Dear LPG, 

I recently read an article on your pages about the gift of a smile, (►►►) and what I read makes a positive argument for having a gift for a stranger that costs you nothing but being the person that I am with an inquisitive mind; I got wondering about what makes a smile look genuine. 

It is often the first thing that you offer or is offered when you are introduced to someone for the first time, and what the recipient sees is seriously up there with how they are dressed, where they come from and how they talk when it comes to forming that initial assessment.   

I know that I cannot be the only person who has met someone whose smile has left me feeling a little suspicious about the motive that generated it, and while it is difficult to put your finger on the reason why, we have all experienced the person who delivers one that you are not sure about.

It is not about the face that is delivering it. Having an aesthetically beautiful or young face doesn’t guarantee that you get it right. When you see a film where the character’s initial smile is menacing or worrying in some way, while no one can be right every time, it is relatively easy to tell that they are not genuine.   

I could not help but look for an answer to the question once it came up, and I found that the internet has quite a bit to say about how you can differentiate between a fake and a genuine smile. 

It tells that the secret is in how your eyes behave when you deliver one, and having read that got me thinking wearing a Covid facemask should not make any difference, although it is a bit too late to test that theory now.

It occurred to me that it is never too late to learn anything, and perhaps making sure that when you smile at someone, the smile you offer will introduce you as a person offering it genuinely might be something worth investigating. Although, after analysing some of the internet information on the subject, I think that the most critical aspect of how your smile is received has to reflect an open mindset more than anything else. I have come to the conclusion that, if you feel genuine, your smile will be genuine.  

CL, Penge. 

CL share what she has learned on the subject…

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…and LPG adds some information on today’s celebration…

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