Posts Tagged ‘goofy’
On this day I paid a visit to our local rural grocery store and hardware store. I don’t know what it is about this grocery store, but it tends to be about the “un-smiliest” place I can think of, short of perhaps a waiting room in a doctor’s office. There is one clerk at this store that will rarely smile at me, nor greet me, and I have been visiting this store for over 15 years! And even the manager can be that same way! I have come very close to confronting the owner on this issue in the past, but I figured that perhaps I was not trying too hard myself (and now I think that indeed that this was the case). At any rate, there were some new, younger, staff working this Saturday afternoon and they also had somber expressions. I put on the smiles at most everyone. One middle aged woman customer kept looking back at me, wondering what I was up to, although I was trying not to look too goofy. But then something kind of neat happened – the clerk broke into a joking mood and several of the employees joined in. Smiles all around! In fact, it was to the point where my father-in-law, who came with me, commented on what “a smiley bunch this was”. My father-in-law, like everyone else, does not know I am conducting this experiment. So I guess this day taught me that
smiles, given away in abundance, can even get un-smiley people to smile back.
In summary, to get a smile, you must often first give a smile. Call it the Smile Back Principle.
Otherwise this day, I visited the local hardware store, which is always filled with smiles. There are at least two very nice, very friendly, joking, fellows working there – I think this always creates a pleasant atmosphere for everyone working and shopping there. I always enjoy visiting this store. Smiles were returned but generally smiles are always returned here so it was difficult to notice any difference.
No big events at the home front. My wife smiled her beautiful smile back at me, as usual. 
On this day, I had an opportunity to interact with two store clerks, an eye doctor, and an eye glasses specialist at Lens Crafters. The first store clerk I encountered seemed somewhat unaffected by any smiling on my part. But then, as I was leaving, she returned a smile to one of her coworkers – maybe a delayed reaction? My eye doctor seemed impervious to just about anything. Smiles, grimaces, jokes, suggestions – nothing seemed to break through to his private world of eyes – I guess that is how it can be with highly focused and trained professionals. The glasses guy – that was another story entirely. He seemed to be waiting for someone to break a smile and break the ice – we joked and laughed a bit about my boring taste in glasses. I told him that if I became rich I would be back for another more stylish pair to wear at speaking engagements!
More interactions with my students revealed that students tend to laugh at your jokes a bit better if you can prime them with some smiles. Perhaps that is why my attempts at jokes in the past fell flat?
Later, I picked up some motor oil at a car parts store. The clerk seemed to be a step ahead of me. He was about the friendliest, most helpful clerk I have ever encountered in such a store! Without a doubt, it would make me want to go back to this store. His smiles were there for each and every customer I am quite sure.
This day started with a few bumps. An upset stomach makes it a bit difficult to smile. I think feeling ill in general might make it difficult to smile. So keep that in mind the next time you visit someone in the hospital. Or if a normally cheerful friend seems a bit off, you might want to inquire as to why and offer your help in any way. But by midday I pulled out of it. Working from home this day I did not have a lot of chances for interaction, but what little opportunity I had showed more positive results. In the evening my sons had a few friends over and I tried my smiling on them – they responded positively by smiling back. These friends of my sons have a dad that smiles a lot (in addition to being a wonderful helper to many people in need), so I guess they are kind of used to this.
In the evening, when my wife pulled in the driveway with my two daughters, I risked blowing my cover (nobody in the family knows about this experiment) and rapped on both my wife’s and older daughter’s car windows and just gave them a big smile. Kind of goofy I know, but they liked being greeted like this. Better than a scowl, huh?
