“What do you think if I put my hair up like this?” asked a lady behind the cashier counter. Her colleague, ringing up my purchase, responded playfully, “You’ll still look like you!” I couldn’t help but smile and joined the conversation: “I think you look great!” Both women laughed, clearly in good spirits, and after a little more interaction, the lady with the hair question complimented me, saying, “You have a beautiful smile and lovely teeth.” Then she added something that stuck with me: “We need to say more things like this to each other!”
Another time, I was in a boutique shopping for jeans when a sales assistant approached me, asking if I needed help. I noticed she was wearing exactly the style I was looking for, so I complimented her, “Those jeans look amazing on you! I’m looking for something similar, but they’re always too long for me.” Her face lit up, and she eagerly helped me find the right pair. What started as a simple shopping trip turned into a delightful conversation about more than just fashion. We laughed, shared stories, and by the end, she was beaming. While I’m sure she was happy I made a purchase, I like to think it was the connection we shared during our conversation that put her in such a joyful mood. She even mentioned, several times, how much she wished people would be friendlier and smile more often.
Before I left, she asked if I was from Thailand, explaining that she had fond memories of the friendliness of Thai people and wished that people in Zurich were more like that.
It’s probably true that we Thais smile more than our Swiss counterparts. While I like to think it’s in our DNA to smile often, I also know that for us, smiling is about more than just connection—it’s a way to navigate life, even in difficult moments. Sometimes, we smile out of awkwardness, but those smiles are never meaningless. They signal acknowledgment, a way of saying, “I see you,” and remind us that we all matter.
You see, the last few times I’ve smiled and struck up conversations with strangers—whether with store assistants or someone standing next to me—I’ve walked away with small but meaningful things: discounts, well wishes, or even new friends. These interactions are so simple, yet we often don’t do them enough. I truly believe that if we all made a habit of sharing more smiles and kind words in our daily lives, the impact on our mental well-being would be profound. We’d feel less anxious, more connected, and overall, just a little bit brighter.