"I like you when you smile"

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Has anyone else gotten comments like this?

Someone said this to me before the holidays, and I've gotten comments like it before ("You're prettier when you smile"). What I hear is: "I literally don't like you when you don't smile. I only like you if you smile."

Maybe they don't mean it that way, but I'd rather know that I'm loved even when I'm not smiling (which is most of the time, and it doesn't necessarily mean I'm in a bad mood).

No. People actually think I'm creepy when I smile.

Yes, I've gotten "You're pretty when you smile" before, too. I knew it was meant as a compliment, but I found it just as offensive as the OP.

some people say i make their day by smiling. everyone said i have dimples.

when you smile, they smile, and I guess they compliment you, or rather, they are thanking you for making them smile (maybe on the inside) it does supposedly make them feel good.

science has shown that when you smile, you feel better, even when you don't feel like smiling. there is some kind of magic happening there.

I naturally smile at all the wrong times and usually when I've just met someone, if I don't make an effort, I won't smile at all. I wish I didn't have to think about it like most people but I don't want to be thought of as being mad or sad about something. I guess its always going to be a challenge.

I'm like the exact oposite, i smile to much and it makes people anxious :O

I guess people do mean it as a compliment, but the way they word it sometimes leaves me feeling insulted. I can understand how people would feel better around me if I smile, however, I wish they could also understand that some people just don't smile as much as others, even when in a good mood.

I don't know if I smile at the wrong times, but I tend to have a hard time with the flow of conversations. By the time I've formulated something to say and the courage to say it, the topic has already moved on.

Sometimes people I don't know (usually older than me) will pass me in the hall and say stuff like, "Smile, girl!" Which irritates me because it's none of their business, and what are they doing yelling at strangers anyway?

There was this guy I worked with who was constantly saying to me, "Why don't you smile? You never smile, you're like Robot Girl." What I wanted to say was, "I'm not smiling because you're pissing me off," but I think I just gave him the cold shoulder until he went away lol. But whenever people ask me why I'm not smiling, I really want to respond, "Because you're all up in my business and it's really irritating, that's why." Thus far I have resisted the urge.

I have considered saying something similar to a lady who works where I work... but reading these posts, I'm now thinking I probably shouldn't.

I guess it's different M>F than it is F>M? I don't really know why it should be, but I dislike the notion that it is even more expected from women to be all smiley all day than it is for men... even though a lot of people have taken issue with me putting on a serious face when everybody else is playing and having fun (at work, mostly).

Good point--I've heard several other girls say this has happened to them, but no one ever randomly yells at guys to smile. Guys are allowed to scowl furiously and we are supposed to think it makes them manly, or something.

Maybe it depends on whether the person has AS lol. People wouldn't do it if they didn't think people would appreciate it, though how is a mystery to me. For me I just only smile when I'm actively really happy about something. My natural state involves thinking intently about things, and I guess that expression looks like a scowl to people who don't know me. But I don't like being told to smile because it implies that you must smile to show the world you're happy, when in reality I'm actually perfectly happy, I'm just thinking. Also it makes no sense because it would look weird if I was walking down the hallway all by myself just smiling randomly, as I am apparently being encouraged to do. If I saw someone like that I would think they were on drugs.

This has gotten me in trouble many times at previous places of work.

Yes, mostly my mother - all my life.
"Why are you frowning?"
"You look prettier when you smile"

You know, when other animals bare their teeth, it's a sign of aggression.
To me, unless I am really, really happy about something, it just feels weird.

I have learned to fake it though in certain social situations and at work.

Sometimes.

I'm always confused by it.

Are the compliments genuine or just flirting?

Haha, yes! That's what I've thought before -- how creepy would it be if I just smiled, aaaaaall the time?!

Maybe women are more pressured to smile than men.

I also am beginning to realize that often, the emotion I'm feeling simply doesn't show (or show properly) on my face.