A Page From US PR Propaganda Playbook

… “Laughter makes you feel good,” the instructor, Joseph Lee, tells the students – 300 postal workers in the Kwangjin district of Seoul. “If you feel good, it helps you make your customers feel good. So laugh until your back breaks, until your stomach muscles cramp and until your belly button pops out.”

… some people now consider laughter a business skill that is increasingly necessary as customers demand better service.

… In South Korea, where looking cool has often meant looking serious, people are learning the value of a good laugh. In a country where smiling has traditionally been frowned upon, some people now consider laughter a business skill that is increasingly necessary as customers demand better service.

… But there are also business incentives. The national postal service is among the public corporations that are realizing the value of laughter. … In the Kwangjin Post Office, a brochure tells the office's 500 employees to smile at least once an hour, whether there is a reason to or not.

Choe Sang-Hun, “South Korea’s New Economic Plan Starts With a Laugh,” New York Times, 12/30/05.