Coue, Emile: - Émile Coué de la Chataigneraie was a French psychologist and pharmacist who lived from February 26, 1857, to July 2, 1926. He came up with a popular way for psychotherapy and self-improvement based on positive autosuggestion. Coué's family was from the French area of Brittany and had roots in the French nobility, but they didn't have much money. He did very well in school and at first wanted to be an analytical chemist. Coué then chose to become a pharmacist. He went to school for pharmacology and got his degree in 1876. From 1882 to 1910, Coué worked as an apothecary in Troyes, where he quickly found what is now called the placebo effect. He became known for putting his clients at ease by praising how well each medicine worked and leaving a small note of encouragement with each pill.