At a recent conference, one of the speaker’s told us that smiling at someone fires off synapses in their brain in the same spot that chocolate does. In fact, he said one smile does the same thing to your brain as 2,000 chocolate bars.  I’m not sure he actually had the stats to back this up, but it’s a bit like saying a picture is worth a thousand words.  Somehow, it just seems true.  Perhaps not logically, but instinctively.

At TVG we look for people who smile a lot.  When we’ve violated this rule, it’s been at our own peril.  Of course we want people who are the best at what they do, and first and foremost, they must know how to write.  If they can’t put subject and verb together and have us understand their idea, it’s unlikely they will persuade or be able to inform or educate us or a client or a customer with just their ability to talk to us about it.  A good firm foundation in learning to express yourself will work for you throughout your life.  And, don’t be too wrapped up in what you write.  Be open to the edits of others.  Try to make your writing succinct and to the point.

When we interview for positions at TVG we look for good skills, but also the things you can’t measure, like how often they smile, how friendly they are and how well they are able to laugh at themselves.  And, since most continuing business relationships happen between people who like each other, that becomes very important, indeed.