This is a reminder that you can make someone’s day with a glance and a smile.  Think about this especially when you are at work and distracted by other things happening in your life.  I happen to look pretty intense when I’m behind my computer screen and concentrating.  It is the same when I’m I listening to someone who is sharing a concern.  It is my natural state of brain processing when I am looking for the right words or suggestions for a client.  I have to remind myself to lighten my face and smile, so they don’t think I’m about to turn into the Incredible Hulk. 

It is easier for me when I’m out running my errands to be thoughtful with my sparkle and smile. I always make it a point to look at the person who is working providing a service to me in eyes and say “hello and thank you.”  If I see a janitor cleaning the bathroom at Target, I make sure to say “thank you for doing what you do.”  I see most people just ignore them.  Who doesn’t love a clean bathroom when they have to go? When I’m at the grocery store, especially when the weather is awful outside, I make sure to tell the stockers, checkers and baggers “thank you for coming in today, so I could get what I needed.”  In Houston, we just survived Hurrican Harvey.  We are still rebuilding. I have a much finer admiration for our service industry employees, health care workers, and businesses.  You really miss them when they are gone.

Here is a challenge for each of you when you are out at a restaurant, the grocery store, the dry cleaners, the barber shop, or wherever you do business.  Look folks in the eye, hold the gaze for a moment, smile and say something to them.  It can be a simple “hello” or “I appreciate you.”  Validate and acknowledge that individual and their work.  This might feel uncomfortable at first for some, but it gets easier with practice.  If you are the one working, consider doing the same for your customers.