US president Barack Obama's signature reflects his intelligence, fluidity, pride and fast thinking, say handwriting experts.
US president Barack Obama's signature reflects his intelligence, fluidity, pride and fast thinking, say handwriting experts.
Obama has a bold, decisive signature that is getting a workout these days as he signs one executive order after another, giving handwriting experts something new to think over.
"There's a lot going on in his signature - you've got intelligence, fluidity, fast thinking, you can actually read most of his letters," The New York Daily News quoted top handwriting expert Bart Baggett, as saying.
In addition to Obama's signature, Baggett has mined a handwritten note the president wrote from Iowa last year for additional clues to his character.
He said that the large capital letters in Obama's signature show a healthy ego befitting the leader of the free world.
Baggett said that the short stem on his d's reveals an independent thinker, while his figure-8 shaped g's designate one with fluid thinking.
While many experts agree with those basic outlines, a raging debate over the distinctive slash that the left-handed Obama puts through the 'O' of his last name reaming.
According to Arlyn Imberman, author of Signature for Success, Obama's habit of bisecting the 'o' in his last name as an un-conscious sign of his own divided heritage.
"One could say it shows his ability to transcend different worlds - the worlds of black and white, the worlds of generation X and Y," Imberman said.
However, others believe that the slash is just a bold donwnstroke on the 'b' that follows the 'o'.
Sheila Lowe, author of The Complete Idiot's Guide to Handwriting Analysis, said: "I just see it as his need to get going and not spend too much time on the finer details. But he also crosses his t's and dots his i's, so he does take care of details."
Mostly, Lowe sees in Obama's stylized script what others have long seen in his character - a quick thinker, unafraid to announce his arrival, always brimming with confidence.
"His writing is not totally regimented and consistent. It has got some un-even-ess, which shows a person who is able to make quick changes of directions. And his tall capital i's are like roman numeral 1, which shows great confidence and pride and a willingness to be accountable," he said.
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