Want to learn more about that cute guy in your chemistry class? The answers to why he acts the way he does may be right at his fingertips! For hundreds of years graphologists, those who study handwriting, have insisted you can tell lots about a person's likes and dislikes, strengths and weaknesses, even their moods and moral character, by the way they sign their name. What does your handwriting reveal about you? What can we learn about others?

What is graphology?

Graphology is now seenas a reliable aid in figuring out people's personalities and motivations. The way we write actually reflects what's going on inside our heads rather than simply our hand coordination. Graphology doesn't study just how people make their letters...it concentrates on where the writing is located on a page, how smooth or jagged the lines are, how legible it is. Psychologists, including Freud, thought of handwriting as a window to the conscious and unconscious mind. Trained professionals in this field insist they can tell how smart, how honest, how stable and how drug free a person is, just by analyzing their handwriting.

How is a signature different from the rest of what we write?

When you write paragraphs and sentences, you are communicating feelings and ideas. When you sign your name, you're revealing your public identity on a page. In other words, your handwriting reveals your true personality...your signature reveals how you want the world to see you. If you are not the same person in public as you are in private, your signature will show a difference. If your guy signs his name much larger than the rest of what he's written, his public self image must be larger than his real self image. He might be compensating for feeling small inside by making his name extra big and cocky.

What does it mean if your handwriting slants one way or the other?

A very obvious slant to the left might be an indication the writer is reflective, plays it safe, and thinks carefully before making a decision. Depending on how pronounced the slant is to the right, the words dynamic, impulsive, outgoing, and friendly come to mind.

Isn't some of this just common sense?

Yes. You don't need an advanced degree to figure out a neat signature comes from a neat person, a tense person will press down harder on the page, and a person who is feeling more up will write in that direction. Tiny letters might mean too little self-confidence, while an illegible signature may mean you're feeling insignificant and trying to hide who you are. Writing that is full of mistakes or slanted in all directions is probably penned by someone anxious, frustrated or maybe even drug impaired.

What does the size of your handwriting mean?

Graphologists believe that a large handwriting comes from a person with energy, confidence and a full schedule. Average-sized writing signifies a busy, well-balanced person who is also comfortable spending time alone. Small writing comes from a good head for details, an organizer who is especially strong in maths and science.

Can you produce handwriting without using your hands?

Try this experiment. Hold a pen in your mouth and sign your name on a piece of paper. If you were forced to learn to write this way, after enough practice you would eventually produce the same "handwriting" you have now. Studies show that people who have lost the use of their hands eventually produce the same unique handwriting they had when they could use their hands. This proves that it's not really our hands that decide which way our pens go across the paper, it's our brains.