Scents Can Secretly Boost Your Productivity. Here's How It Works.

Caroline Stern, a Boston-based content creator, has a secret weapon for getting her work done: Escapade Gourmande by Maison Mataha, which she calls the most “beautifully done vanilla.” When she sprays it on, Stern said it makes her feel like “I am ‘that girl’ and like ‘that girl’ is going to be an active participant in her own life and then be productive, because I’m channeling the vibe of that scent.”

When you get “in the zone” for your job or a big meeting, you might have a particular song you play or an outfit you don to feel powerful and focused. But don’t discount the power of scent, too.

There’s a science behind why certain scents can make us work and think better. Scent experts share why and offer their own tips as to how you can find the one that works best for you:

Scents can fire up your brain.

What you smell can affect your mood and ability to do your job well in complex ways.

One reason is simply because we like good smells. “Pleasant smells are associated with better performance, probably through improved mood, whereas unpleasant smells impair performance, most likely due to negative mood,” said Mark Moss, head of the psychology department at Northumbria University, who has researched the effects of scent on mood and cognition.

Another important reason scents can help us work better is because of how they interact with our brain. The olfactory bulb that sits behind the nose and processes what you smell “has projections into more areas of the brain than any other sense organ,” Moss said.

“Aromas are made up of small volatile compounds, and when we inhale these, are passed into the lungs. Here, they cross into the bloodstream and get delivered straight to the brain,” Moss continued. “Because these molecules