How to Fake it Till You Make It: Smiling

I read in Scott Adams’ book recently that faking a smile can make you feel happier. 

It’s something my mother told me as a kid and something I’ve always done. Which may explain why I’m generally pretty happy.

But it’s weird, right?

Normally we’d expect that feeling happy would cause us to smile. I see something that makes me happy and I smile because I’m happy. 

We’re just like dogs in this sense. My sees a treat in my hand, becomes happy, and then her tail starts wagging.

But what if I wagged her tail for her like I was priming some sort of old, fluffy, water pump?

I haven’t tried it. Mostly because the moment I grab her tail she starts wagging it on her own. And I’m too nice a guy to yell at her to put her in a down mood and then wag her tail like some sadistic weirdo. 

But that’s what happens when I start smiling.

I start to feel better. Even right now while I’m typing this. I fake a smile [because my wine glass is empty] and then I feel better.

I wonder what else I could start faking in order to be that thing?

How can I fake being funny so I can be funnier? 

Can I fake being stronger so I can be fitter?