What's in a Smile?

OK ... so you have a sappy, supposedly inspirational quote. It's just an old wives' tale -- just a silly quip. It doesn't really mean anything. Right? Maybe ... maybe not. Doug Horton says, "Smile, it's free therapy." There just may be something to this!

In psychology, there is a theory entitled the "facial feedback" hypothesis. This hypothesis states that "involuntary facial movements provide sufficient peripheral information to drive emotional experience" (Bernstein, et al., 2000). Davis and Palladino explain that "feedback from facial expression affects emotional expression and behavior" (2000). In simple terms, you may actually be able to improve your mood by simply smiling!

A number of research projects support this hypothesis. One study, conducted by Levenson and Friesen, found that involuntary biological changes similar to those caused by emotions were experienced by participants who were instructed to make certain faces. That is, a person told to make an angry face experienced increased blood flow to the hands and feet, which is also seen in those who are experiencing anger. Participants from another study involving posed faces reported more favorable impressions of other people when they were asked to smile.

Research has also found that when you mimic the face of someone else, it may cause you to feel empathy for the other person (Berstein, et al., 2000). In another research setting, participants were either prevented or encouraged to smile by being instructed how to hold a pencil in their mouths. Those who held a pencil in their teeth and thus were able to smile rated cartoons as funnier than did those who held the pencil in their lips and thus could not smile (Davis & Palladino, 2000).

So what does all of this mean? The next time you are down - the next time you are feeling blue or just plain old blah -- SMILE!! An action as simple as that just may improve your spirits. It is most certainly not a cure-all, but in the struggle with the gloomies, every thing that helps in even a small measure is worth a try! Dame Sybil Hathaway sums it up best, "Smile, damn it !! Smile."

Having trouble forcing a smile? Here are a few suggestions that may help liven things up!

jump on the bed (my personal favorite)
make faces at yourself in the mirror
bake cookies
dance
find a playground and swing on the swingset
find your baby pictures
hug someone you love
take a walk in the rain
watch cartoons you loved as a kid
imitate a well-known comedian - with exaggeration
visit a pet store

Do we know each other? Mistaken identity

Monday morning. Got onto the 7:14am train from Borivali station to Churchgate station.

As always, I am hopeful to find someone that I can smile at or spark a conversation with.

Get on the train and I look around, not very many friendly faces. I resort to taking a power nap instead.

Arriving at Churchgate station, I take a leisurely stroll to my clients office. I make a pitt stop at my local coffee joint on station. Make my order. I look around. There is a woman sitting all by herself. I sit down next to her to wait for my coffee.

The conversation went like this...

[Jason]: "Hey good morning! How are you?"

Her face turned to me in shock. It was like a slow motion movement of the neck turning anti-clockwise. Facing me was this stranger with an absolutely blank and stunned look on her face.

[Stranger]: "uumm.. yeah good. How are you?"

A perplexed expression emerges.

[Jason]: "Yeah good! I struggle with Monday mornings! How was your weekend?"

[Stranger]:.."Yeah good - they are never long enough"

The blank look returns, her head tilts a little.

[Jason]: "By the way, my name is Jason."

I extend my hand out as an invitation for her to shake my hand.

[Stranger]: "hahahaha Oh my god!!! I was thinking, do we know each other?! Did he mistaken me for someone else? That is funny. My name is Tanya. "

She freely expressed the little voice that was going on in her head... Now a smile appears.

[Jason]: "Oh hehehe. That explains why you looked soo shocked!"

.... A conversation starts flowing.
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We often shy away from initiating or taking the first step for fear of what the reaction could be. More often than not, it's the other person that is fearful.

I'm glad that I took a step out of my comfort zone.

The conversation might have or might have not made a difference to her morning but it definitely made a difference to mine.

It is awkward not being able to speak freely and openly. If you ever read this Tanya, you made a difference to my Monday morning and it was really nice being able to be comfortable and create a conversation with a stranger.

about the "[I Smile] coz' [U Smile]" - Conversation Project

It all starts with a conversation and a smile:)

I really enjoy smiling.. and I enjoy seeing other people smile... it also makes my day when other people smile at me!! It's a simple mantra - "[I Smile] coz' [U Smile]". It's a bonus when a stranger and I can spark a [Conversation]!!

What does that mean?

I'm from Mumbai.. and like most large cities.. it can be a little on the "unfriendly" side...

Here is what I envision....

On the 2nd May 2009, the conversation project with the thought [I Smile] coz' [U Smile] - the message and concept of conversation this year will start .. what does this mean? My vision is that all around Mumbai, for is year and more, there will be friendly smiles all around, plenty of "good mornings"/ "how are you?"..(not just to the guy that makes your coffee but STRANGERS!)... just a really welcoming and warm weekend where we all feel related and connected...!

Now if you want to take this on for your city, you are most WELCOME to do so! It would be ultra cool to have a [conversation project- new york] | [conversation project- delhi] | [smile phnom penh] | [smile lahore].... basically any city all around the world...it can be any month in this year...

The ultimate aim of the game is to have a build up and then eventually have an international [conversation] year and this year's topic is "[I Smile] coz' [U Smile]" held from the 2nd May - 2nd December 2009...

As many of us know, 2009 has started with a disaster bang. Imagine a year where the world is united in our acceptance and peacefulness with each other... To accept where our world is, just as it is, and just as it isn't... To accept what we have and what we haven't done... In that moment of acceptance and peace, we can then create something extraordinary as a united world....

At the end of "[I Smile] coz' [U Smile]" - Conversation Project this year, on the Sunday, I would like to invite all the participating cities to hold a conversation concerto - all at the same time...!!! Whether it's 8:10pm in Bangkok, 12:10am Sydney, 10:10am Tokyo... (time to be determined...!)... We are all celebrating the world coming together as 1.

So that's my vision and I'm inviting you to be a part of this ultra cool and exciting global project!

To participate, you can do anything. Whether it be adding this thought to your favourites, sending out the links, taking on "Smiling", saying "Good Morning" and sparking up a conversation "How are you?'.. Do this to 3 strangers everyday online and offline and be surprised with the result!

You can do anything!!!

Even set up a website where people can take a photo of a stranger they just smiled to and then post it instantly online with a google map to indicate where the smiles came from...

The ideas are endless...!