1. When you smile at others you send the message that you are at ease with yourself and at ease with other people.
2. In a work situation, a smile says you’re flexible, competent, intelligent and able to cope with challenges.
3. People who smile are also believed to be honest, trustworthy and reliable.
4. A large smile says that you are an open and accepting individual.
5. A genuine smile is one where the skin around your eyes bunches up. This is one of the best ways of winning friends (as it says that you are warm, non-judgmental and approachable.)
6. However, a fake smile (where you smile with your mouth but not your eyes) is a sign that you are suppressing your emotions. A fake smile is usually regarded with suspicion, and causes people to back off and conceal their true self from you.
The human mind is rarely quiet. Questions, ideas, plans seem to pass through our consciousness without much order or purpose sometimes. Knowing how to clear your mind can help with anxiety, depression, and even sleep difficulties.
- Recognize when your mind becomes overloaded. You just can’t stop thinking about something. Usually, it’s something that has negative implications, like being late for work or missing an appointment. When you feel overloaded, try calming your mind.
- Find a quite place where you can be by yourself. You should be able to sit or lay down comfortably. The room should have low lighting or darkness.
- Close your eyes and access the content of your mind. What’s going on in there? The first time you do this, you likely will be surprised by all the stuff you are thinking about. Some of it won’t be connected to other thoughts. This is the buzz of consciousness.
- Try preventing the thoughts from happening. If you are thinking about your doctor’s appointment tomorrow, stop thinking about it. The easiest way to do this is to think about something else. The problem is you might be just replacing one annoying thought with another.
- Recognize when are thinking about not thinking about anything. Once you have inhibited the random thoughts of the day from driving you crazy, you likely will be stuck with something else: Thinking about not thinking. Don’t worry. This is progress! You have to get to this point before you completely calm your mind.
Sometimes we can’t help it and we just can’t keep a secret. Telling a friend or partner’s secret can sometimes just slip out. But, if you’re a good friend or partner, there are a few secrets that you should never tell. Here’s what you should keep locked in the vault once someone has trusted you with it:
· Deep dark secrets about the past. Childhood secrets, troubles someone has been in, etc. should remain under lock and key. It’s not your job to reveal painful secrets about someone’s past. They’re likely trying to move on from it and you spreading it around won’t help.
· Past details of intimate relationships. Intimate details from your partner or friends past relationships aren’t your business to blab. If someone confides dirty details of past relationships you should do your best to keep it quiet. It’s their business and could be potentially harmful if you let it out.
· Someone else’s arguments. If your partner or friend is mad at someone or has an issue with someone and tells you about it, keep quiet. Don’t blab about it and let it potentially get back to the people involved. You’ll only end up making the issue bigger. Let them work it out on their own.
