Smile & Influence

“Smile and the whole world smiles back at you.” Sound familiar?

You may be surprised to learn that psychological research has proven this quote to be true – just seeing a smile (or a frown) will activate the muscles in your face that make that expression, even if we are unconsciously aware of it.

According to a new study, just the act of reading a certain word could have the same effect.

Psychologists Francesco Foroni from VU University Amsterdam and Gün R. Semin from the University of Utrecht conducted two experiments to see if emotion language has an influence on facial muscle activity.

 In the first experiment, a group of students read a series of emotion verbs (e.g., “to smile,” “to cry”) and adjectives (e.g., “funny,” “frustrating”) on a monitor, while the activity of their zygomatic major (the muscle responsible for smiles) and corrugator supercilii (which causes frowns) muscles were measured.

 The results showed that reading action verbs activated the corresponding muscles. For example, “to laugh” resulted in activation of the zygomatic major muscle, but did not cause any response in the muscles responsible for frowning

This news can be good to know when persuasion or influence is needed to help others make a judgment or decision that match your goals.

Also, works wonders for creating that rapport we all need.

Example: You can use action verbs that elicit the smile and that happy emotion in your speech or written material. When a person is feeling happy in that moment you create an anchor and you help to influence the other person or people to join in your…cause, ideas or buy your product.

I also believe you should smile as you speak on the phone. You can feel when a person on the other end is smiling, I know I can.

Smile and enjoy your day! And if you see a person without a smile, share your.

R. Lynn Lane

Lane Resources Inc.

Resources – Psychological Science – http://www.sciencedaily.com/ – Lane Resources Inc.

Never Ending Contribution

Never Ending Contribution

“No one is useless in this world who lightens the burdens for another.” Charles Dickens

We learn by teaching. When we teach others about ourselves and any new insights, we also learn from the teaching process. This is similar to the martial artist teaching his students over and over as he sharpens his own skills.

What are you contributing to this world? We all get the gift of life and some of us use it wisely and others use it up and waste it.

Wisely means to live, learn, grow and then master your life in a way so you are thankful for everything in it. You must live at a level of mastery so you have the ability to contribute to others on your journey. Einstein was asked once, “Why are we here?” He replied, “To serve others…what else could it be?”

In serving others you serve yourself by the universal Law of Reciprocity.

This universal truth along with many others seems to be lost in the frenzy around the book, The Secret. The Law of Reciprocity is the law that states what you give into the Universe is what you will get back.

“Give and it will be given to you” Luke 6:38

The Law of Reciprocation

To some people this idea or principle is outdated and antiquated. The great thing about universal laws is they remain the same through time if you believe them or not. They always remain. And this one is no different. This can also be known as the natural Law of Reciprocation.

As Jesus put it, “You reap what you sow.”

The Law of Reciprocation says that we are always trying to even out the deeds done for us or against us. The great speaker and author Zig Ziglar told me once, “You can have everything you want in life if you help enough other people get what they want.”

Until I understood the Law of Reciprocity I never understood what Zig was saying. I know now that Zig was saying that by helping others you also help yourself. Just by the act of helping others you put into motion the effect of this natural law.

The actions we take, good or bad return to us as a boomerang. Successful people are always doing more than is asked of them. Successful people and successful businesses are always going that extra mile. This is how they control the compensation or the things that boomerang back to them by what they put in. Because this is the Law of Sowing and Reaping, when you take every opportunity that comes your way to help others, you will open the door for others to give you all the help you need.

Quality returns or rewards call for quality contributions. When you contribute the things in life such as honesty, hard work, forgiveness, and being helpful and generous, you will get rewards such as riches and the respect you deserve from other people.

You can enhance your rewards and returns by the way you give of yourself. If you give out of a sense of duty or you give grudgingly you are sowing a bad seed. If you plan to give, give with a friendly spirit.

Give with enthusiasm. The spirit in which you give is always more important than the gift itself. Just the simple act of listening to a person’s problems with an empathetic mind can do wonderful things for the both of you. Another way to enhance the reward is by never letting the right moment of giving pass you by. When that moment has passed it is gone. Even a day, hour or minute later, the moment may have lost its edge. If you plan to give and miss the moment, give anyway, but strive for the best moment.

The great thing about enthusiasm is that if you don’t have it you can cultivate it as a habit very quickly and easily. Just by pretense you can have it. When you wake in the morning just jump out of bed and get the feeling of enthusiasm flowing in you. Be thankful for the life you have and the life you know you can have. Be thankful for the world of events and opportunities that are waiting for you to discover. Be thankful for the ability you have to control your own destiny. Just by having these thoughts and feeling for about 15 to 20 days you will create the habits of enthusiasm.

One last idea on giving. There are countless ways to give and receive. Many ways to Sow and Reap.

The simplest gift of the heart with a giving spirit can be worth more than any amount of money. Money can’t buy you the warm gifts of the heart. Money can buy you a house, but not a home. Money can buy you a companion, but not a marriage. Money can buy a person’s time, but not a friend. Give yourself. It’s the spirit, not the substance.

We live in a world of givers and takers. So many takers complain about how life is unfair and sucks for them without realizing that they are creating an emotional and financial deficit in their own life.

The universe keeps a score card of credits and debits which you create with your actions and thoughts. Imagine a list with credits on the one side and debits on the other. All the credits come from your contributions of emotional investments toward others. All your debits come from the negative emotions you create.

Thinks about all the thoughts, ideas, negative remarks, gossip, complaints and actions you make toward another person or a situation you’re in.

When I say this to a taker they reply, “But life’s not fair.” They’re right! Life’s not fair when a 2-year-old boy is in the burn center with second and third degree burns over 60% of his body after a parent put scalding hot water on him. Life’s not fair when my wife is battling cancer and I watch her go through the pain and sickness.

They’re right! Life’s not fair. But it’s life. We all must deal with what is and do our best to work through it. It’s easy to look for the worst life has to offer. But life pays better returns when we make a conscious choice to give back the best we can.

Action Plan

1. Be grateful for every new day!

2. Find a worthy cause to give to.

3. Always be encouraging and give others hope.

4. Lift others up every chance you can.

From my book/workshop “Never Ending You”

(c) 2009 Lane Resources Inc. R. Lynn Lane “The Warrior of Success”

www.Warriorofsuccess.com