Open Minded Formulating
I was having an Internet conversation about the nature of misleading claims wheas someone accused me of being closed-minded. This came about when I asked for some scientific evidence ofa what was being claimed. As a skeptical scientist you will often have this claim thrown at you even though it is not true. In fact, it is the opposite of true. Skeptical scientists are the most open minded people there are. I would be willing to believe anything if there was sufficient evidence for a position.
So how does this relate to formulating?
Well, when you are formulating you will be presented with lots of information that is supposed to be true. People will present raw material information, your marketing people will tell you “facts” about consumers and you may even hear things in a scientific conference. Much of this material will be wrong. Some will be accidentally misleading but others might be flat out deception. You need to be skeptical of everything lest you fall into the trap of being duped.
Being skeptical enough
Of course you don’t want to go too far and become cynical. You need a healthy level of wide eyed optimism to be a ghost formulator. So here are some tips to be skeptical without becoming cynical.
1. Remain receptive to new ideas.
2. Look for evidence that disputes your beliefs.
3. Conduct blinded experiments
4. Double check claims with independent sources
5. Understand that much of what you know could be wrong
As you advance in your formulating career you will build more and more beliefs about cosmetic science. Don’t get too attached to them and always remain open to the possibility that they are wrong. But always require evidence to change any belief.
