About

Everyday Concepts is a visual encyclopedia of the ideas, mental models, and frameworks that shape how we think, decide, and communicate. Each concept gets a hand-drawn sketch, a plain-language definition, and notes on where it came from and where you'll spot it in daily life.

How It Started

Everyday Concepts started in graduate school, where I was taking courses in both design and economics at the same time. I kept noticing how much energy went into breaking things down — into frameworks, constructions, mental models — and how the same concepts kept showing up across totally different domains. In my classes, in conversations, in everyday life.

It started as a list. The list became a database. The database grew to pull in ideas from strategy, computing, philosophy, psychology. And at some point I started wondering if I could distill each one into something visual — a quick sketch, like a card you'd flip through — that made the idea easier to remember. So that's what this became.

What's Here

Browse 49 illustrated concepts, each with a hand-drawn sketch, a definition, and notes on where it came from and where it shows up. There's also a reference library of 953 concepts (1002 total) growing alongside — defined and searchable, just waiting for their sketch.

Why Sketches?

A good sketch does something a definition alone can't — it gives you a visual hook to hang the idea on. The drawings are intentionally rough and hand-drawn. Not polished illustrations, just quick visual mnemonics that make each concept stick.

More Everyday Concepts

Beyond the website, Everyday Concepts is expanding into new formats. A related book project is currently in the works, along with a podcast exploring these ideas in conversation. If you're interested in using the hand-drawn sketch illustrations for your own projects — books, presentations, courses, or anything else — feel free to reach out about licensing high-quality versions of the images.

About the Creator

Defined, sketched, and produced by Gabriel Krieshok — an AI and digital transformation leader based in Washington, DC, with a habit of collecting frameworks.

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