Doodling is a good use of one's time

I don't think anyone ever told me that a task done absent-mindedly--such as doodling--would benefit me in my career.
Of course, at the time I was doodling, I didn't care much about my future career. The doodle was a distraction, a way to stay awake, a way to look productive when your mind has signed off for the day.
For instance, I spent a lot of time looking at my planner. But I wasn't really organizing my day; I was filling the pages with pen scribbles and sketches in all sorts of colors (this was back when gel pens were popular. Oh, the days before Snapchat).
I am not here to tell you that I am now a famous illustrator (because I'm not), or even a competent sketcher, but that I've discovered that taking the time to draw something often makes work go faster in very tangible ways.

Every time I have to fax a request for supplies down to our Materials Department, I include a sketch

I call this the STAT cat

If there is some sort of theme to go off of, it really helps me pick what to doodle. For Valentine's Day, I drew flowers and hearts and lips. For Christmas, I sketched Santa and Christmas trees.
And for Rodeo time, I sketch anything cowboy.

Rodeo season is almost like an observed holiday in Houston

Beats me whether the people on the other end think it's cute, or if it just makes the request easier to single out, but I get my supplies faster--no really; I compared times with a co-worker and her unembellished fax request, and mine came sooner--and my requests haven't been lost, and they usually send me the right thing.

Especially if I draw a picture of it.