Yeah, I know what you mean. My buddy Chris dug up his old sketchbook from art school last month. Said flipping through it felt way more real than scrolling through Instagram now, all those dumb ideas they'd trade back then.
My cousin did graphic design too, not art school. His old sketchbook has pages of messy ideas that never made it to his software portfolio. Holding those imperfect drafts feels more genuine than any digital gallery now.