One Smile Makes the Whole World Happy
What do you wear before leaving the house this morning? A smile is also what you can wear! It’s a universal symbol of “happiness”, no language and no words needed. I decided one day that when I walked outside, I’d smile first at every stranger. I noticed that whether or not someone smiled back, I’d still find it felt good. I couldn’t figured out why, so I dug into science to find the answer.
Endorphins
When you experience happiness, your brain fires endorphins (aka the pain reliever hormone), and signals are sent to your face muscles, triggering a smile. Turns out, it works in reverse too. When you use your smiling muscles, even as a forced, perhaps with a pen, your brain thinks, “Hey, I must be happy!”. Either way, you got your endorphins shot!
It’s Contagious
A good excuse to keep smiling at strangers is that science has found smiling is contagious. Just like yawning, studies show that it’s hard not to smile back when someone smiles at you. Seeing someone smile stimulates the “reward center” of your brain, so it feels like a little treat.
Have you started practicing yet? Grab your mirror.
It’s the Little Things
Science says big rewards such as a promotion, a house ,or Iphone won’t increase your general happiness. In fact, happier people have more frequent, small positive experiences, not a few intense ones. You’re more likely to be happier if lots of little things make you smile throughout the day. Make sure that part of your daily activities include at least one thing that bring you joy to feed that endorphins, or literally, just smile as much as you can throughout the day.
Extra bonus
Smiling doesn’t just fire off endorphins, it sends out serotonin (aka feel balanced hormone) too, an anti-depressesant that helps to reduce anxiety, your blood pressure and heart rate. With these two combined hormones, you’ll naturally feel at ease and balanced even on a rough day.
Have I given you enough reason to smile? :)
xxx
