Handwriting Analysis: What Margins Say About You
- In This Quick Guide:
- Somewhere in Time
- The Left Margin
- Right Margin
Every aspect of handwriting can tell us something about ourselves. In this guide, we’ll look at the margins that frame handwriting. Using a writer as an example, you will see the writer’s emotions and mental outlook as they relate to time and space, as well as discover how he feels about the past and his outlook on the future, as well as his social behavior.
Somewhere in Time
Margins reveal how you perceive time. The margin on the right side of the page shows how we view the future, whether we look forward to it with a hopeful, optimistic outlook or as something to delay facing as long as possible.
The average margin consists of about 1 inch of blank space all around the paper. Yet, as a handwriting analyst, you will be confronted by many samples with virtually or literally no margins at all, or others with margins so wide that they form a huge frame of space around a small amount of handwriting. The left side of the paper, where the writing effort begins, symbolizes the past. After moving across the page toward a goal, the writer ends up on the right side of the page, which represents the future. What goes on in the middle, therefore, represents the present.
The left margin also represents the self (“me”); the right margin, other people (“you”). As the writer moves from “me” to “you,” he reveals whether he faces the future and other people with hopeful optimism or fear and trepidation. Additionally, the top third of the paper represents the past, the middle third represents the present, and the bottom third represents the future. Thus, you will be able to see where in a project the writer begins to lose or gain confidence. Just look for the point where the writing either pulls away from or toward the margins.
Well-Balanced Margins
A handwriting that is well framed by nicely balanced margins (they shouldn’t be absolutely perfect) on all sides looks like a picture in a frame. Balanced margins reveal a careful planner with a good sense of timing. The writer creates structure and order in his environment and doesn’t appreciate it when disruptions threaten to mess things up. He prefers to carry out his activities according to a plan. He isn’t stingy, but neither is he likely to spend lavishly. He uses common sense to budget his resources (time, energy, and money).
Nicely balanced (not perfect) margins.
His social manners are slightly formal and reserved, and while he’s polite and courteous, he probably won’t go beyond the boundaries of convention because he feels most comfortable within familiar limits.
When the margins are too exact, too careful, appearances mean more to the writer than substance. His home is likely to be just as orderly as his handwriting. In fact, his motto might be, “A place for everything and everything in its place.” When things get out of place or unexpected events happen, the writer’s anxiety skyrockets. He can’t stand for anyone to see him at less than his absolute best.
Extremely Wide Margins All Around the Page
The person who places a small amount of handwriting in the middle of a vast desert of space is terrified of getting involved with life. He feels inadequate, and so keeps himself apart from others in an effort to hide what he thinks are his deficiencies. His limits are self-imposed, but that doesn’t make it any easier for him to reach out and make connections.
Extremely wide margins in an undeveloped or immature script may simply be a writer who is showing off and attempting to pass himself off as sophisticated and cultured when in reality he is not at all.
Extremely wide margins all around.
Physical contact is especially difficult for the writer of extremely wide margins. The only way he will allow physical touching is when he initiates it. If you reach out for a hug or to pat him on the back, he’ll shrink away from your touch. He might even take a step backward to put more distance between himself and the other persona greater margin of distance, that is.
Narrow Margins All Around the Page
The person with no margins may not have the time or money, but he gets involved in anything and everything, whether he can afford to or not.
He doesn’t know when to say no, which means he’s often overextended. This habit can become problematic when his time and energy are wasted on trivia that doesn’t get him anywhere. Not only does he waste his own time, he’ll make demands on yours, as well. This person is the juggler of innumerable activities and tries to keep so many balls in the air at the same time that it would be a miracle if he could complete half of what he takes on.
Narrow margins all around.
The writer with no margins usually crowds other parts of writing, too, such as lines and words. If that’s the case, he feels compelled to control “all space,” which includes other people’s space. He gets involved in others’ lives to the point of intrusiveness.
If handwriting without margins is also large in its overall size, money probably burns a hole in the writer’s pocket. No matter what resources he has at his disposal, he feels obliged to use them up.
The Left Margin
Life experiences begin with birth, and the initial placement of the pen symbolizes that magic moment. The left margin represents how the writer feels about the past.
Narrow Left Margin with Wide Right Margin
A narrow left margin combined with a wide right margin suggests that the writer finds the past a more comfortable place than the present or the future. Safety and security are very important to him, and he is afraid to spend his resources. The need to economize nags at the back of his mind.
Going into unfamiliar places and situations or trying new things is stressful for him, so in order to keep the stress at bay he limits himself to whom and what he already knows. He looks to old friends and family for support. The downside is, he may miss out on opportunities for growth when they threaten to take him out of his depth.
Narrow left margin with wide right margin.
Wide Left Margin
A moderately wide left margin shows a strong desire to move forward and leave the past behind. Willing to get involved with life, the writer welcomes opportunities to meet other people and quickly takes hold of new ideas and projects. That he doesn’t cover all the space he reasonably could indicates some degree of extravagance. He is not overly concerned about utilizing all his resources, but will spend the time and money it takes to get where he wants to go.
Especially when the right margin is narrow, courage is evident in the way the writer forges ahead into new territory and charts new goals. He is more interested in what is coming up in the future rather than worrying about the past, and doesn’t overly concern himself about conforming to convention or doing things the way they were always done before.
An extremely wide left margin suggests that the writer may be running away from something in the pastsomething so upsetting that he can’t bear to think about it. The painful event could be in the distant past or it might be something that happened recently. You’d have to examine a series of samples written over a period of time to determine whether this was habitual or situational.
Wide left margin.
Shrinking Left Margin
When the left margin starts out wide but shrinks toward the left edge of the paper as it progresses down the page, the writer begins with plenty of enthusiasm, but doubts soon begin to creep in. He starts backing off, wondering whether he is doing the right thing, or whether that new project was a good idea.
He begins to look for ways to return to the safety of the past, which could mean going home, or calling old buddies, or following some ritual that makes him feel secure. His misgivings will have to be put to rest before he’ll return to his original plans.
Shrinking left margin.
Growing Left Margin
As you might guess, a left margin that gets wider as it moves down the page represents the opposite of the shrinking left margin. The writer is a slow starter but his enthusiasm grows by leaps and bounds the more he gets involved with a new situation or project.
If the handwriting is also large, there is a tendency toward extravagance. The writer may not show the appropriate restraint when it comes to spending his time, energy, and money.
Growing left margin.
Concave or Convex Left Margin
A left margin that starts at one point, gets wider, then somewhere down the page begins to get narrower again is called a concave margin. We find it in the basically thrifty person who fights a desire for extravagance and pulls himself back before he gets completely carried away.
Convex is the opposite of concave. Something convex pushes outward, like a contact lens. The left margin starts at one point and moves further to the left for a while, then starts back toward the right again.
You’ve probably already figured it out—the writer continually puts the brakes on his behavior, which tends to be a bit more openhanded than he can afford. He recognizes his tendency to be extravagant and tries to control it. Yet, because the end result is movement toward the right, we know that he can’t always resist the temptation for a more freewheeling lifestyle.
Right concave margin.
Left concave margin.
Right convex margin.
Rigid Left Margin
The left margin is consciously chosen, whereas there is less control over the right margin—we’re not always sure of how much space will be left as we move across the page. The left margin represents the ideal self, or who the writer would really like to be. The right margin is more symbolic of his real self—who he actually is.
Strong self-discipline and will power are needed to begin every new line in exactly the same place under the previous one. It also takes longer to maintain a strict left margin, suggesting someone who doesn’t make decisions without first taking his time to consider all potential outcomes.
A rigidly straight left margin is made by a writer who is highly conscious of appearances and who doesn’t allow himself or others any slack. Just as his margin is inflexible and premeditated, so are his attitudes and behaviors. Someone this rigid is not easy to live or work with.
Rigid left margin.
Irregular Left Margin
A left margin that has a different starting point with practically each new line signifies conflict about what to do next. The writer doesn’t care about society’s convention and standards, but prefers to make things up as he goes along. He is a poor manager of his resources and probably runs out of money long before payday.
If the writing is done on lined paper with a printed left margin but the writer begins to the left of the ruled line, he literally makes up his own rules. Among the writers who ignore the left margin are juvenile offenders who refuse to follow the standards and rules of polite society. Yet, at the same time, they may be easily influenced by their peers.
Irregular left margin.
Right Margin
The right margin tells us how ready he is to face what’s ahead, as well as more about how he handles his time, energy, and money, and how he feels about making contact with other people.
Wide Right Margin
Leaving an extra-wide right margin is like stopping your car about 15 feet behind the stop sign. It’s just a little too soon. The person who stops so far back is telling us that he is being cautious, very cautious. He wants time to see what’s coming before deciding how to proceed.
Past experience has taught him to view the future as an unfriendly place where he can get hurt if he’s not careful. He feels overwhelmed by life and fears he won’t be able to cope with any additional stress. Staying away from the right margin allows him to avoid reality for a while. He creates a safe framework for himself and rarely extends his reach beyond those self-imposed limits. A wide right margin may be temporary and related to a particular situation, such as a job loss. An out-of-work single mom, worried about how she’s going to feed her kids next week, may show her concern by pulling back from the right margin (the future). When she’s bringing home a regular paycheck again, the right margin will return to a more normal width.
Wide right margin.
Narrow Right Margin
The spontaneous, action-oriented person makes a narrow right margin. Eager to set new goals and work on them, he cares about progress and is constantly looking ahead to see what he should do next. He is outgoing and at ease meeting new people and trying out new things. If a wide left margin is balanced with a moderately narrow right margin, the writer is poised, ready to jump at the chance to move forward on his goals.
When the right margin is overly narrow, almost to the edge of the page, it can be a sign of an eager beaver who lacks self-discipline. His impulses take over and he doesn’t consider the consequences before acting.
When the words actually careen off the edge of the paper, the writer is rushing headlong into the future. At the extreme end of the future is death. The writer whose words fall downward and crash right into the edge of the paper may be having thoughts of suicide. Or, he may be suffering from temporary financial embarrassment because he has spent beyond his means. Be careful how you interpret this characteristic and always look at the whole picture.
Narrow right margin.
Extremely Straight Right Margin
Making a straight right margin is much harder than making a straight left margin. The writer has to hyphenate words and take great care to line up last words of lines. Someone who goes to this much trouble has lots of self-control. He also needs a tremendous amount of structure to function comfortably.
Whatever this person does, it’s going to be something he’s done before and will be done strictly by the book. Don’t expect him to act independently or quickly. He’s self-protective and has trouble adapting, so he needs time to adjust to new situations and people. He can’t trust others because he doesn’t trust himself. In an effort to safeguard his ego he creates the most predictable environment possible.
Extremely straight right margin.
Extremely Irregular Right Margin
Some variability is expected on the right margin because it’s not always possible to predict how the line will end. However, when the irregularity is extreme, the writer is guaranteed to be emotionally unreliable.
Extremely irregular right margin.
A poor planner, he’s unsure of how he feels about other people or the future. An adventurer who is content with the turbulent life he creates, he’ll take whatever comes next, and the more exciting the better. Pressured by a strong need for variety (especially when combined with very long lower loops), he vacillates from one position to another, unable to stick with a steady point of view about anything or anyone.
For more information on handwriting analysis, check out our Quick Guide Handwriting Analysis: What Spacing Says About You. Have fun!
From The Complete Idiot’s Guide to Handwriting Analysis, Second Edition, by Sheila Lowe
