The Handwriting Challenge

In my absence, I noticed that I’d been tagged for a number of fun challenges. I’ll be doing them one by one here. The first of them is The Handwriting Challenge, for which I was tagged by Megan from Invisible World. Thanks for the tag, Megan! 🙂 It’s a fun and enjoyable challenge that gives you a few questions that you have to write down the answers for, so that your readers can see your handwriting. This provided me with the perfect opportunity to talk about what I learnt in my graphology course in my final semester.

The questions in this challenge are:

1. Write your name
2. Write your blog’s name
3. Write your favorite word and its definition
4. Write something nice
5. Write the name of your favorite song right now
6. What are you writing with?
7. Write a fun fact about yourself
8. Write/draw your favorite emoticon
9. Write a silly message
10. Write who you’re tagging

Here are my answers (sorry if the picture is a little unclear, it’s the best I could do):

It’s as neat as it could be given I wasn’t sitting at my desk and writing. Also, writing in cursive is how I was taught since childhood and most Indian schools teach cursive writing rather than the disjoint writing that is prevalent in other countries. For the benefit of my nominees, I’ll repeat them here:

1. Snowanna (221B)
2. E. E. Rawls
3. Mahriya (My Bookish Life)
4. Jajwalya R. K. (Light Writes)
5. Sara Letourneau

---

I did promise at the beginning that I would part with the secrets about analysing handwriting in this post, but before I do, here are three things to keep in mind:

1. Handwriting changes according a person’s mood

I’m sure you’ve noticed you write differently when different emotions are running through you. Most people also find that their handwriting changes frequently, and some others find changes over a period of years. So, there is no guarantee that a trait you might observe in a sample today will be there tomorrow.

2. The point of graphology is NOT to judge others

This was a point my teacher stressed on quite often. I took up the course to understand myself better and see how I can improve myself. Even when I analyse another person’s handwriting, I do so to understand the person and in turn help them understand themselves better. Pointing out someone’s shortcomings, making fun of them, or criticising them for who they are is certainly not the goal of handwriting analysis.

3. It doesn’t matter how neat the handwriting is

A lot of people believe that a beautifully written piece must​ mean the writer is perfect. Not so. Just as we all have a range of unique personalities, so are our handwritings. Having a cramped handwriting might give a headache to those who read your reports, but perhaps it indicates you’re focussed and it’s making you good at your job. Don’t cringe at your handwriting, but be proud of it as it’s your personality on paper.

With that little preamble out of the way, let me introduce three traits to you that you can look for in your own and others’ handwriting:

1. Self-esteem and goals

Self-esteem or self-worth can be found by looking at how high people cross their t’s. If it’s very low, it indicates low self-esteem, low confidence and no long-term goals. If it is crossed at two-thirds of the stem, it indicates that the person has practical (achievable or day-to-day) goals. If a person crosses it at the tip of the stem, he/she is a visionary having long-term goals and the drive, ambition and belief in themselves to achieve them. People in leadership positions would do well to possess this trait.

2. Frankness

How well one can keep secrets is seen in their o’s. If a person writes a perfect circle for an o, they are open and honest  bordering on bluntness at times. They have a tendency to tell the truth always and secrets spill out of them easily. The cursive o usually has a loop at the top, and people who write like that are secretive. Absence of loops indicates they can’t keep anything to themselves (a loop can be thought of as a container).

3. Individualistic

A circle for the dot on the i indicates that the person fears being ordinary. He/she likes to be treated differently from others. They have a high sense of individualism and view themselves as special or ‘one of a kind’. (Of course everyone is different, but they have a certain pride in being so.) While it may sound like a good thing, this is mostly seen in teenagers, who are developing their identity during those years. In adults, it usually indicates immaturity. Such people generally crave attention, are needy in their relationships and are easily offended if treated like a ‘commoner’.

Confession: I used to put circles over my i’s because the dots I put were hardly visible and I was told to remedy that in school. I used to be very needy and abhorred the thought of being ‘normal’. Since taking the course, I’ve consciously stopped using it and I can sense a positive difference in myself.

 

---

What do you think about handwriting analysis? Have you ever got your handwriting analysed? Have you noticed these traits in your writing? What are your interpretations of the ones I shared? Let me know in the comments below.