Life has its way of bringing people down from time to time. People who work long hours, have troubled marriages or suffer from health-related issues have a tendency to become depressed and feel anxious. This can cause them to act or look miserable. Making them smile might just be all that's needed. Regardless if it is a friend, family member, co-worker or police officer, there are several ways to make a person smile.
Step 1
Tell a stupid joke. People love jokes. Even if the joke you tell does not cause them to break out into violent laughter, there is a good chance they will at least crack a smile.
Step 2
Smile at them first. If you were to throw a punch at someone, you can expect to get punched in return. It's more or less a reflexive act, and people react to smiles in the same way. Walk up to someone, smile and expect to get one in return.
Step 3
Make eye contact. Sometimes you do not even need to smile at someone to get a smile in return. Try to just look them right in the eye with a pleasant look on your face.
Step 4
Make a funny face. You can actually practice this in front of a mirror first to hone your skills. Make a few faces and judge yourself on how funny you think they are. Then when you see someone you are trying to make smile, make the face. An easy example of a funny face is lifting one eyebrow up in the air and puckering your lips out.
Step 5
Imitate someone. Find someone who is standing by the person you want to smile. With that person's back turned, imitate his every move but be very animated about it. You can also do this to someone that you might mutually know who has recognizable mannerisms.
Step 6
Sing a song and dance. You do not need to sing a whole tune; just hum a few bars and demonstrate a couple of dance moves. Under normal circumstances, the singing alone will work, but the dancing can be used as an insurance policy. A good example to try out would be singing "Beat It" while doing a very sloppy moonwalk.
Step 7
Give someone a surprise gift. People love to receive gifts and if they had the chance, every day would be their birthday. The gift doesn't have to be extravagant, and it doesn't even need to be serious. It can be a pack of gum, tickets to a movie, a pencil or a pack of baseball cards.
