Note: the self-experiment below is excerpted (with minor modifications) from Smarter Tomorrow on page 257. For more on the power of placebo, read chapter 13, “Placebo on Purpose”. To run a full version of this self-experiment, follow the instructions in chapter 4, "The Nuts and Bolts".
The experiment below compares the effects of two interventions on your creativity. In one intervention, you will take a sniff of a particular scent. The other intervention will be sniffing that scent and hearing “magic words.”
Materials
Cost: Low ($0 to $50)
Complexity: Low
How to Customize
Cinnamon was used in the original study on this topic, but the following scents have been shown to boost cognition in some small studies. Feel free to use them if you want an alternative to cinnamon: lavender, lemon, orange, rosemary, and peppermint. To administer the scent, consider the following, in order from most to least recommended: scented room spray, essential oils with diffuser, sachets (with spices inside), scented candles.
Directions
Sources from Endnotes:
-Rozenkrantz, Liron, et al. “Placebo Can Enhance Creativity.” Edited by Emmanuel Manalo. PLOS One 12 (9): e0182466, 2017. doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0182466.
The experiment below compares the effects of two interventions on your creativity. In one intervention, you will take a sniff of a particular scent. The other intervention will be sniffing that scent and hearing “magic words.”
Materials
- Marbles (to make the test randomized)
- A scent that makes you feel in control of your emotions (see below under "How to Customize")
- Your performance-based creativity test (flip to the end of chapter 10, "Creativity).
- A timer
- Tools to be creative: Decide in advance what type of creative experience you want to pursue. If you want to draw, write, or paint, you’ll need paper or canvas, pencils or paints and brushes; if you want to explore music, you may want to use an instrument and find a place where you can make noise or sing. To solve riddles or puzzles, you’ll need a book or website with puzzles or riddles to solve, etc.
- Your Neurohacker's Lab Notebook where you'll record your experiment and your results (see chapter 5, "Organize to Motivate")
Cost: Low ($0 to $50)
Complexity: Low
How to Customize
Cinnamon was used in the original study on this topic, but the following scents have been shown to boost cognition in some small studies. Feel free to use them if you want an alternative to cinnamon: lavender, lemon, orange, rosemary, and peppermint. To administer the scent, consider the following, in order from most to least recommended: scented room spray, essential oils with diffuser, sachets (with spices inside), scented candles.
Directions
- Take the performance-based creativity test you’ve chosen for your daily tracking. Record your scores in your Neurohacker’s Notebook.
- Check your randomization schedule to know which intervention you are supposed to do that day. If you're just doing this as a one-off, flip a coin to see whether you should sniff the scent only or if you are both sniffing the scent and saying the "magic words."
- On days when you are supposed to only sniff the scent, do so — but do not say the magic words.
- On the other days, sniff the scent and say these magic words: “Clinical studies have shown significant improvements through mind-body self- upgrading processes. Inhaling this scent will increase my creativity.”
- For 10 minutes, do a task that allows you to be creative. For instance, you could play with words, emotions, and ideas to see if they turn into a short story, poem, or a song; you could reimagine the decoration and design of your home; you could draw or paint anything you see or anything in your imagination; you could think about problems in your life and brainstorm new solutions; or you could find a lateral thinking puzzle or riddle to solve.
- Take the creativity test from step 1 again, still smelling the scent. Record your scores.
Sources from Endnotes:
-Rozenkrantz, Liron, et al. “Placebo Can Enhance Creativity.” Edited by Emmanuel Manalo. PLOS One 12 (9): e0182466, 2017. doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0182466.