WEBVTT - Greet people with a smile

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of I Heart Radio.

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<v Speaker 1>Good Morning. This is Laura, Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast.

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<v Speaker 1>Today's tip is to change the mood of everyone around

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<v Speaker 1>you with a simple strategy greet people with a smile.

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<v Speaker 1>I was reminded of this strategy recently while reading Audrey

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<v Speaker 1>Monkey's book, Happy Campers. Monkey is the director of the

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<v Speaker 1>Gold Arrow Camp in California. The vast majority of children

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<v Speaker 1>love summer camp, and in the book Happy Campers, Monkey

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<v Speaker 1>explores the reasons for this and how it can transfer

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<v Speaker 1>those lessons to normal home and work life. A key

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<v Speaker 1>finding a good camp has a relentlessly positive atmosphere. The

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<v Speaker 1>counselors make every child feel welcome, Positive, pure interactions are encouraged,

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<v Speaker 1>and yes, the focus is on fun activities, but even

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<v Speaker 1>when people are making up their bunk beds, the focus

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<v Speaker 1>is on being upbeat. Not all of life can be

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<v Speaker 1>sunshine and rainbows, but Monkey writes in her book that

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<v Speaker 1>being aware of your moods and making a commitment to

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<v Speaker 1>small positive acts can go a long way. I can

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<v Speaker 1>feel it when I've sucked the fun out of the

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<v Speaker 1>room for my family members because of my own bad mood.

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<v Speaker 1>Monkey writes. Conversely, parents who model positive emotions and interactions

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<v Speaker 1>the majority of the time have kids who do the same.

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<v Speaker 1>It starts with a simple smile, and maybe you're not

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<v Speaker 1>a natural smiler, but Monkey says that's okay. You can

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<v Speaker 1>start the habit by giving your family members a smile

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<v Speaker 1>at four specific times. First when you greet them in

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<v Speaker 1>the morning to start the day, Second, when you greet

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<v Speaker 1>them after school or work, or any time after not

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<v Speaker 1>seeing them for a while. Third, during at least one

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<v Speaker 1>conversation when you're looking them in the eyes, And finally

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<v Speaker 1>at bedtime when you tuck them in to say good night.

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<v Speaker 1>Four smiles a day is not that tough. I'd add

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<v Speaker 1>that you can do this with other people in your

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<v Speaker 1>life too. If you're ordering coffee or showing your bus

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<v Speaker 1>pass to someone every morning, be sure to smile as

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<v Speaker 1>you're doing so. Any regulars on your commute can be greeted. Similarly,

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<v Speaker 1>the receptionist or security guard at your office deserves a

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<v Speaker 1>big smile rather than that hunkered down, pained look some

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<v Speaker 1>people have as if they're headed into labor in the

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<v Speaker 1>salt mines for the day. Smile as you say hello

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<v Speaker 1>to your colleagues smile when you pay for your lunch

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<v Speaker 1>in the cafeteria. You don't actually have to be in

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<v Speaker 1>a good mood. This is a two second investment in

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<v Speaker 1>limiting the extent of whatever personal rain cloud is following

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<v Speaker 1>you around. And you know what, there's always the chance

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<v Speaker 1>that that two seconds smile will improve your mood too.

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<v Speaker 1>There's some interesting research finding that when people are asked

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<v Speaker 1>to hold a pen or a pop stick in their

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<v Speaker 1>mouths in a way that forces their lips into a smile,

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<v Speaker 1>they actually do feel better. And since a smile costs

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<v Speaker 1>absolutely nothing, there's really no downside to giving it a try.

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<v Speaker 1>So how will you make sure you give your force

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<v Speaker 1>smiles today? More is better, but I'm pretty sure you

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<v Speaker 1>can manage four in the meantime. This is Laura. Thanks

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<v Speaker 1>for listening, and here's to making the most of our time. Hey, everybody,

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<v Speaker 1>I'd love to hear from you. You can send me

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<v Speaker 1>your tips, your questions, or anything else. Just connect with

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<v Speaker 1>me on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram at Before Breakfast Pod

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<v Speaker 1>that's b E the number four then breakfast p o D.

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<v Speaker 1>You can also shoot me an email at Before Breakfast

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<v Speaker 1>podcast at iHeart media dot com That Before Breakfast is

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<v Speaker 1>spelled out with all the letters. Thanks so much, Should

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<v Speaker 1>I look forward to staying in touch. Before Breakfast is

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<v Speaker 1>a production of I heart Radio. For more podcasts from

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<v Speaker 1>I heart Radio, visit the i heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts,

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