Your Signature Sends A Message
When you sign your name to professional or business correspondence, you may be revealing more about yourself than you want to.
According to William Keller, a graphologist and Certified Handwriting Analyst of Yorktown, Virginia, your signature can directly affect your level of success, or lack of, in your chosen field.
The way you sign your name sends signals about your personality to the conscious and subconscious minds of the reader. This may well tip the scales as to whether a prospect chooses to do business with you are not.
That elaborate, showy signature you practiced in high school or college could be a negative factor in your success. If you are promoting a conservative, forthright image and sign sales letters or literature in a large, sweeping, and barely legible fashion, it sends a confusing message to the recipient.
Bold, in-your-face signatures reflect pride and confidence that may be over the top and interpreted as written by a vain, egotistical person who feels superior to the reader. Remember, the message may be subliminal; the receiver may not consciously realize why he or she is not entirely comfortable with your presentation.
At the opposite end of the spectrum, if you have written a powerful letter to recruit well heeled supporters into a risky, but potentially highly rewarding venture and then, sign your masterpiece with a tiny, left-leaning signature, this could be seen as a lack of confidence. You may well have neutralized many positive points of the letter.
Believe it. Some organizations have employees or consultants trained in handwriting analysis who may dissect your written words to the maximum degree in order to gain an advantage over you. Often all they have to work with is your signature and it may or may not reflect the true you.
The bottom line. Your signature says much more about you than you likely ever imagined. It may be an asset or a detriment. Unfortunately, it can leave you vulnerable in ways you never suspected.
Retrospective studies of the signatures of many of America's most successful and powerful men and women have revealed definite similarities. Relatively simple, unadorned, legible signatures with a slightly forward slant and distinct, moderately large capitals seem to be
the rule. Often they have an ascending baseline.
Take a good look at your signature. What does it seem to say about you?
William Keller is a dual licensed health care professional and practicing handwriting analyst. He subscribes to both the Gestalt and trait-stroke methods of handwriting analysis to give the client a true personality reading. He has accomplished analyses for clients across the United States.