The Shortest Distance Between Two People

A smile is a small gesture with a powerful impact. In American culture, we have come to expect likable, approachable people to smile when we meet them.

Pianist/comedian Victor Borge put it another way when he described a smile as “the shortest distance between two people.” Greeting someone with a warm smile is the best way to introduce yourself, and it sets the stage beautifully for any discussion that follows. However, many people think they are smiling when they are barely parting their lips. Check your smile in the mirror. As you step toward it, before you see yourself, put on your best smile. Then look at yourself. Is this person smiling or smirking? Is it really a happy smile or a forced smile? And are your eyes smiling? That is the test of a real smile. If only your lips move, it is not much of a smile. Watch celebrities, politicians, or the hosts on late-night talk shows. The gesture may or may not be genuine, but these people definitely know how to smile.