Before you dismiss this very well respected technique as faddish affectation, take time to consider the evidence.

Research shows that our handwriting originates not from the hand - as we might expect but from the brain. Two groups of muscles are stimulated by brain impulse to perform the act of writing - the extensor muscles, which extend the fingers; and the flexor muscles which draw the fingers in. So the state of the brain at the time of writing has a direct influence on what appears on the page.

Medical cases have proved that where people have lost a hand or an arm, that as they learn to write with the other hand, their writing develops the same characteristics as before. And where patients have lost both arms, mouth or foot writing also develops with those same characteristics.

Where people become ill, stressed, very tired or greatly troubled, their handwriting changes. There are remarkable similarities that show up in the writing of different people with these medical or mental conditions.

As far as we know, no two people have exactly the same handwriting. Therefore handwriting is as much a revelation of the individual as a fingerprint.

Graphology is now widely used, not only in a business context, but also by the law courts to detect fraud; by schools and social workers to assess whether children might have been ill treated or are disturbed in any way; by careers assessors to put school leavers and those who require vocational guidance on the right job trail; by engaged couples wanting to know if they're compatible; by psychiatrists investigating personality problems and more recently it is being considered by the medical profession as an early means to detect the onset of illness.

How's it done? There's nothing magical or mystical about graphology - it's a precise and detailed process of analysis. It takes into account every aspect of the handwriting, including the colour of the ink, the spacing on the page and the gaps between the words. So those people who think they can hide their personality by changing the shape of their letters can't get away with it that easily. In fact, simply watching your staff write can reveal hidden secrets about them that they would never have confessed.