Artificial Smile
or; the masks we wear
from 
JoeUser Forums
JoeUser Forums
Yesterday was a long day at work. (Now, I know that lots of you work a lot harder than me, and I'm not asking for sympathy, it's just part of the story.) I really didn't want to be there, other than the fact that I really needed the cash. As I sat in my teller booth in the unfamiliar branch (I was working for another teller who was sick in the main branch) I floundered. I'm usually an upbeat person, but I was just feeling grouchy.
Now, that's not very conducive to the world of banking.
I sat, looking at the tacky phrases and pictures stuck to the side of the sick girl's computer screen, and mostly just wanted to rip the thing out of the back of the computer, chuck it across the entire lobby, and walk out.
That's just about the time that the customer walked up to my window.
So what did I do? I put on my best smile, greeted them with a “Well hi, how are you doing this wonderful morning?” and waited for their reply. The old man was surly, but I kept my game face on, and proceeded to help him with his transaction, smiling and joking with him the whole time, eventually garnering a smile from the crotchety senior citizen.
He walked away, and my smile melted away. I was in grouchy-ville again. Simple as that – no-one could tell, but I hid my true feelings wonderfully.
That got me to thinking – how often do we walk through our days, or worse, our entire lives, with an artificial smile in place? How often do we cover our true selves and let the mask shine forth in false cheeriness?
Like I said, usually I'm quite cheerful, and thankfully, I'm feeling fine and dandy today, and when I go into work, the smile won't be artificial today. But how could anyone ever tell the difference?
Fun times with a fake smile.
Now, that's not very conducive to the world of banking.
I sat, looking at the tacky phrases and pictures stuck to the side of the sick girl's computer screen, and mostly just wanted to rip the thing out of the back of the computer, chuck it across the entire lobby, and walk out.
That's just about the time that the customer walked up to my window.
So what did I do? I put on my best smile, greeted them with a “Well hi, how are you doing this wonderful morning?” and waited for their reply. The old man was surly, but I kept my game face on, and proceeded to help him with his transaction, smiling and joking with him the whole time, eventually garnering a smile from the crotchety senior citizen.
He walked away, and my smile melted away. I was in grouchy-ville again. Simple as that – no-one could tell, but I hid my true feelings wonderfully.
That got me to thinking – how often do we walk through our days, or worse, our entire lives, with an artificial smile in place? How often do we cover our true selves and let the mask shine forth in false cheeriness?
Like I said, usually I'm quite cheerful, and thankfully, I'm feeling fine and dandy today, and when I go into work, the smile won't be artificial today. But how could anyone ever tell the difference?
Fun times with a fake smile.
