By Roz Jones
This month, we’re discussing how you can have better conversations by utilizing different social skills, or “tools”. As a caregiver, your chance for having deep conversations can be more limited than the average person – and I want to help you make the most of the opportunities you have for connection and deeper conversations, whether that’s with your loved ones, or with a stranger in a doctor’s office.
Let’s talk about one simple gesture that is important in every conversation and encounter you have: Smiling.
Don’t underestimate the power of smiling. A warm smile is your best friend when it comes to starting a conversation. It’s the most important non-verbal cue you can give someone.
Marianne LaFrance, a Yale University psychology professor writes in her book Lip Service that a smile creates a subconscious emotional current in people who see it.
Smiles can be interpreted in a variety of ways such as friendly, mischievous, or as flirtatious. But the most preferred smile is the classic “Duchenne” smile. Named after the researcher who described it, the Duchenne smile involves moving the major muscle that pulls the corners of the mouth up in combination with the muscles that circle the eyes.
This more genuine-feeling smile stimulates the reward centers in the brains of people who see it. When you smile this way, people see you as friendly, intelligent, kind, sincere, attractive, and likable – which is a great way to start off in a conversation.
I’ve just launched Shop With Roz, my online store filled with supplies and gifts for every caregiver. You can find a wide variety of products in the store to help yourself and your loved one. Check it out here!
After you have a look through the store, see any products you use and love as a caregiver, and think we should share them with everyone? Let me know!
It’s here, I am so excited to share a new caregiver app called CircleOf….This app will allow you to surround yourself with resources and experts from your community including ME!!!! As you are looking through the app, you will see my familiar face. I’m excited about this partnership and new ways to support you as you support your loved one. Here’s the link so you can explore the app. I would love your feedback and spread the word by sharing the link to family and friends.
Visit http://www.rozjonesent.com for more information on addressing mental health as a caregiver and check out my upcoming book!
The Caregiver Cafe 