Different sensory inputs have different importance to different people. A chef relies heavily on his sense of taste, a musician depends on her sense of hearing, and a masseuse uses her sense of touch more than the average person. A good problem-solver uses all of their senses to find solutions to problems. If you always ignore your sense of smell, you will never invent a solution that uses smell.
When you are exploring some problem, pay attention to all of your senses. For example, if you are designing a new shoe, pay attention to the smell of the leather used in making the shoe. Pay attention to the texture of the fabric. Feel your foot and get a good idea for what a foot feels like. Listen to what sounds the shoe makes. Does it squeak when you walk?
A good way to focus some attention on your other senses is to deprive yourself of the ones you use most often. Wear a blindfold and try to use your remaining senses to think about the problem. You can block out the other senses using similar methods (earplugs to block hearing, for example).
