Why You Need To Stop Smiling So Much

A new study suggest that appearing overtly happy can have a bit of a negative impact on our lives – and, possibly, careers. A research paper from New York University says that people who often appear really excited and jubilant – you know the ones – seem to others a little naïve, among other things. It’s better to just be quite happy. Quite where the line is that determines whether you’re being frustratingly, painfully jovial is difficult to ascertain. How do we know our smiley conversation with a co-worker has crossed over into ‘do please calm down’ territory? And how are we to gauge whether, to counteract this, we’re just being downright moody? Either way, for those who really go hard on the smiling, it’s worth noting the study, which was conducted by New Your University’s Alixandra Barasch, Maurice E Schweitzer, from Wharton School, and the University of Chicago9’s Emma E Levine, came to the conclusion that too much visible elation could potentially prove damaging. They found the happiest were seen to be perhaps superficial – it’s that idea of ‘fakeness’. If you’re OTT on the ‘hey guys!’ thing, people might respond with caution, and even derision. So maybe tone down the “awesome!” comments, and the “omg how was your weekend?” stuff.