for someone to be trapped inside a musical instrument?

If your audience asks even one question while engaging with your image, their attention span increases, and your creation won’t go unnoticed.

This is just one of the many techniques I teach in m...

Are We Slaves to Time?

Have you ever felt trapped by your schedule? By the endless cycle of dates, meetings, weeks, and years that seem to rule our lives? It's a feeling many of us share, and it’s what inspired this visual metaphor.

This image sparks a compelling question: how can we visually communicate the concept of being enslaved by our own time?

Visual metaphors like this one rely on our ability to see everyday objects in new and unexpected ways. They’re powerful tools for storytelling, capable of conveying complex ideas with a single glance. In this case, the calendar, something we associate with organization and productivity, becomes a symbol of confinement.

Turning Objects into Cages

The secret to creating effective visual metaphors lies in observation. Nearly any object can be transformed into a cage if we play with its structure and meaning. Of course, some objects lend themselves to this transformation more naturally than others.

Here are two key tips to help you ex...

When you think you've explored everything, remember not to overlook the small elements.

Usually, we focus on the big picture, but it's the tiny, often unnoticed details that can make the biggest difference in our visual thinking process.

Everything around us is composed of both large and small elements, and by paying attention to these smaller components, we can uncover new perspectives and connections.

Think about it: what if we zoomed in on a tiny detail, making it the centerpiece of our exploration?

By enlarging and magnifying it, we allow ourselves to see things in a new light, opening up possibilities that we might have missed at first glance.

The key here is the power of shapes and connections.

Visual thinking is about relating one thing to another, no matter how different they seem at first.

Once we recognize the underlying connection between shapes, we can find metaphors that relate to seemingly unrelated objects or concepts.

This approach opens up a world of creative oppo...