Quit Wasting your Smiles

Are your smiles fake?

You know exactly what I'm talking about - a fake smile.

We've all shared one.

Please don't get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with spreading a smile; they are warm, inviting, and contagious; however, if you find you are sharing more fake smiles than genuine ones, this passage might be food for your thoughts.

I'm sharing this because I have not only preached this to myself but have personally pondered many times.

An example: one morning while in a coffee shop I exchanged a smile with a stranger, to then glance over my shoulder and notice a frown immediately take over their expression. First thought: was their smile real? Even more so, was mine?

Why do we do this?

I have yet to meet a person who enjoys wasting things, or even more so, enjoys fake things. So why waste or even fake a smile??

Sharing a smile shouldn't be a question, but a quest.

A quest of gratitude.

A smile shouldn't be shared just for someone else's happiness, but our own too. A shared smile from our own hearts to others.

Humbly deserved - alive and felt - way beyond the "warm smile" repeat.

Here are a few things I personally brought to fruition to cure this fake smile epidemic.

1. Don't waste your smile.

Allow me to clarify. I'm not saying to stop sharing a warm smile - but more importantly, stop sharing the smiles that lack your authentic, charming, storytelling YOU!

Why share the smile if it's not you in the first place? Own it - take a hold of it - and spread it like glitter! Just make sure to mix in the warmth.

2. Take ahold of your smile.

You have power and control over the energy you put out. Yes, you might have woke up late, spilled coffee all over the place, paid a bill late, had a bicker with your spouse - your children, recently lost a friend, put on the wrong socks, wearing your jeans for the fourth day in a row, and so on...but damn it, take hold of your smiles! The people you greet don't know what kind of day you had just had or the life you've lived, just as much as you don't know theirs - so share a genuine smile. I bet you'll feel so much better afterward knowing you CAN and you WILL be in control of that energetic smile. The energy you bring is the energy that follows. Just imagine it with a one of kind smile.

3. Pray over your smile.

You're probably replaying this over in your mind right now. Yes, pray over your smiles. Here's why. Allow God to use that gorgeous, radiating, smile to brighten someone else's day. Allow Him to fill up your smile with all the blessings in your life and pour that onto someone else. Just imagine looking at someone in a coffee shop and seeing them smile from the time they walked in, to the time they walked out. Authentic. Real. Not just a quick, swoop smile exchange.

4. Speak your smiles into existence.

You've got that right! Speak life into your smiles - be proud of your smiles! Take ahold of all that amazing, crazy, ugly, silly, confusing, and sometimes "perfect" bits of your life and mold that into your one of kind smile! Your smile is a representation of you. Let your smile take shape and shine. Allow its personalized beauty to pour over and lift another.

A smile really can brighten someone's day.

Let your smile be confident, not just carried out. You've got this!

Remember this about your smile: Don't waste, take ahold, pray over, and speak life.