Staging environment

Thinking in Visual Metaphors

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3 Weeks

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Cohort-based Course

Make your ideas stand out with visual thinking.

Course overview

Level up your communication in 3 weeks with visual metaphors

Stop competing for attention.


Be different and translate your ideas into visuals.


You might be saying...

"Well, that's all well and good, but I can't draw."


Rest assured.

Visual thinking is not about drawing.


The main "draw" (🥁) of visual thinking is communicating ideas in a deep, impactful way.


If you're keen on clarifying your thinking and using the power of metaphors to create content that stands out, you're in the right place.


Join me in this 3 week course to learn the techniques and frameworks I’ve used to attract an engaged international audience of 350,000+ people.


Whether it's for professional upskilling, personal development, or differentiating your writing, Thinking in Visual Metaphors will open up new possibilities to express your ideas.

Who is this course for

01

Aspiring creators eager to grow an organic audience through a unique and marketable skill.

02

Writers who want to stop the scroll and stand out in their niche by attracting audiences to their work.

03

Educators and coaches who want to leverage their expertise for their clients with effective strategies.

By the end of this 3 week course, you'll:

Create your first visual metaphor


Raise your visual I.Q.


Practice strategies to make the abstract visible


Carve out a style unique to your personal brand


Apply visual frameworks to clarify, simplify, and amplify your ideas


Analyze a visual as a creator


Get peer-feedback and meet other visual thinkers


What’s included

PJ Milani

Live sessions

Learn directly from PJ Milani in a real-time, interactive format.

Lifetime access

Go back to course content and recordings whenever you need to.

Community of peers

Stay accountable and share insights with like-minded professionals.

Certificate of completion

Share your new skills with your employer or on LinkedIn.

Maven Guarantee

This course is backed by the Maven Guarantee. Students are eligible for a full refund up until the halfway point of the course.

Course syllabus

87 lessons • 10 projects

Week 1

Jun 30—Jul 6

    Self-Paced Module - Using Figma

    13 items

    Self-Paced Module - Using Procreate & Canva

    9 items

    Module 1: Foundations

    15 items

    Module 2: Introduction to I.C.E. (Intention - Capture - Examine)

    12 items

Week 2

Jul 7—Jul 13

Week 3

Jul 14—Jul 17

Bonus

    Metaphor Mastery Resource Vault

    12 items

    Recommended Stuff

    4 items

    Social Media Tools

    2 items

What students are saying

This was great course! I highly recommend signing up if you've been keen on building out your own system for creating visuals. PJ offers timeless frameworks that work. I also appreciate the fact that PJ is a teacher so you can tell that he really care about the learning process/pedagogy.

Omari 🌱

Cohort 11

Founder

Moore Coaching and Consulting LLC

This course is a real treat! You pamper your creativity while you hang out with PJ and learn a lot ! Don't hesitate and join!

Anne-So

Cohort 11

OBM

Social Bright Revolution

This Visual Metaphors class exceeded my expectations as both an educational and creative experience. PJ brings exceptional teaching expertise to the course, breaking down complex visual storytelling concepts through clear, accessible examples and practical frameworks across the six live sessions. What makes this class special isn't just the curriculum—it's the supportive learning community that emerges. Classmates actively engage with constructive feedback and genuine encouragement, creating an environment where everyone feels comfortable exploring visual communication, regardless of their drawing background. I'd recommend this course to anyone interested in strengthening their visual storytelling abilities. The combination of PJ's structured approach and the collaborative classroom dynamic makes it a truly unique learning experience.

Yiyang

Cohort 11

Staff Product Manager

Stitch Fix

Biggest takeaways are the strategic guidelines to break down complex ideas into a simple, relatable visual to quickly convey single point. This single point allows room for the reader to draw conclusions that are meaningful to them—increasing the capacity to critically think and connect on key topics. PJ's class brings together a phenomenal group of people from around the world that choose to think deeply about visual communication. The peer feedback is instrumental for both the learning process and creating compelling visual metaphors that resonate across broad audiences. I found my people here!

Valerie

Cohort 11

Sr. Instructional Designer

Johns Hopkins University

It’s like learning a new language — but one that’s even more powerful. This class forces you to strip away the fluff and uncover the core message. I’m deeply grateful to PJ for offering it so generously. If I were giving friendly advice, I’d suggest splitting it into two parts — Part 1 and Part 2. It would make good business sense. However, the amount of insight and wisdom he packs into each session is part of the magic. 😄

Sharmin

Cohort 11

Executive Coach (Tech/STEM)

Greenleaf Leadership Coaching

What PJ Milani offers through his course is exceptional. His presence, energy, and integrity are unparalleled. He gives his students a powerful blueprint to reconnect with their creative inner child — the one that may have gone quiet or hidden away. With care and wisdom, he then arms them with the tools to take that child by the hand, bring them out of hiding, and give them a voice. Through the language of visual metaphor, we were invited to express our unique perspectives in imaginative, soul-stirring ways. PJ has masterfully designed this course with clarity, depth, and creativity. His storytelling keeps students engaged and inspired throughout. Speaking through visual metaphor isn't just about intellectual connection — it's about touching hearts and speaking soul-to-soul. And the impact of that kind of connection? Deep, lasting, and profound. I'm so grateful for this experience and the permission it gave me to create from the inside out. PJ attracts an incredible community — diverse, kind, and full of heart. It was truly one of the best decisions I’ve made. He loves to teach, and it shows. He’s exceptional at it. I can’t wait for him to publish a book about his unique style and journey — I’m certain it will awaken the artist in many. Thank you again, PJ.

Sahara 🌳

Cohort 11

...

At a glance:

At a glance:

Week 1: Learn the Rules

Foundations

Week 2: Master the Rules

Frameworks & Practical Strategies

Week 3: Break the Rules

Style & Iteration

Meet your instructor

PJ Milani

PJ Milani

@milanicreative

A teacher by trade, I've made over 400 visuals to grow an organic international audience of 250,000+ followers.


My illustrations have helped authors, speakers, and startup founders communicate their ideas with more clarity and impact to their audiences. My visuals have been used by Adam Grant, Greg McKeown, Sahil Bloom, Justin Welsh, Steven Bartlett and more.


You can usually catch me simplifying complexity through daily visuals on LinkedIn, Instagram, and Twitter.

Who is PJ Milani?

        PJ Milani has a remarkable ability to bring complex concepts to life. His creative visuals are masterful in illustrating and illuminating ideas.
Adam Grant

Adam Grant

#1 New York Times bestselling author of THINK AGAIN
        PJ's visuals have helped bring my social media writing to life in ways that I'd never be able to express on my own. Whenever I have something to say, that my writing can't capture on its own, I turn to PJ to design it. One of the most talented visual designers around.
Justin Welsh

Justin Welsh

The Diversified Solopreneur
        PJ is truly a visual teacher. His ability to capture the essence of a complex, abstract idea and break it down into an engaging, single message is remarkable. His visuals don’t just complement a concept. They elevate it.
Sahil Bloom

Sahil Bloom

Entrepreneur and Author
        PJ never ceased to make me see the world in a different and clearer way through his use of his visuals. It's single-frame storytelling at its best.
Matthew Dicks

Matthew Dicks

Author & Storyteller

What students are making

Akhil Karun (Cohort 7)

Akhil Karun (Cohort 7)

Hanh Bui (Cohort 2)

Hanh Bui (Cohort 2)

Ramya Anand (Cohort 6)

Ramya Anand (Cohort 6)

Course Preview

3-Step process to create a visual metaphor

Course schedule

4-6 hours per week

  • Live Sessions on Mondays & Thursdays

    12pm - 1:30pm Central Standard Time

    CONVERT TO YOUR TIMEZONE

    Interactive and engaging sessions with breakout rooms!


    Each live-session is recorded with forever-access if you miss any or have to leave early (even when the course is completed).

  • BONUS: After Hours Q&A

    (optional) After each live-session

    Get all your questions answered after each live-session.


    After 21 years of teaching, I've learned the most helpful feedback is immediate and timely.

  • Class projects

    2-3 hours per week


        A master of bringing complex topics out of the abstract and into the tangible with simple metaphors. PJ doesn’t just teach lessons, he gets invested in you as a person and wants to see you succeed long after the class is over!
Hannah Wilson

Hannah Wilson

Founder of Quoted Visually
        PJ is not only one of the most inspiring people I've met, with his beautiful visuals, but also an incredibly warm and caring person. End result? His work positively impacts both the heart and mind.
Eric Partaker

Eric Partaker

Author & CEO Coach
        PJ is an incredibly talented visual creator. His visuals are awesome and my audience loves them too!
Alex Weic

Alex Weic

Creator of Alex & Books 
        PJ is one of the best visual storytellers out there. The way he breaks complex topics down with beautiful images is truly inspiring. 
Chris Donnelly

Chris Donnelly

Co-Founder of Lottie and Found
        PJ is exceptionally gifted in communicating visually with clear, concise and unique illustrations. This partnered with his expertise in educating makes him my first recommendation when someone is looking to learn how to visually communicate.
Michael J. Boorman

Michael J. Boorman

Founder of Wisdom Made Easy
        PJ is one of the most creative, consistent, resourceful and innovative visual thinkers. As a visual thinker myself, PJ is a constant source of inspiration; His mash-ups are amazing, and he brilliantly iterates on a concept to create insightful and fun illustrations that make you think.
Roberto Ferraro

Roberto Ferraro

Project Leader & Visual Thinker
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Thinking in Visual Metaphors

Learning is better with cohorts

Learning is better with cohorts

Hands-on learning

You'll get step-by-step instruction and learn by doing through projects and breakout rooms.

Interactive and project-based

Make friends by interacting with other learners and test your ideas with each other in a low-risk environment.

Learn with a cohort of peers

Join a community of like-minded people who want to learn and grow alongside you

TVM Alumni

Anne Jannier (Cohort 6)

Anne Jannier (Cohort 6)

Serena Lin (Cohort 2)

Serena Lin (Cohort 2)

Kaamna Deo (Cohort 8)

Kaamna Deo (Cohort 8)

Frequently Asked Questions

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Thinking in Visual Metaphors