Have you ever seen images of art galleries from the 19th century?

Startling, right?

How can anyone actually see anything amid that visual noise?

Fast-forward a few hundred years, and today we face a similarly crowded visual environment. Fortunately, we’ve learned that leaving space around work can accentuate what’s important.

Let's dig in.

Not really empty

Ever wonder why some designs catch your eye effortlessly? The secret is simpler than you think — it's all about the space you don't use.

It doesn't have to be white — it can be any background color.

The key is that it's unoccupied.

Why does it work?

Negative space is one of the first things designers learn to use and value. There are 3 essential reasons to leave breathing room in your visuals.

⭐️ Clarity

🔺 Empty space makes a design clear and easy to understand. It acts as a visual break, allowing the viewer to process information without feeling overwhelmed. Too much content in a small area makes it difficult to read and comprehend.

🔺 When you leave space — around text blocks, between lines (leading), and around images — you improve readability and draw attention to important elements. This technique is widely used in advertising to make headlines or key messages stand out.

🔺 Empty space creates an intuitive and user-friendly design interface. Clear navigation is crucial for solopreneurs to ensure potential clients or customers can easily find information.

or...

⭐️ Focus

Empty space is a powerful tool for guiding attention to the most critical parts of your design.

🔺 It creates a visual hierarchy and directs the eye towards the focal points. This is particularly useful in visual communication where you want to highlight a product, a call to action, or an important piece of information.

🔺 Empty space balances the visual weight of design elements, preventing clutter and chaos that distract viewers. A well-balanced design ensures the eye moves through the content in a logical and intended sequence.

🔺 Empty space increases understanding. When viewers aren’t bombarded, they can focus and understand the message. This is crucial for solopreneurs who must communicate effectively and quickly.

With shapes of similar size and the negative space broken up evenly, the eye doesn't know where to go.

By designing the space and playing with scale, the eye intuitively knows that the triangle is important and the hero of the image.

⭐️ Aesthetics

Empty space isn’t just functional. It’s a key element of aesthetically pleasing designs. It contributes to the overall look, making designs more attractive and engaging.

🔺 Empty space signals elegance and sophistication, often linked to luxury and high-end brands. It gives designs a clean, sophisticated look that can elevate brand or product value — think Chanel or Prada. For solopreneurs, it can help position our businesses as professional and premium.

🔺 Using empty space can make your visuals look modern and relevant, appealing to a design-savvy audience. Apple is a master at this, using empty space to highlight its products.

🔺 Designs with ample empty space are more visually pleasing and give the viewer a more pleasant experience. For example, Google’s homepage directs all attention to the search bar, making it user-friendly and efficient.

Google’s homepage is some of the most valuable real estate on the web. There’s a reason they haven’t changed its basic layout in years. All that white space creates focus and a modern, relevant style.

Putting empty space to work

It’s easy to incorporate more space into your visuals — for social media, websites, presentations, and other uses. Here are some simple steps to start.

✅ Embrace simplicity.​
​Remove unnecessary elements and prioritize important content.

✅ Use grids and margins.​
​Organize content efficiently and create balanced layouts with ample space.

✅ Experiment boldly.​
​Leave large areas of your design empty for a striking impact.

✅ Plan intentionally.​
​Declutter and incorporate empty space right from the start.

✅ Seek feedback and stay informed.​
​Share your designs for input and follow design trends to learn the effective use of empty space.

You can begin experimenting today. I hope you’ll see how this simple change can create better visuals that speak volumes with empty space.

❤️ My favorite visual delights

Here are this week’s gems from around the Web to help you build visibility, credibility, and authority:

✍️ 10 Ways I Turn What I Know Into Uniquely Valuable Content
​Josh Spector helps experts turn expertise into content so they can grow their companies. If you've been stuck trying to figure out what to write about to build your visibility and authority, this article will point the way.

🏆 How to Do Great Work by Paul Graham​
About a year ago, Graham (a well-known Silicon Valley entrepreneur, programmer, VC, and founder of the Y Combinator startup accelerator) wrote this long-form essay on the “recipe” for doing work that makes a difference. Many recommended it, and I finally got around to reading it. Now, you can, too.

🧩 Jigsaw Explorer​
This free online jigsaw puzzle site combines fun with the chance to train your eye on visual detail. Puzzles are based on submitted photographs, with new games daily. You can play solo against the clock or in multiplayer mode, and change the number of pieces from nine to more than a thousand. Players enjoy a satisfying click when pieces fit.

Did you miss these?

Catch up on some recent popular issues of SOLO you may have missed.
​
✅ Is your typeface telling the right story?​

✅ Meet the visual philosophers​

✅ 3 ways to boost your influence​

Want to check out other past issues? Visit the SOLO Newsletter archive.

Thanks again for being a SOLO reader and coming along on this journey of visual exploration.
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If you enjoyed this newsletter, please share it with another solopreneur! And if you received this issue from a friend, I invite you to subscribe.

See you next week,