{"id":4663,"date":"2017-08-08T00:00:00","date_gmt":"2017-08-08T00:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sasugacommunications.com\/ja\/the-surprising-impact-of-a-smile-on-your-communication\/"},"modified":"2026-02-06T11:02:41","modified_gmt":"2026-02-06T02:02:41","slug":"the-surprising-impact-of-a-smile-on-your-communication","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sasugacommunications.com\/ja\/the-surprising-impact-of-a-smile-on-your-communication\/","title":{"rendered":"The Surprising Impact Of A Smile On Your Communication"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"null\">\u3053\u306e\u30a4\u30f3\u30bf\u30d3\u30e5\u30fc\u3067\u306f\u3001\u30c8\u30e9\u30f3\u30b9\u30d5\u30a9\u30fc\u30e1\u30fc\u30b7\u30e7\u30f3\u30fb\u30ea\u30c8\u30ea\u30fc\u30c8\u30fb\u30aa\u30fc\u30ac\u30ca\u30a4\u30b6\u30fc\u3067\u3042\u308b\u4e2d\u7530\u30b8\u30a7\u30fc\u30f3\u3055\u3093\u306e\u30b3\u30df\u30e5\u30cb\u30b1\u30fc\u30b7\u30e7\u30f3\u306b\u304a\u3051\u308b\u6210\u529f\u3068\u30c1\u30e3\u30ec\u30f3<wbr \/>\u30b8\u3092\u3054\u7d39\u4ecb\u3057\u3066\u3044\u307e\u3059\u3002\u8a18\u4e8b\u306f\u82f1\u8a9e\u3067\u3059\u3002\u305c\u3072\u3054\u89a7\u304f\u3060\u3055\u3044\uff01<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"null\">An Interview With Jayne Nakata, Transformation Retreat Organizer<\/h2>\n<p dir=\"ltr\">If you think your circumstances are holding you back, look for inspiration to Jayne Nakata. For 15 years, New Zealander Jayne has lived with her wonderful Japanese husband in Fukushima, which is still recovering from the 2011 nuclear disaster.<\/p>\n<p>Does living in rural Japan raising two small children hold her back from doing amazing things? Absolutely not.<\/p>\n<p>Jayne runs three businesses. She coaches clients around the world in weight loss via phone and email. She teaches English, including to the okamisan (ladies who run Japanese inns) in the area \u2013 and these often turn into self-development sessions rather than simple language learning! And she organizes transformational retreats for women to take a break from their busy lives, connect with like-minded ladies, and gain a new \u2013 and sometimes redirected \u2013 zest for life.<\/p>\n<p>I \u201cmet\u201d Jayne when I posted in the FEW community asking if anyone wanted to join me in doing\u00a0<span style=\"color: #800080;\"><a style=\"color: #800080;\" href=\"https:\/\/youtu.be\/YRh3bFYbsTQ\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Natalie Sisson\u2019s 10-Day Blog Challenge in 2016<\/a><\/span>.<\/p>\n<p>We both recognize the benefits of stepping out of our comfort zones, so we agreed to record this interview, so that you can listen to the unedited audio.<\/p>\n<p>Unedited Audio<br \/>\n<iframe data-src=\"https:\/\/archive.org\/embed\/JayneNakataFull\" width=\"500\" height=\"30\" frameborder=\"0\" allowfullscreen=\"allowfullscreen\" data-mce-fragment=\"1\" src=\"data:image\/gif;base64,R0lGODlhAQABAAAAACH5BAEKAAEALAAAAAABAAEAAAICTAEAOw==\" class=\"lazyload\" data-load-mode=\"1\"><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p>Or, if you prefer more concise text, read on!<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"null\" dir=\"ltr\"><strong>What kind of communicator do you want to be?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>I want to be someone who leaves people better than I found them. After someone has talked to me, I want them to feel more positive or inspired. Not like they\u2019ve had all their energy sucked out of them. Recently, I\u2019ve been experimenting with the simple act of being positive and smiling when I talk to people.<\/p>\n<p>I make an effort to walk into a room in a positive frame of mind and project that positivity to the people in the room. And I found that it\u2019s been working really well.<\/p>\n<h2 class=\"null\"><strong>Do you ever feel dishonest when you act positive even though you\u2019re upset?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>I\u2019ve always been a negative person until the last couple of years. So I know how it feels to be grumpy and negative. But I realized that often it\u2019s a choice. We can choose if we want to feel positive or negative. So I don\u2019t think that is faking it or being inauthentic; it\u2019s choosing to be positive.<\/p>\n<p>That has a good effect on other people around you. If you choose to be positive, then you\u2019ll feel positive naturally. If you smile even when you don\u2019t feel like smiling, eventually you\u2019ll feel a bit better than you did before. So there\u2019s some science behind it as well. Why not use that? Why mope around if you don\u2019t have to?<\/p>\n<h2><strong>What is a communication success that you have had that you could share?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>I\u2019ve noticed that you can influence people just by your voice depending on whether you talk to them with a smile on your face or not. It\u2019s such as simple thing, but we don\u2019t do it.<\/p>\n<p>My job for a long time was teaching people English by telephone, so I only had my voice to work with. If I called them and I said in a neutral voice, \u201cHi, how are you today? This is Jayne here. Let\u2019s get started with our lesson,\u201d do you think you\u2019d like to take a lesson with me for 20 minutes? No.<\/p>\n<p>But if I call and I enthusiastically say, \u201cHi! It\u2019s Jayne here.\u201d And all I\u2019ve done is go from this neutral facial expression to one with even a forced smile, it just sounds much better. You want to have a lesson with a person that sounds like that, don\u2019t you?<\/p>\n<p>It\u2019s so simple and easy to force yourself to do. Then it just becomes natural. And anybody can do it. You don\u2019t have to practice it. It\u2019s one way that you can be more successful with your communication. Just put a smile on your face even if it\u2019s not a real one to start with. It will really affect how your voice comes across to people. As a result, people will be more willing to listen to you.<\/p>\n<p>It works really well on teleconference calls. Another part of my job was teaching people over the Internet. So they would be looking at my face on this camera. I just had to sit and smile. Otherwise I would not have come across as a very nice teacher, and they wouldn\u2019t have wanted to take my classes. It\u2019s very simple, very easy, and effective.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>What has been your biggest communication failure?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>It\u2019s not one particular time but lots of small moments that I noticed. What was common about those communication failures was that I wasn\u2019t being myself. This is different from putting a smile on my face when I don\u2019t feel like it because I am still being myself when I\u2019m doing that.<\/p>\n<p>Not being myself is using phrases or something I\u2019ve heard from someone else that I thought sounded cool or good. But when I said it, it sounded rude or not funny. So I\u2019ve learned to be more careful and not try to copy other people\u2019s jokes or expressions because that doesn\u2019t always come off well. Sometimes people have been offended and have said so, which surprised me.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>What would you say right now is your biggest communication challenge?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>A lot of what I\u2019m doing right now is working with people via email. I\u2019m trying to get my clients to make some really big changes in their lives, like quitting sugar and giving up stories that don\u2019t suit them. These are very big things to change. So my challenge is how to communicate these things in written form in a way that resonates with them and makes them want to take action.<\/p>\n<p>The challenge is also that sometimes I have to challenge them. Sometimes I have to say, \u201cHey! Perhaps that wasn\u2019t such a good idea. What could we do better next time?\u201d I have to do this in a way that makes them think but still maintains a good relationship. I want to avoid saying something that might make them want to quit, give up, or say \u2018I don\u2019t want to do this anymore\u2019.<\/p>\n<p>That is my major challenge at the moment: how to use words in the written form. I do actually speak to my clients once a week, and I can use my voice to influence them. I think they get a boost from talking to me.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>What do you do to avoid misunderstanding through email?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>I\u2019m still going through the process of learning this job in a sense. So I try to cushion things more than when I\u2019m saying them. When I\u2019m writing emails, I\u2019m imagining this person and sending them positive thoughts and love. I hope that comes through to them when they\u2019re reading it. Because I do know how it feels to be that person who is struggling with emotional eating and being overweight. So it really motivates me to write those emails from that place.<\/p>\n<p>The first time that we really get to know each other is by phone and I think that really helps because after they\u2019ve talked to me, they might think, \u201cOkay, she\u2019s actually really nice, warm, and friendly. This is going to be okay.\u201d So their first interaction with me is not generally over email. It\u2019s over the phone. We get a chance to get to know each other and set up the relationship before we start emailing, which helps build trust.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>What skills, resources, or advice could you offer to our readers and listeners?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>I\u2019m a big fan of Gretchen Rubin, who is the author of many books. My favorite book of hers is called\u00a0<span style=\"color: #800080;\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Better-Than-Before-Habits-Procrastinate\/dp\/0385348630\/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&amp;qid=1502138572&amp;sr=8-1&amp;keywords=better+than+before\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\">Better than Before<\/span><\/a><\/span>. She\u2019s also written another popular one called\u00a0<span style=\"color: #800080;\"><a style=\"color: #800080;\" href=\"https:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Happiness-Project-Revised-Aristotle-Generally\/dp\/0062414852\/ref=pd_sim_14_3?_encoding=UTF8&amp;pd_rd_i=0062414852&amp;pd_rd_r=2D9SH5KGN2YPY4TZHBXR&amp;pd_rd_w=PZn0i&amp;pd_rd_wg=V43T1&amp;psc=1&amp;refRID=2D9SH5KGN2YPY4TZHBXR\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">The Happiness Project<\/a><\/span>.<\/p>\n<p>I\u2019m a big fan because she has come up with a framework called \u2018The Four Tendencies\u2019. This framework can help you understand how people react to information and messages.<\/p>\n<p>So if you know the different kinds of people that you\u2019re talking to, you can mold your<br \/>\nmessage to fit them better. So, in my job with coaching people and helping them with their weight loss issues, I know most of them probably fall under the Obliger tendency, just like me.<\/p>\n<p>They love to do things for other people but cannot do things for themselves. Others are called Questioners. They need to know why they\u2019re doing something, and they won\u2019t move until they know. So if you have Questioners in your audience or you\u2019re communicating with Questioners, then you need to answer the question \u2018Why?\u2019.<\/p>\n<p>Another tendency is called a Rebel. The Rebel wants choices. So if you tell them they have to do something, they\u2019re not going to do it. They want to know, \u201cWhat are my options here?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The final tendency is the Upholder. They\u2019re a minority. These people tend to know what to do and what they want to do. Then they\u2019re able to do it. I think it\u2019s easier to manage an Upholder rather than a Rebel.<\/p>\n<p>So I think it\u2019s a really powerful framework to use when you\u2019re working one to one with people. If you\u2019re interested, read Gretchen\u2019s book. It\u2019s a gold mine. Definitely my most recommended resource.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>What else would you like to tell Sasuga! readers and listeners about?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>I\u2019d like to tell them about\u00a0<span style=\"color: #000000;\">what you and I are working on at the moment,<\/span> Helen. Right now, I\u2019m hearing a lot from women in my community, and I\u2019m sure you\u2019ve been hearing this, too.<\/p>\n<p>Women are just not feeling good. They\u2019re frustrated with their lives. They know they\u2019re not living their best lives. They know they could be doing better, but they don\u2019t know what they want.<\/p>\n<p>So if that sounds like you, then I would love for you to come and join Helen, Rebecca, and me in Yumoto hot springs in Fukushima Prefecture Japan.<\/p>\n<p><span style=\"color: #800080;\">We\u2019re having a 3-day self-discovery weekend<\/span><span style=\"color: #800080;\">\u00a0<\/span>at a quaint, relaxing, hot spring town. It\u2019s going to be an eye-opening and moving long weekend mixed with self-care and fun.<\/p>\n<p>Not only will you put yourself on the right track, but you\u2019ll also be supporting the disaster\u00a0area in Fukushima, which is my second home where I\u2019ve lived for the last 15 years in Japan. We\u2019re still suffering from the disaster 6 years ago, so I\u2019m really thrilled to be able to bring an event such as this to the area.\u00a0<span style=\"color: #800080;\">Click here to read details<\/span>.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>What closing words do you have for us, and where can people find out more about you?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>If you\u2019re feeling lost and like you don\u2019t know where you\u2019re going or you don\u2019t know what to do, remember that just because you\u2019ve always been one way doesn\u2019t mean you have to be that way forever. I\u2019m a living example of this, so you can change, too. You can change yourself but it is up to you to start. We\u2019re really looking forward to helping you with that transformation.<\/p>\n<p>You can find me at\u00a0<a href=\"http:\/\/www.jaynenakata.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><span style=\"color: #800080;\">www.jaynenakata.com<\/span>.<\/a>\u00a0The name of my website is Transformation Retreats by Jayne Nakata. \u00a0So you can find me there and read more about my own transformation. And I\u2019d love to hear about yours, too. So drop me a line there.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>\u3053\u306e\u30a4\u30f3\u30bf\u30d3\u30e5\u30fc\u3067\u306f\u3001\u30c8\u30e9\u30f3\u30b9\u30d5\u30a9\u30fc\u30e1\u30fc\u30b7\u30e7\u30f3\u30fb\u30ea\u30c8\u30ea\u30fc\u30c8\u30fb\u30aa\u30fc\u30ac\u30ca\u30a4\u30b6\u30fc\u3067\u3042\u308b\u4e2d\u7530\u30b8\u30a7\u30fc\u30f3\u3055\u3093\u306e\u30b3\u30df\u30e5\u30cb\u30b1\u30fc\u30b7\u30e7\u30f3\u306b\u304a\u3051\u308b\u6210\u529f\u3068\u30c1\u30e3\u30ec\u30f3\u30b8\u3092\u3054\u7d39\u4ecb\u3057\u3066\u3044\u307e\u3059\u3002\u8a18\u4e8b\u306f\u82f1\u8a9e\u3067\u3059\u3002\u305c\u3072\u3054\u89a7\u304f\u3060\u3055\u3044\uff01 An Interview With Jayne Nakata, Transformation Retreat Organizer If you think your circumstances are holding you back, look for inspiration to Jayne Nakata. For 15 years, New Zealander Jayne has lived with her wonderful Japanese husband in Fukushima, which is still recovering from the 2011 nuclear disaster. Does living in rural Japan raising two [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":4664,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[55,56,54],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-4663","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-communication","category-interviews","category-presentations"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sasugacommunications.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4663","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sasugacommunications.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sasugacommunications.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sasugacommunications.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sasugacommunications.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=4663"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/sasugacommunications.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4663\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":18242,"href":"https:\/\/sasugacommunications.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/4663\/revisions\/18242"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sasugacommunications.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/4664"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sasugacommunications.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=4663"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sasugacommunications.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=4663"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sasugacommunications.com\/ja\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=4663"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}