Tapping Into Cannabis Creativity Like My Leaders

Tapping into success: creativity and cannabusiness

 

Steve Jobs, Abraham Lincoln, Carl Sagan, Stephen Jay Gould, Bob Marley, Thomas Jefferson…

All of these famous people shared something in common. Not only were they very successful in their individual endeavors, but they also were extremely creative and had what it takes to grab the world’s attention as they accomplished the various achievements we’ve come to remember them for today.

 

But do you know what else they shared in common? Every one of these men were avid Cannabis enjoyers. It should come as no surprise that the most successful businesses are also the most advanced in both creative advertising and product design. In fact, they are the most known about as we venture through our lives with billboards and commercials advertising the newest inventions that will “improve” our lives. But which ones stand out the most? Which commercial can you reflect back on and remember laughing about as the product enters your thoughts? Maybe an advertisement made you pause and take a good look as you recognized its clever appeal. Perhaps it was the product itself that caught your attention — something that caused you to think, “Wow! That’s a great idea!”

All of these ingenious ways to grab your attention stem from the act of being creative. Creativity is the vision that drives us to do something new and fresh, the motivation that arises from intelligence and recognition of an idea that calls for a singular solution or invention. And that’s exactly what creative business advertising must do: earn a person or company respect while grabbing people’s attention to expand knowledge about a product or service in order to grow a solid customer base. Look around you. Many of the things you see that are manmade came from the creative thinking of someone. And the best part is that Cannabis may be able to help in providing the creative innovation every business desires.

First, let’s look at creativity and how it comes to fruition. Many people might assume creativity can only come from individuals who have a wild imagination, but the fact is anyone can be creative. It’s a matter of biology and chemistry. When a creative mind is at work, there are increased levels of dopamine flowing in the person’s brain. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter that plays a role in regulating attention, cognition, and pleasure as well as a few other physiological traits. It is often referred to as the “pleasure” or “motivation” neurotransmitter. With increased levels of dopamine in the brain, it is able to generate more synaptic connections between neurons (more links firing between brain cells). That means more thought patterns, more connections, more divergent thinking, more epiphanies, and more eureka moments. For what is creativity other than untypical thoughts that cease to run parallel with other similar ideas?

According to a case report titled, “Cannabis Induced Dopamine Release: An In-Vivo SPECT Study,” with Lakshmi Voruganti from the University of Western Ontario’s Departments of Psychiatry and Nuclear Medicine, the findings state that “Cannabis use results in increased synaptic dopamine activity,” as well as “…THC might additionally exert its effects by directly influencing synaptic plasticity.” In other words, Cannabis use increases thought flow. It has the ability to induce divergent thinking through mediating the dopamine levels a brain needs to not only experience the “pleasure” effects, but the creative effects that accompany it.

In a study led by Rebecca Kuepper, who works for the Department of Psychiatry and Psychology at the Maastricht University Medical Centre in the Netherlands, her findings indicated that “THC has been shown to affect endocannabiniod neurotransmission and much evidence indicates that eCBs are key components in the regulation of dopamine neurotransmission.” So, Cannabis affects endocannabiniods that affect dopamine — a domino effect of biological and chemical functions once THC is introduced to the brain that has the possibility to lead to that creative kick many individuals need to jumpstart a great idea.

For each of you ganjapreneurs out there risking your life’s savings, credit score, and reputation as you venture into the world of economic discovery, remember that the key to success lies in the innovative efforts put into your product, service, and advertising. Linkedln defines innovation concisely as “the development of new customer value through solutions that meet new needs, unarticulated, or old customer and market needs in new ways.”

Take Apple, for example. The company has been in the computer market since the 1970s and is still one of the top leaders in technology sales today. Consistently they have found the right innovation to succeed through the years by creating new products ranging from the Apple 1 to the iPad. Facing a continuously growing and diverse market, they’ve been able to stay ahead of the game by using their creative edge in developing technology that nearly every family in America keeps in their households.

Products such as Kit Kat or Reese’s candy bars have changed little since the 1920s, yet they are still being gobbled up by the millions each year in America. Do they need innovation for something that has already been perfected? Absolutely! Their employees come up with new and exciting ways to advertise their product each year, giving it the spark that continues to create revenue.

As far as the Cannabis industry goes, the possibilities are endless. Not only can one use Cannabis to induce creative thinking, but as we explored in the June issue of Sativa Magazine, the uses for hemp are endless. Already it is used to make fabrics, food, body-care products, paper, textiles, rope, fuel, building materials and plastic alternatives. But as we shall explore further at a later point in time, the hemp industry today is just a small fraction of what it could be. Opportunity is knocking, but whether we answer or allow them to wither away in our thick web of bureaucracy remains to be seen. The educated ganjapreneur whose honed their business skills and can tap into their creative side to develop innovative offerings will fuel the green rush. The industry awaits innovators to bring hemp products into the mainstream consciousness, to transform the industry from a small side show to a major driver of the American economy.