At the beginning of every week in 2013 I’ll be sharing a different way to get happy for FREE. Being happy doesn’t cost anything except your decision to try. I show you how I got happy that week and hope to inspire you to do the same. Join my Get Happy for FREE challenge, you have nothing to lose and a whole lot of smiles to gain!
Being happy doesn’t cost anything, except your conscious choice to try. Happy is not tied up in money or things. It’s in relationships, experiences and emotions.
If you can trick your brain into thinking you’re happy, guess what, you’ll be the happiest one around!
Sometimes your joy is the source of your smile, but sometimes your smile can be the source of your joy.- Thich Nhat Hanh
This week’s challenge may be my most favorite yet, we are going to SMILE!
We often hear the advice to smile. Even if we don’t feel like smiling on the inside, just forcing a smile can create positive feelings.
In 1989 a psychologist by the name of Robert Zajnoc proved the theory that smiling causes positive emotion. He made his subjects pronounce vowel sounds that forced them to smile, such as saying ‘e.’ According to his research, the facial changes involved in smiling have direct effects on certain brain activities associated with happiness.
What does this mean for us? Fake and force your way to smile at everyone and everything you can this week. We have the power to control our happy meter!
Is someone giving you the stare down? Smile! Is your child having their third meltdown and it’s only 10 am? Smile!
I headed to our local Farmer’s Market this past weekend to get this week’s challenge started right. Farmer’s Market has some of the happiest people I’ve ever seen. Everyone there, from the vendors to the patrons all have one thing in common, they smile A LOT!
Maybe it’s clean eating, maybe it’s pride in their farms and home baked goods, whatever the reason, I wanted to go there.
Week 6:
We are going to smile.
I wanted to start my week smiling big so off I went to Somerville Winter Farmer’s Market.
I was immediately drawn to the Heron Pond Farm stand. The nice folks had big smiles ready to welcome everyone.
I could not leave without picking up some onions! They were just the perfect size.
Upstairs I was greeted by Seta and and Dan’s smiling faces. Seta makes, hands down, the best grape leaves I have ever tasted,(please don’t tell my mother-in-law.) Dan makes organic sourdough bread in his brick oven at home. I would smile too with all that good food around!
Yes, I did take a loaf home with me. Do you see Seta still smiling?
I smiled when I saw this! All I could think of was..Orange Carrot Ginger Juice!
This was a great start to get the smile challenge started. Try your best to smile as much as you can this week! And in the words of my friend and author of Return on Relationship, Ted Rubin,“Give away a smile and it comes right back to you!”
JOIN THE CHALLENGE AND WIN A $5 AMAZON CODE!
- SMILE as much as you can and then come back and tell me about it in the comments by 2/23 11:59 p.m. EST.
- I will pick one winner via random.org from all eligible comments. I’ll announce the next $5 Amazon Code winner in my weekly email that goes out every Sunday. Make sure you are a subscriber or you won’t know you won!
- If you win and are a blogger or want a link to your site or Instagram account mentioned in the newsletter be sure to snap a pic that represents this week’s challenge!
- Tag me on Facebook OR on Instagram with the pic!
- This giveaway is sponsored by me alone. I just enjoy motivating you to get happy!
Other posts in the 52 Ways to Get Happy for FREE Series:
- Week 1: Focus on Relationships
- Week 2: Go Somewhere New
- Week 3: Try a New Food
- Week 4: Spend Time Alone
- Week 5: Write to Someone
- Week 6: Smile
- Week 7: Take a Walk
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5 Dollars for 37 Worth of Product at CVS 2/17-2/23
Hi! I'm Isra, aka The Frugalette. I took my family from fancy to frugal in 3 years, with 3 kids and 1 income, oh and found the meaning of life too! To read more about my fancy life gone frugal, 
Going to a farmer’s market like that one would put a huge smile on my face!
I want to go there – the bread you described sounds delicious, and the falafel. . .oh yum!
I tend to have a half-smile on my face all the time, so people assume I am ‘REALLY’ smiling when I pass on the street, and often get a smile. I actually have to consciously decide to have this half smile on, because my face shows emotion (too) easily – so otherwise, people would think my ‘content’ look is frowny, if that makes sense? I am definitely a smily person though, but I don’t like to show my teeth – so people tell me to smile, when I am. It’s so annoying, and I feel like I don’t look like me in pictures that way.
Sounds like my face! So many times I’ve gotten the “Are you OK?” and I’m totally fine! So I have to make an effort to make sure I’m smiling or just keeping my face looking normal, so people don’t think I’m sad.
I love today’s post.
Just reading it and I did force myself to smile and I could feel the change.
I do like it.
That’s awesome!
Glad you had such fun at the farmer’s market!
Your post has already made me smile! I love how happy and friendly everyone looks at the farmer’s market. I miss going to those badly; we had great ones in Maine and Florida, but the ones here in Kentucky are sadly lacking.
I will have to make a point of smiling extra this week. I’ll let you know how it goes!
(I wouldn’t have been able to pass up a loaf of fresh sourdough, either!)
Aww, so happy I made you smile!
Sometimes just smiling at someone can make their day better. I love your new mission to get happy for FREE.
Thanks Tiffany!
You know, this is one of my goals! Especially the smiling while my kids are tantrumming at the store!! It works wonders on me, at least and since I’m in charge of them, well, that’s all that matters! LOL! I’m going to try this harder this week! Thanks, Isra! (BTW, I’m TOTALLY jealous of your farmer’s market!!)
Gena, you can’t believe the smiling when they have tantrums really works! When it happens outside I feel like it calms down even people around me that I’m OK and everything really is under control. Keep smiling!
I mentioned in a previous comment/post how we have just moved to Ohio from Texas. We had lived in Texas over 9 years, 8 of that in the same town/house. Needless to say, it was a very difficult move for me (I don’t make friends easily)
There are lots of days/times I want to just cry. But I have a son who is also having a hard time with the move. So I force myself to smile. And soon I am thinking of all the good reasons to live here instead of there.
I know all about hard moves. Since I’ve been married we moved away and have never lived anywhere more than a couple years (except here in Boston). I do ‘fake it till I make it!’ No matter how much I don’t feel like smiling, I force myself to and it does make me relax and enjoy things, even for a bit!
I can understand how you feel. We moved a lot when I was a kid & since I got married. I force myself to think positively too. I think being an adult & trying to make friends is the hardest thing ever. But don’t worry! Just get out with your son & have a great time! Friends are sure to follow.
Baby & I smiled at everyone in the grocery store! Made the trip a lot less stressful & resulted in a 10 minute conversation with our cashier! I think we made him feel better though
. We try to smile as much as possible. I think it helps having a cute baby too ! 
Aww how sweet is that! Definitely helps to have a cute baby.
Love this! I made myself smile the whole time I was reading this post.
This week, we went out to celebrate a Jewish holiday known for being particularly joyful. And we even helped others smile with our crazy human ying yang costume– there wasn’t an unsmiling face in sight! You can see the photos at http://shalomsweethome.com/2013/02/23/a-joyful-month-in-a-penitent-season/. Thanks for another great challenge!
Ted Rubin’s ROR is totally awesome and I have found more smiles at the local market than I have in any department stores. I love to smile, but I am sure I can do some more smiling. Yesterday was inventory day at work, which comes with pizza, which comes with seeing lots of people atthe lunch room. Good reason to smile!
I’ve been trying to smile thru the toddler tantrums this week. Talk about a challenge!