😁 I'm Going To Teach You How To Smile Like The Joker! 🤡

Happy World Smile Day!

Don’t worry, I am not jumping on another woke bandwagon and becoming a hippie! But it really is World Smile Day today, so I may as well use my team’s marketing calendar for a bit of timely content!

If you read to the end, I will have delivered my master plan for smiling 365 days a year, not just today!

If you are wondering, WSD came off the back of the universally known ‘Smiley Face’ that was created in 1963 by the artist Harvey Ball in Massachusetts, USA. (I am not sure how someone can take credit for inventing a smiley face, but Google tells me it’s true, so let’s go with it!).

After what Harvey felt was the loss of meaning and over-commercialisation of his symbol, he decided that dedicating a day each year to acts of kindness to each other was the answer. So, in 1999, WSD was created, and it has taken place on the first Friday of October ever since.

While the purpose of the day is to make other people smile, I want to use this as an opportunity to talk about making yourself smile and happier. After all, if you can’t be happy yourself, how can you be expected to make others happy?

My primary definition of success is personal happiness. It doesn’t matter how much money you have or how many awards you have won; if you aren’t happy most of the time, then you have lost the game of life.

For the purposes of easy writing (I am an investor, not JK Rowling after all!) I am going to merge smiles and happiness into the same idea and context.

Here are some fun facts that we can take some lessons from:

• Happiness is hereditary and is strongly associated with personality traits. People high in extraversion and low in neuroticism are generally happier. (I guess that prompted the expression ‘don’t worry, be happy!’)

• Changing your environment to manifest more positive experiences and better handle negative experiences will amplify the effects of any inherited happiness.

• Finland is the happiest country in the world, and the UK is 17th.

• There is no significant difference between the happiness scores of men and women. (Despite what a few married couples may have to say about that statistic!)

• Happiness correlates with workplace success, and happy employees are more likely to have a higher salary than unhappy employees.

• About half of people will smile back at you if you smile at them.

• Smiling makes a person more approachable.

• Babies are naturally born with the ability to smile.

• Smiling is a stress reliever.

So, what drives our happiness?

• For Gen Z's, it is video games and digital relationships.

• Millennials get their happiness from growing a healthy family.

• Gen X gets it from wealth, security, and their children’s wellbeing.

• Boomers' ability to support their loved ones.

So, what are the key takeaways from this that we can implement to improve our happiness and grow our businesses? (Other than that, moving to Finland could cheer you up!)

• Just like when you smile, 50% of people will smile back; if you do good deeds, they will be repaid in spades. I actually think the reality is that you will be working with a much higher percentage of people than 50%. That stat is based on the global population, so it includes all the dick heads too! As an avid reader of this newsletter, you already know how to select great people to be in your life, so I am sure the reciprocity ratio will be greatly increased with your fantastic selection of relationships! In a similar vein, people usually want to be helpful and good citizens. So, if you need something, then just ask! You will usually be pleasantly surprised by a testimonial, a referral, an introduction, or a piece of advice. Don’t sit there wondering how you are going to get it; open your mouth (with a smile!) and ask!

• Worrying doesn’t help. Worrying makes you unhappy, and worrying makes you stressed. There is simply nothing productive about it. That doesn’t mean you should be careless, unplanned, or disorganised, but when you have done everything right and there is nothing more you can do, worry will not add any value to the process. Most of what we worry about in life doesn’t happen anyway, so spend your time positively working on the things you can control and banish any worry about things you can’t control from your mind.

The definition of happiness has shifted over time from circumstances outside of our control (such as fortune and good luck) to something that can be controlled and actively pursued.

I believe there are two simple words that, when used correctly, will allow you to control and pursue happiness, maximising the smiles in your life.

Yes and No!

YES
Say YES to as many opportunities as you can. Don’t overthink it; don’t pour over the negatives; just go for it. You will learn new things. Have new experiences. Build new relationships. And it’s like a snowball—the snowball of happiness! One great experience often leads to the next. One great relationship usually introduces you to many more. One new learning experience opens your mind to whole new worlds. YES! YES! YES!

NO
But as much as you want to say yes, don’t be afraid to say NO to anything that doesn’t add value and move you forward. Time is wasted with people you don’t really want to spend time with. A job that makes you miserable and teaches you nothing. Negative family members that don’t support your dreams. Say NO!

I have a simple methodology for correctly choosing yes or no when presented with opportunities, requests, and questions. If it isn’t a HELL YEAH!, then it’s a NO. It’s that simple. I have a very open mind, always ready to say YES where I can. But if there is hesitation about the potential greatness of the outcome, I simply say NO and leave my time available for things that are really going to move the happiness dial.

Statistically, 80% of people lay on their deathbed regretting their choice of marital partner, education, and career.

Let’s work on driving that number down!

Use World Smile Day as the kick-start you need to say ‘Yes’ and ‘No’ to the right choices towards your happiness.

This quote emphasises the importance of prioritising what truly matters and avoiding getting caught up in less important tasks.

In business, it highlights the need to focus on high-impact activities rather than getting bogged down by insignificant ones that don't really warrant your time, money, or resources. In life, you should direct your time and energy toward important goals and meaningful experiences rather than getting lost in trivial matters. Prioritise wisely for success and fulfilment; it’ll help you in the long run—forget the small stuff, think bigger and better, time is a very limited resource!

It's not just about the money; it's a wake-up call for society.

Mental health is serious business, and not to be ignored. However nowadays, mental health is often used as an excuse without understanding its true depth. Whilst there are some people who are generally suffering from mental health issues, the rest of us need to realise that we all have shit days - it's normal. Stress is part of life, especially during challenging times, but that is different to anxiety, it’s very different to depression and certainly isn’t a mental health illness.

Misuse of the anxiety and depression cards doesn’t just cost businesses money, it takes necessary resources and attention away from those who genuinely need help.

We need to differentiate between real struggles and times when we're just feeling crap.

Shifting gears to my recent podcast chats, like the one with James Haskell and other inspiring guests, we've delved deep into this topic. We've explored how important it is to have a balanced understanding of mental health—not just showcasing challenges but also encouraging responsible representation, be it in sports, media, business, or everyday life.

Whilst I always share with you as much as I can and answer as many questions as possible via social media and these newsletters, I know a lot of you want MORE!

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I have very limited time slots as I spend most of my time working on my own businesses, but I do enjoy helping others succeed, so take advantage of me while you can!

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