There’s a lot of information floating around out there about the many ways that oral health can affect a person’s total body health. You probably know the importance of keeping your teeth and gums clean with a good dental hygiene routine and regular visits to your dentist. You may even be aware of how beneficial orthodontic treatment can be if you’re unhappy with how your teeth look or feel. But did you know that your teeth can affect your professional life, too? That’s why we’re taking a look at how you can increase your chances for success with a straighter smile!
There’s actually been a number of studies done on the connection between the appearance of someone’s smile and their professional success. We’ve all been taught to never judge a book by its cover, but it still happens every day. Like it or not, first impressions can set the stage for your interactions with others over time. Fortunately, you can use these snap judgments to your advantage with a healthy, confident smile from Smith & Heymann Orthodontics!
Improving your oral health orthodontics benefits you socially, personally, and professionally. Let’s take a closer look at why a straight smile can increase your chances for success, and how our expert team can give you a grin that will stand out from the rest!
Start things off right with a welcoming smile
When you’re happy with how your teeth look, you’re much more likely to share your smile with those around you. This can help set a positive tone, whether you’re meeting an important client for lunch or logging in to a Zoom meeting! Because your smile is one of the first things people notice about you, and the feature they remember most about you later on, it can have an impact on your career if you come across as stiff or stand-offish. A genuine smile will start things off on the right foot and leave others thinking of you fondly even after you’ve said goodbye.
Give yourself every chance for success
First impressions are obviously important, but a healthy smile will benefit you in other ways, too! Crooked teeth can be difficult to keep clean, increasing your chances of developing cavities, tooth decay, and gum disease. If you have misaligned teeth and jaws, it can also cause a number of painful issues, from tenderness in the mouth to persistent headaches. Correcting these issues will give you a smile that looks and feels great!
If you’re self-conscious about the appearance of your smile you may be reluctant to step outside your comfort zone. Yet this is often exactly what’s required for true success! Invisalign conducted a survey on this topic and found that almost 80% of adults who underwent orthodontic treatment said the improvement in their smile gave them the confidence to do something they never would have considered doing before. When you feel good about your smile, that confidence can spill over into other areas of your life, including your career.
Let people’s perceptions work to your advantage
A century or so ago, a researcher by the name of Edward Thorndike described something he called the “halo effect.” This phenomenon explains how our brains tend to attribute multiple positive qualities to a person based on us noticing a single positive quality. To simplify a complicated concept, this basically just means that we tend to make up information about a person based on our own perception of them!
To better understand the role smiling plays in these perceptions, Invisalign had Kelton Global conduct a study on how we perceive people based on the appearance of their smile. The survey presented over a thousand Americans with images of people who had various tooth issues and asked them to give an honest opinion about their appearance. The results indicated that overall, we tend to view people with straight teeth as having more desirable qualities than those with crooked teeth, including health, success, and wealth.
Leave a lasting impression with a beautiful smile
We all have psychological cues we use to communicate with others in nonverbal ways, including eye contact, body language, and of course, our smiles! In the professional world, you’ll sometimes be dealing with people who are making subconscious assumptions about you based on what they see. So what is your smile saying about you? Presenting yourself with confidence and an attractive smile can leave a lasting impression on everyone you come into contact with.
Get ahead with a gorgeous smile from Smith & Heymann Orthodontics
In today’s world, the way you look is an important part of how others perceive you, even if it happens subconsciously. A healthy smile goes your cosmetic appearance, however! Straighter teeth and a happier mouth has been linked to better moods, increased positivity, and decreased stress levels, too.
Here at Smith & Heymann Orthodontics, we’re proud to offer patients of all ages a variety of affordable treatment options to help you achieve a healthier smile! Using innovative techniques and state-of-the-art technology, we’re able to correct a number of orthodontic issues that may be affecting how you feel about the way your teeth look and feel. Would you like to see how orthodontics can transform your smile and increase your chances for success! Get in touch today to schedule a FREE consultation with our Chapel Hill, Durham, Mebane, or Roxboro offices!
