beginner_guide
How to Actually Track What's Working
6 min read
Most "I tried it and it worked" stories are placebo. Most "I tried it and felt nothing" stories are signal too small to notice without measurement. Here is the simplest protocol that actually identifies effects.
The Four Scales
Daily, score 1–10: - Focus / sustained attention - Mood - Energy / drive - Sleep quality (from the previous night)
Add a one-line notes field: what you took, when, what you ate.
The 4-Week Protocol
Week 1: baseline. Take nothing new. Record daily.
Weeks 2–3: introduce one new substance at a recommended dose. Hold everything else constant.
Week 4: stop the new substance. Continue recording.
Compare the averages of week 1 + 4 (no substance) vs weeks 2–3 (substance). A meaningful effect shows up as ≥1.5 point shift on at least one scale.
What Doesn't Work
Adding three things at once. Now you have no idea what to credit.
Tracking only on "good days." Selection bias erases signal.
Asking how you feel right now. Nootropic effects are about distributions, not moments.
Tools
Our Daily Tracker tool (free) saves entries locally with a sparkline. Pen and paper works fine too. The discipline matters more than the medium.