What Da Vinci Would Do With an iPad.

Imagine giving the one of history's greatest minds modern tools. Here’s how Da Vinci would use an iPad setup to think, create, and build across disciplines.

Photo by Zach Dyson on Unsplash

Imagine giving one of the most creative people in history—Leonardo da Vinci—a modern setup: an iPad, a digital notebook, and internet access.

Sounds wild, right?

Da Vinci lived over 500 years ago, but he was obsessed with learning and building. He wasn’t just an artist—he studied science, anatomy, architecture, and anything else that caught his attention. He kept notebooks full of drawings, inventions, and random thoughts. It was messy—but genius.

In a way, he was doing what a lot of us are trying to do now: combine different skills, stay curious, and create things that matter.

Now imagine if he had an iPad to draw and take notes, and access to the entire internet.

He’d go crazy—in a good way.

In this post, I’m going to break down how Da Vinci would use tools like these today—and more importantly, how you can use them to think better, stay organized, and live more creatively, no matter where you are in the world.

Real talk—this post isn’t just about Da Vinci. It’s about you. Whether you're planning a move, starting a business or just trying to get your ideas in order, this setup can help. Think of it as a system for staying focused and creative—wherever you are in the world.

Let’s get into it.

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🧠 Da Vinci’s Brain—Built to Connect Everything

Photo by Blaz Erzetic on Unsplash

Leonardo da Vinci wasn’t just a painter. He studied science, engineering, anatomy, even weather patterns—all at the same time. What made him different wasn’t just talent. It was how he thought: he connected everything.

He didn’t separate art from science or ideas from action. If something sparked his curiosity, he explored it fully—and then used that knowledge in other areas. That’s how he invented things, solved problems, and created with depth.

The way his brain worked? That’s what we’d call a “modular system” today.

👉 Don’t worry about the term. Just think of it like this: A modular system means building your life and ideas in connected parts that work together, like Lego blocks. It’s not one big overwhelming thing—it’s small, organized pieces that support each other.

Now imagine if Da Vinci had today’s tools:

• An iPad to sketch and draw instantly

• Apple Notes, a digital space where you can organize your thoughts, track your projects, and store ideas—all in one place

His messy notebooks were basically the first version of what we now call a personal operating system—a way to manage learning, creativity, and goals in one spot.

So when people use tools like Notes today, they’re doing what Da Vinci did back then: staying curious, tracking ideas, and building things from scratch.

And the best part? You don’t have to be a genius to think like one. You just need tools—and a system that works for your mind.

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✍️ The iPad—Da Vinci’s Digital Sketchbook

Da Vinci was always sketching.

He drew everything—human bodies, flying machines, water systems, even weird inventions that wouldn’t be possible for hundreds of years. His notebooks were packed with ideas that blended art, science, and engineering. But back then, he had to use paper, ink, and whatever tools he could find.

Now imagine if he had an iPad.

With apps like Procreate and a simple Apple Pencil, he’d go crazy—in the best way. He could:

• Sketch fast and try new ideas without wasting paper

• Zoom in and annotate his anatomy drawings with notes, layers, and colors

• Design machines in 3D, piece by piece, like digital blueprints

• Swipe between projects instantly instead of flipping pages or starting over

The speed and flexibility of a digital sketchbook would 10x his creativity. He’d be able to go from idea → test → edit → build—all in one day.

Da Vinci wouldn’t use tech to replace creativity. He’d use it to unlock more of it.

And that’s the mindset we can use too.
You don’t need to be an artist or engineer to get value from a tool like an iPad. If you’ve got ideas, visions, or concepts in your head—you just need a place to bring them to life, quickly and easily.

The iPad isn’t a toy. In the hands of a curious person, it’s a creative weapon.

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🗂️ Apple Notes — The Quiet Command Center

Photo by Sam Moghadam on Unsplash

If the iPad would’ve been Da Vinci’s sketchbook, Apple Notes would’ve been his command center.

It’s simple. It’s fast. And it works.

Da Vinci used notebooks to track everything—his art, science experiments, observations, and wild ideas. Apple Notes is the modern version of that:
a digital notebook that helps you stay organized without getting overwhelmed.

Here’s how he might’ve used it:

• 🛠️ One folder for inventions, each note tracking versions, sketches, and ideas

• 🎨 Another for art and creative studies—materials, references, style experiments

• 💡 Quick thoughts, questions, and observations—typed out or jotted down on the go

• 🔗 Bonus: linking notes together with tags or pinned folders to spot patterns across projects

• 📝 A running daily log or reflection journal, just to keep his brain clear

He wouldn’t overcomplicate it. He’d use it to think on the move, reflect on his work, and revisit ideas when they needed more time to cook.

And that’s the point—your system doesn’t have to be fancy to be powerful.
Apple Notes is simple, reliable, and always within reach. Just like Da Vinci’s old sketchbooks—but synced to the cloud.

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🔄 Workflow of a Modern Creative

If Da Vinci were alive today, he wouldn’t just rely on talent—he’d build a system to support his curiosity. A rhythm that let him capture ideas, organize them, and keep moving.

Here’s how that might look:

☀️ Morning: Create Freely

Start the day sketching on iPad, taking messy notes, doodling ideas, capturing whatever’s fresh.

🕐 Afternoon: Organize the Chaos

Open Apple Notes, drop in anything worth keeping. Sort it into folders, add tags, clean it up a little.
Start to see connections between ideas.

🌙 Evening: Reflect & Reset

Write a short reflection note: what did I learn today? What stood out? What’s next?
Tag it, save it, and let it simmer overnight.

🤖 Talk to AI

If something’s unclear or needs more depth? Ask AI. Use it like a modern-day Socrates—someone to push your thinking and give you new angles.

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These tools aren’t here to make you look productive.
They’re here to help you stay clear, creative, and consistent—even while living across countries or building your own path.

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🛠️ How to Build Your Own Da Vinci Setup

You don’t need to be a genius to think like Da Vinci.

You just need a setup that helps you capture your ideas, connect the dots, and create without friction.

Here’s how you can build your own version of the “Da Vinci system” using today’s tools:

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🧠 Use Apple Notes for Big Picture Thinking

Notes app can help you see how your ideas relate.
Start with:

• A “Brain Dump” page to throw in random thoughts

• A “Projects” tracker for work, learning, or content

• A simple “Daily Journal” to reflect and spot patterns

You can use templates online, or just build something basic and tweak as you go.

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✍️ Use an iPad for Creative Flow

If you like to draw, sketch, write by hand, or brainstorm visually, an iPad is a game changer.
Apps like:

• Procreate for art

• GoodNotes or Freeform for mind maps

• Notability for handwritten notes and audio

Think of it as your digital sketchbook—a fast, flexible place to test ideas.

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🧪 Treat Your Digital Space Like a Lab

This is the biggest shift: don’t make your system just a place to store info.

Make it a lab—a place to:

• Try things

• Test ideas

• Track what’s working and what’s not

• Review and refine over time

You don’t need a perfect setup on day one.
Just start. Tweak. Add. Simplify.
Make it yours.

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Your brain is already full of potential.
You just need the right setup to help it work like Da Vinci’s.
📲📓🎨

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🎯 Timeless Creativity, Modern Tools

Creativity isn’t locked to a time period.
It’s not about wearing robes or using fancy apps—it’s about how you see the world and what you do with the ideas that come to you.

Leonardo da Vinci didn’t wait for the “perfect setup.” He used what he had—paper, ink, and endless curiosity—to design, question, and create across every field he touched.

Today, we have tools he could only dream of:
🖊️ iPads, 📁 Notes, 🤖 AI, 🌍 the entire internet at our fingertips.

So what’s stopping you?

You don’t need to be a genius.
You just need to stay curious—and start building.

The tools are here. The time is now.
The only question is: What will you create with them?