If you are stuck somewhere waiting, with a pen in hand, chances are you will begin to doodle. Many think that doodles are meaningless. On the contrary, doodles can unlock great insight into yourself and those around you.

“Doodling is like the brain’s DNA,” forensic examiner Andrea McNichols said.

Here is a guide to what your doodles may say about you.

Hearts: The person who doodles hearts has one thing on his or her mind, and it’s not hard to guess. Usually the person desires love. The person may be daydreaming about their crush or just simply in love with the idea of being in love.

“I remember drawing hearts on the back of my notebook whenever I had a crush in elementary school,” freshman Amalie Moreno said.

Arrows: Determined people with a specific goal in mind will subconsciously “aim” at his or her “target.” The type of arrow drawn can determine the type of goal the person has. If the arrow is sharp and angular, the target can be very important to the person. If it’s more fluid and decorated, the doodler feels passionate about their goal.

Eyes: This is somebody who feels he or she has to have eyes on all sides of his or her head. They want to be on the lookout 24/7 for trouble. However, if the eye drawn is girly and has very long eyelashes, then it is a reflection of vanity.

Names: This indicates the person has difficulty with his or her self-image. If you are writing someone else’s name, you might have a certain obsession with this individual or they are simply on your mind.

Scratches: Aimless lines and scratches mean that a person feels as though he or she is directionless. The same goes for random geometric shapes with no particular shape or pattern.

We tend to doodle when we are bored or stressed, and because of this we are only half-conscious. Consequently, our inner preoccupations are reflected on the paper. Next time you doodle on a piece of paper, be aware that you are telling the world what is going on deep in your mind.