why is it that i never really know what i'm doing?

i went to school. got the 27k in debt to prove it. they taught me all kindsa nifty stuff.

and yet, what do i do when an 8 year old pees on the floor in a stream from the self checks to the kids computers? (and just how big is an 8 year old's bladder anyway?) what do i do when a man with garlic and steak breath professes his undying love to me. again. for the 3rd time today.

this is a chronicle of what i did, when the crazy happened. which, in a public library is much more often than you'd think. and which, they also don't teach you about in liberry skool.

oh, and there's also a book review or two.

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

what virus would you spread?

Thoughts on the Happiness Advantage part 2

Remember how we are biologically wired to mimic the emotions of others? Following that premise, did you know that we literally 'infect' those around us with our feelings?


A recent scientific study on positive psychology put three strangers in a room together. The result was that the most verbal of the three would literally 'infect' the other two with their current emotional state. Regardless of whether it was a negative or positive emotional state. Usually within 2 minutes.

How long do you think our average customer interaction lasts? I'm probably not going out on a limb when I guess that it is less than 5 minutes.

So, that old adage, "you reap what you sew" is really true. If you 'sew' positivity, you will reap it. All around you and further than you can see.

That same study posited that we each, by extension, have the ability to 'infect' up to 1,000 people.

Think about it. Your positive interaction with a customer causes them to smile at the grocery clerk, which sends him home to his kid in a good mood who carries it to his best friend. Every time you have a positive interaction with your daughter, she, in turn, carries it to her girl scout troop leader who takes it home to her husband.

So, what kind of 'virus' will you spread today? I hope it will be a positive one:)

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