Smile educators to boost confidence in post-covid Japan

The progressive abandonment of masks in Japan After the normalization of the covid has generated an increase in the demand for coaches smilesspecialized in relaxing facial muscles and facilitating social interactions.

Keiko Kawano has found that the demand for the services of her company Egaoiku (which can be literally translated as “smile education”) they have multiplied by four since last year and especially since the Japanese government relaxed its recommendation on the use of masks in March to gradually abandon them.

Kawano began researching the relationship between smiling and facial muscle training after retiring from the professional voiceover industry. After abandoning his daily mouth exercises to vocalize better, he realized that his expression was more downcast and it was difficult for him to smile.

It was after inquiring about it out of personal interest that he decided to start his teaching activities in 2017. Since then the business has evolved considerably.

“I notice a before and after is in the content of the class, because before the pandemic there were more people who wanted to learn about this for health or beauty issues, but now they ask me to teach them how to form a good smile after the covid”explained the Japanese during one of her classes.

Varied profiles

The session this Thursday had two participants, Akira Hirata, a 55-year-old actor looking to exercise his facial muscles and become aware of his smile after the covid, and Yoko Konishi, who at 75 hopes that the training will help him to gain confidence in herself and leave a good image to her interlocutors.

The class begins by scoring the smile of the students. It is done by taking a photograph in which a proprietary computer program measures various Egaoiku-brand parameters: crescent-shaped eyes, round cheeks, and leaving the eight central teeth of the upper jaw visible.

“There are people who get a high score and others who don’t, so I recommend the way that I think would suit their smile best and they practice it. They usually find that at first it is difficult for them to move their facial muscles. By practicing the smile and the concepts taught, almost 100% raise the score” in another test carried out at the end of the lesson, the duration of which is flexible.

Both Hirata’s and Konishi’s smile improved their score, as well as their awareness of theoretical notions of the movement of the cheekbones, eyebrows or mouth, which Kawano illustrates throughout the class and which each one practices in front of a mirror.

Self-confidence

The trainer explains that “70% of the muscles around the mouth are connected to the muscles of facial expression. Therefore, if one stops moving the mouth a lot (as could happen in limited communications in the hardest moments of the pandemic), 70% of the face stops moving, weakening it.

Hirata, who came to the course recommended by an acquaintance who had previously participated, says that he decided to attend the training when he realized that the daily use of the mask had led him to stop moving his face and smile.

Konishi, for his part, decided to participate in the experience because he believes that “there is a difference in the impression that can be left on a person if one speaks with a smile or not” and wants “enjoy the conversation” and make a good impression, whether in a spontaneous discussion or if, for example, you have to visit a doctor.

“If I manage to have a better smile, I think I will gain confidence in myself and I will have more desire to go out. It will also help me to enjoy meeting people more”explains the septuagenarian.

Kawano, who has taught courses for more than 4,000 people, including workers from companies such as IMB or individuals, points out that this is an important point of the education of the smile. “Many of the participants find that smiling makes them feel better and more positive. They realize that the smile is not only useful for the person in front of it, but for oneself”.

The Japanese, who is preparing a course for about a thousand people in August, is also in charge of training other trainers for this booming sector. To date, he has trained more than twenty.

Fountain. EFE