How Adam Savage Organizes His Thoughts  ## Metadata - Author: [[Adam Savage’s Tested]] - Full Title: How Adam Savage Organizes His Thoughts - Category: #articles - Document Note: --- tags: [Assign relevant tags or keywords to the notee to facilitate organization and retrieval. Add a # before each tag. Tags cannot have special characters. Do not use the tag #articles] - #Productivity - #CreativeProcess - #ProjectManagement Author: Adam Savage Source: YouTube (Tested) Reference: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g date created: {{date:YYYY-MM-DD}} {{time:HH:mm}} --- # Title: How Adam Savage Organizes His Thoughts — Multi-Modal Systems for Creative Work ## Table of Contents: - [📝 Summary](#-summary) - [📖 Main Content](#-main-content) - [🧩 Three-Layer System (Mind → Digital → Physical)](#-three-layer-system-mind--digital--physical) - [✏️ Sketching as Cognitive Scaffolding](#️-sketching-as-cognitive-scaffolding) - [💻 Digital Lists, Images, and Research Flow](#-digital-lists-images-and-research-flow) - [📦 Physical Organization & Materials Handling](#-physical-organization--materials-handling) - [🧰 Bonus: Comfort-in-Cosplay Sidebar](#-bonus-comfort-in-cosplay-sidebar) - [⏱️ Timeline Notes (with timestamps)](#️-timeline-notes-with-timestamps) - [📖 References](#-references) - [🗣️ Paraphrase](#-paraphrase) - [📰 Newsletter](#-newsletter) - [✅ Action Items](#-action-items) - [🧪 Hypotheses](#-hypotheses) - [📊 Methodology](#-methodology) - [❓ Questions](#-questions) - [🔮 Future Research](#-future-research) - [💡 Implications](#-implications) - [🧠 Learning Styles Assessment](#-learning-styles-assessment) - [📊 Accessibility Assessment](#-accessibility-assessment) - [🌍 DEIB Assessment](#-deib-assessment) - [✅ Logical validity](#-logical-validity) - [🛡️ DARVO Analysis](#-darvo-analysis) - [🔍 SEO Evaluation (if converted to an article)](#-seo-evaluation-if-converted-to-an-article) - [🎯 Conclusion](#-conclusion) ### References: Include a list of sources consulted and cited in the article. (See [📖 References](#-references)) --- ## 📝 Summary: Adam Savage outlines a **three-layer organizational method**—*mental*, *computer*, and *paper/physical*—and demonstrates how he uses **iterative sketching**, **digital list/image repositories (Evernote, Adobe Bridge)**, and **robust physical storage (trays, clear boxes, and heavy-duty zip bags)** to manage complex creative projects. He illustrates this through the design of an **animatronic puppet** (neck mechanism, motion constraints), emphasizing **revisiting and refining sketches** to “put the entirety of it in [his] body,” and closes with pragmatic tips on **cosplay comfort** and an invitation for **app suggestions**. Start: [0:00](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=0) · Sketching focus: [1:14](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=74) · Iteration benefits: [2:19](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=139) · Digital systems: [4:25](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=265) · Physical storage: [5:35](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=335) · App needs + cosplay sidebar: [6:42](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=402), [7:55](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=475) --- ## 📖 Main Content: ### 🧩 Three-Layer System (Mind → Digital → Physical) Savage coordinates three planes simultaneously: - **Mental**: hold the whole system “in the body” via visualization. - **Paper/Sketchbook**: *think in public on paper*—make options visible, capture dimensions, and iterate. - **Digital**: consolidate **task lists** and **reference images**; export rich, image-heavy PDFs when needed. - **Physical**: stage parts and subassemblies in labeled, stackable containers to preserve context and reduce friction. Intro & framing: [0:04](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=4) · Flow overview: [0:55–1:05](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=55) ### ✏️ Sketching as Cognitive Scaffolding - **Sketch to understand constraints**: draw the *real available space*; plan motion paths (e.g., puppet neck rotation/tilt). [1:14](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=74) - **Iterate on the same page**: revisit, add shading/lines, correct perspective—*iteration unlocks clarity and delight*. [2:19](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=139) - **Institutional knowledge gap**: he “reinvented” a standard solution—sketching helped converge to it. [2:24–2:33](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=144) - **Aesthetic feedback loop**: a sketchbook you love to flip through keeps ideas *top-of-mind*. [3:24](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=204) ### 💻 Digital Lists, Images, and Research Flow - **Evernote**: checkboxes, image-rich notes, export to PDF. [4:25](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=265) - **Adobe Bridge**: browse/surf visual research quickly. [4:52–5:02](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=292) - **Ask for tools**: wants list-making + images + PDF export; open to alternatives. [6:42](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=402) ### 📦 Physical Organization & Materials Handling - **Clear trays/boxes** + **Ziploc (1 gal)** as default unit; recently added **8 mil 16×20″ zip bags** for big parts. [5:35](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=335) - **Why bags**: easy to label, move, and *stack*, keeping sub-projects coherent and accessible. [6:02–6:49](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=362) ### 🧰 Bonus: Comfort-in-Cosplay Sidebar - **Reality check**: discomfort is part of cosplay; mitigate with *vents*, *cooling*, and *sports fabrics* that wick sweat. [7:55](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=475) --- ## ⏱️ Timeline Notes (with timestamps) - **[0:00–0:11](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=0)** · Opening Q: *How do you organize thoughts & prioritize projects?* - **[0:12–0:27](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=12)** · Admits distraction/rabbit holes → honest limits of prioritization. - **[0:31–1:05](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=31)** · Three-tier organization: *mental*, *computer*, *paper*. - **[1:14–2:08](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=74)** · Sketching the animatronic puppet’s neck—mapping space & mechanics; collaboration with Matt Winchell. - **[2:19–2:44](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=139)** · Iterating on the same sketch pages; rediscovering a “standard” mechanical solution through drawing. - **[3:01–3:13](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=181)** · “Go back to the well” → refine sketches for clarity, perspective, shading. - **[3:24–3:58](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=204)** · Aesthetic joy of refined spreads keeps ideas salient (“a sketchbook you want to flip through”). - **[4:08–4:24](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=248)** · Transition to digital: lists + asset gathering. - **[4:25–4:41](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=265)** · Evernote for to-dos + images; long familiarity despite ownership changes. - **[4:52–5:02](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=292)** · Adobe Bridge for visual research surfacing. - **[5:15–5:34](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=315)** · Physical workflows: trays, clear boxes as standard. - **[5:35–6:21](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=335)** · 8 mil 16×20″ bags for large, sharp or heavy components; labeling & stackability benefits. - **[6:42–7:24](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=402)** · Wishlist for apps: checkboxes, image-heavy docs, PDF export; community suggestions invited. - **[7:55–8:15](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=475)** · Cosplay comfort: vents, cooling layers, performance fabrics. - **[8:16–end](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&t=496)** · Join “Tested” membership; community feedback expands stories. --- ## 📖 References: - Savage, A. (Tested). *How Adam Savage Organizes His Thoughts.* YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g --- ## 🗣️ Paraphrase: 1) **On sketch iteration** Original idea: Returning to prior sketches—adding shading, lines, and perspective fixes—deepens understanding and keeps the work vivid. **Paraphrase:** Revisiting old pages to refine details turns a sketchbook into an active thinking tool; the upgrad - Summary: How does Adam Savage organize his thoughts and prioritize his projects? How does Adam make his costumes more comfortable for extended wear? In this live stream excerpt Adam answers these questions from Patrick Benjamin and Alexander Englehart, whom we thank for their support! Do you have a trick or app to organize your thoughts and projects? Join this channel to support Tested and get access to perks, like asking Adam a question: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCiDJtJKMICpb9B1qf7qjEOA/join Subscribe for more videos (and click the bell for notifications): http://www.youtube.com/subscription_center?add_user=testedcom Tested and Adam Savage Ts, stickers, (de) merit badges and more: https://tested-store.com About Tested: https://www.tested.com/about Meet Adam in Person: https://www.tested.com/events TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@testedcom Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/testedcom/ Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/testedcom Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/testedcom Discord: https://www.discord.gg/tested Amazon Storefront: http://www.amazon.com/shop/adamsavagestested Audio Described and Accessible Videos: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLJtitKU0CAeiQLgj4PZ9onSW6YXIz5ADR Intro bumper by Abe Dieckman Thanks for watching! - URL: https://youtube.com/watch?v=C5jMmY0PR_g&si=2ltYpofCWP9vaX-I This is the first question on my listand it's a really fun one to answer.It says, "How do you find the best way toorganize your thoughts and prioritizeyour projects?" Um, I think everyone onmy team will tell you that I am both good and bad about prioritizing myprojects. I get distracted easily andrun down rabbit holes that aren'tnecessarily centrally involved in theproject currently at hand. Um, but you're asking a more specificquestion. Um, I will tell youorganization for me happens on a mentallevel, on a computer, and on a paper level all atonce. Um, so one of the key ways in which Iorganize my thoughts. So I'm going tostart with organizing my thoughts. ThenI'm going to go to organizing theproject. Then I'm going to go toorganizing the physical project. Sofirst comes the thoughts. Um, andI'm going to give you an example becausethe main way I organize my thoughts isby sketching and by physical listmaking. Um, and I've been working onan animatronic grou which we willreveal on the channel in a few months. Uh, and there'll be some stuff aroundThat we're going to play with. Uh,but it is being commissioned. It's awhole thing. But the way I've beenwrapping my head around my part of it isby doing sketches in my sketchbook. AndI just wanted to show you the kind ofsketching. So, uh, the youngdesigner Matt Winchell, who's been doingall the head mechanics for this; he's amazing. I've been taking on everything below the head,so neck to the base of the body of thisanimatronic puppet that's this tall.One of my main things to build wasthe neck, which has turning andmotion. So I sit there with a sketchbook,and I slowly work through options ofhow I'm thinking and starting tounderstand the topography of what spaceit has to fit in. This is literally likea drawing of the physical space and thenwhere it goes. That's the vault. Um,here's some more about the neck splashplate. And then I came around tosomething I kind of liked. And then I actually ended up drawing some ways tohold on to this mechanism and make itThis, which turns out to be a kind of astandard approach to this problem. Ijust reinvented it, um, because I lackedthe institutional knowledge. And then, uhthere's a final drawing of this piecehere. Um, and this is one of the mostimportant things I learned from lookingat artists who use sketchbooks a lot:a lot of my favorite artists go back totheir sketchbooks and they reset onsketches they’ve already done. It’s notlike sketch, move on, sketch, moveon. And I have found a tremendous amountof creative vitality in going back overa sketch. Like this page started out asall very lightweight pencil sketches,but I keep going back to the well. Ikeep going back and adding shading,adding lines, correcting theperspective, making it a little morerefined. And it has multiple effects. Uh, at one level, it really helps mepicture everything. It helps me see thisthing in my head, which is, again, theway I like to describe it: it’s how I putthe entirety of it in my body. Um, thenthere’s the mechanical problem solvingof just looking at the spaces involved.And I know everybody else in the worlddoes this with CAD, and I just stillI haven't gotten there yet. Um, but then there's also thequality of the drawing when it getsreally nice. Like this page, this doublespread really makes me so happy justto go look at it. Um, and a sketchbookthat you want to flip through again isgoing to be a much more usefulsketchbook to you. Those drawings, thosethings are going to stay top of mind.Um, so creatively I find it reallyinvigorating to go back to my drawingsand refine them and make them better,make them brighter, make them moreparsable. Um, usually once I have done a bunch ofsketching, then I'll break out thecomputer to start doing somelists and some gathering of assets. AndI use Evernote for that. I use Evernotefor that even though they've gonethrough, I think they're on their thirdowner. Uh, Jamie and I were hired by EvanEvernote way back in the day, 2012,2011, something like that. Um, so Iactually still have a tiny bit of equityin thatcompany. And I know I need to try adifferent note-taking picturestoring app, but Evernote's where I go. Um, and I'll start dumping lists in thereof to-do lists.Um, and that's also where I throw a lotof images. Uh, and then I also use AdobeBridge, as I've talked about before, as asort of repository for being able tosurf my images. Much of my computerresearch is visually based. Um, and thenthe last part of organizing mythoughts and my projects is the physicalorganization of the pieces. Um, andlook, there's a million ways to storelots of different projects. I have traysgalore. I have clear boxes from theContainer Store galore. I still thinkthat the most useful object for sortingthings in this cave is the Ziploc onegallon storage bag. Thisthing is a masterpiece, and it is almostperfectly sized for many of my projects,not all of them. And that's why Iactually recently was like, "Okay, Ilove the Ziploc sandwich bag so much. Ineed a big bag. And I wantone that's heavy duty. I want it for bigobjects." So, Iwent to Uline and I bought these 18 16by 20 in 8 mil Ziploc bags, and these arephenomenal. I'll just show you one thingHere. This isum, you know, I love a dodo skeleton, and Ifound a printable dodo skeleton online,and there it is. That's an entire dodoskeleton. That's a whole that will belater on. Um, but look at that. This islike they advertised this with apair of hedge clippers, sharp hedgeclippers in there. These arespectacular. Um, plus they're easy tolabel. They are, uh, they are easy to movearound. For me, the ability to be ableto move stuff like a tray is good, butwhen a tray gets like this, it's nolonger a tray. It's like you need a boxfor it because things got to bestackable or at least storable in a waythat you can access. For me,I want to be able to see it all and beable to access it asneeded. Um, I would love suggestions aboutproductivity apps likeEvernote that maybe I should move to.Um, I specifically like making lists. Ilike Evernote's ability to give mecheckboxes. Uh, and I need images. So, Ilike making documents that I couldexport as PDFs with a lot ofpictures in them. Um, I don’t need. Yeah, those are theprimary things I need from that kind ofsoftware. If you have suggestions, Iwould love to hear about it in thecomments. Alexander Angelhart says, "Iwant to thank you for signing mygirlfriend's rescue suit at Emerald CityComic-Con. What do you do to make yourcosplay suits more comfortable forextendedwear? You can make your suits morecomfortable. You can add vents. You canadd cooling. You can cut the backs outof stuff that you’re wearing a jacketon. That’s really clutch. But discomfortis also part and parcel of cosplay, man. You're never getting rid of itentirely. You can do lots of things tomitigate. Um, and in fact, sportsclothing can be awesome at this becausethey have sports clothing thatinsulates. They also have sportsclothing that cools, that wicks, uh,sweat away from your body in a specificway that leads to more cooling. Uh, Ihave worn that under hot costumes andthat hashelped. Thank you guys so much forwatching, and I wanted to briefly mentionthat you could become a tested member. I know everybody is competing for you tobecome a member of their thing.What I want to express to you is thatthe tested membership has become such animportant part of the tested family. Weget tremendous feedback from the testedmembers and they expand the stories thatwe can tell and the things that we haveaccess to. And you can become a part ofit right now by clicking on the linkbelow. See you in the chat., How Adam Savage Organizes His Thoughts, Adam Savage’s Tested, 01k1xqjxmgkmc0vch0pgd5a3cc.