The Power of a Smile

I think a smile might be the most undervalued tool we all have.

It costs nothing.
It asks for nothing.
Yet it changes everything. Flashing a smile is the quickest fix I know of for getting in the right mindset.

Smiles are contageous. Have you ever noticed that when you smile at someone, their smile back makes you smile even more? Then someone sees their smile. Before long, you’ve started something you can’t even measure. Joy has a way of building momentum. Kindess becomes visual. And all ignited because of your smile.

What’s even more amazing is what happens inside of you. The smiles you receive back begin to energize your body. Gratitude quietly takes over your heart. The world suddenly feels a little lighter, a little friendlier, a little more hopeful. And maybe that’s because we tend to attract what we’re willing to put into the world.

A smile says, I see you. It says, You’re welcome here. It says, I’m curious about you. I respect you. I care. A smile is attractive…no matter the set of teeth behind it.

And here’s the best part: you don’t even have to feel like smiling at first. Sometimes you have to fake it until you make it.

A forced smile has a funny way of becoming a real smile. Your posture changes. Your breathing softens. Your perspective lifts. Before you know it, the day that felt heavy has started to rise again.

One smile won’t solve every problem. But it might change one conversation. One relationship. One stranger’s day…Or, even your own.

So smile first this week, and fake it til you make it if a needed….because the fake will soon become real. It’s a magical formula available to us all.

mm

ps…This cool dude in this Pic is my friend Conrad. I’ve seen his smile literally change an entire camp of kids before…actually, I see that every summer. Talking to him is like sipping a whiskey…you just start smiling? ? It’s too good. So, either find yourself a Conrad, or be one yourself.