General News
9 November, 2025
Smiles with Sally: the ripple effect of a smile
Join empowerment coach Sally Pymer as she explores the ripple effect of a smile this week. Sally brings to us this in-depth look at the power of smiles every fortnight and how a simple smile, even from a stranger can make the world a better place.
Not even a word was said, but there was already laughter.
A question had been asked of an individual in a group, “What makes you laugh so hard you cry?”, and the most profound response wasn’t the answer.
The respondent’s body opened up, they appeared to relax and they started laughing before responding.
This resulted in a few other members of the group laughing.
Why were they laughing?
Was the respondent laughing just by thinking about what she was going to say?
Were the group members laughing as a stress response, because the respondent was already laughing or because they were thinking about their own moment?
We will never know, but the energy of the room lifted immensely.
Remember, not a word had been spoken yet in response to the question.
After we heard the answer, there were smiles all around the room.
Everyone had a grin from ear to ear and it appeared there were few worries in the world.
When discussing what just happened with the laughing beforehand and the smiles after, many had not been consciously aware.
The laughing and smiling appeared to be contagious, which makes sense.
Smiling is contagious.
When you see a smile, special neurons called mirror neurons fire up in your brain.
It’s almost like when you see a smile, your body thinks it looks like fun so it wants to join in too.
These neurons mimic the action, making you feel like smiling too.
So when you see someone smile, you are likely to smile too, even if they don’t say or do anything else.
Smiling also releases feel-good chemicals like endorphins, making you happier.
That is why the energy in the room the group was in would have lifted so quickly.
One person smiling and releasing feel-good endorphins would make the room seem a little happier so imagine how happy the room would be when everyone releases the feel-good hormone.
It becomes a shared moment of joy and connection.
So if you underestimate the power you have to make a difference, why not smile?
The ripple effect really can make a difference to the mood of those around you.