when writing on lined paper, I always follow the left margin meticulously (not the right, I always run out of space) and write SUPER close and following the baselines drawn but I also have OCD and ADHD so it might be that.
Little insight from a french viewer, our notebooks don't have the right margin; but it was still super interesting to learn about! The "trying to fit words at the end of the line showing a lack of knowledge of the ressources" is incredibly true. I hold myself to really high standards and never pause to think "but is it realistic of me to expect this project to be done in a week when I have all of these other priorities to take care of?" Though I noticed that my margin is perfectly straight; maybe a sign of perfectionism? In any case, that was super enlightening, thank you so much for the wonderful video, Leah!
In Italy we do have some notebooks with similar lines. They're meant for young students, the line is more of a purple color and printed on both sides of the page. I only know because I like buying random notebooks, I used to have normal ones without margins in school.
So where I live we don’t have obvious right margins, but what you can see of them comes through the other side of the page. Like, you can’t see it unless you’re looking at it in person relatively closely. It’s on the other side, so you can look at it through the page, but you don’t notice it unless you’re looking for it
What would it mean if when the page doesn’t come with a margin, u write really close to the end of the page and use up the whole space, but if a page comes with margins, the writer will respect them? Love ur vids Leah, it got me into graphology
i do that too! perhaps it has to do with being disorganized and needing the structure of the page to make writing more neat and uniform? so conformity? Thought i’m kinda just guessing on this
With me, I always start at the red line to the left, but then use up all of the space to the right. Often making my writing smaller or bunched to try and finish a sentence in that space instead of taking up another line. I found your ideas of going towards the future but worrying about it at the same time very interesting. You said "no, you don't have enough time to finish that assignment" That is me. I try and plan things out very carefully because otherwise I will put things off and run out of time to get things done. I have ADHD so I don't know how much of that is related, but I have a hard time staying focused on school work, so that leads to procrastination and running out of time. I also don't like to waste space. When I have space, I try and use it, which often times makes my pages look really cramped and messy even if my hand writing itself isn't. I use margins for notes, and write in the very bottom lines of pages too, which is something you didn't really touch on. I don't have bottom margins typically.
Yeah I kinda do that too with the not obeying the blue line, and leah diddnt really say anything about that so im just curious about what it means. (also people tend to think that i have adhd. While for you, you think you have adhd so im also a bit concerned at the same time lol)
Just yesterday i was thinking that i should rewatch one of your videos where you mentioned margins because i keep noticing that a girl next to me in class has quite a large distance to the left edge of the paper (so, starting further at the middle) when she writes and i really wanted to know what it means but couldn't remember. Quite nice to have this video today haha Also, i love it when you meow back at Amber, i do that with my cat all the time to a point where i don't even notice it anymore
It's amazing how much actually goes into handwriting. I'm glad I chose to get into it as it helps alot more than I thought. You kick ass Leah. Thank you.
I am at heart a writer. I had originally never made my writing perfect within the margins. But as a writer I had always, by hand, tried to keep my lines perfectly within as to look like it's the same as a novel. Even to use certain words to keep it on par. Wow, so much goes into this. So much so I'm still learning from you.
When writing on lined paper I often write below the line, as in, using the line as where the tops of the lower case letters are. What would you read into that?
Most of the time I follow the left margin, but when I write stuff where I know that nobody else is going to read it, I don't follow anything. Also, I feel most comfortable using the corners of the paper first, because I'm not brave enough to write stuff in the center. I have a huge forward slant and I'm the future type. When I do use the entire page I don't run out of space, but I always add words above and between the other words to include more into my sentences. The way I talk is the same: it's never enough and I have to add more and more words to describe it all. Very interesting stuff... Thank you for sharing your knowledge Leah! :)
Unfortunately i don't have many handwritten notes from uni, but looking at notes from my senior year in grammar school, i think i progressively hot les and less excited about future in those years of mine. Wich is actually reasonable as my parents divorced my uncle, my godmother and my grandmother died, and a very close friend of mine was diagnosed with a brain tumour in the time span of 3 years. Now that i think about it that was a rough 3 years. But i'm doing and actually even back than did amazingly. At least i have some stories to tell lol
@@LeahEckardt Thank you, it was my pleasure to share. Life happens, every one has some rough times. I'm a pretty realistic, grounded and cold headed person so i alwys managed stress and pressure quite well. Otherwise, love your content, just saying. 😁
About margins Like you talked about leaving 1 cm space in all 4 margins, while learning Graphology I was taught if the writer is leaving equal spaces in all four corners then the handwriting is well balanced. The traits are good artistic skill, conscious, interested in beauty, design, symmetry, detalied oriented and loves planning. If the space looks abnormal or way too in the centre with the spaces all around then the traits differ.
The using up all the space thing called me out a bit lol. I use the margin on the left side to writing numbers for the start of questions, for sheets that I may need to glue in I try and fit them all onto one page by overlapping and folding in order to not waste paper by having them take up a much space so I can write and for more into a page. I usually try an maximise space and if I see a spot leftover I'll box it up with a line connecting it to continue writing the thing I'm writing if I run out of space, aka finish the page, so I don't need to go to the next page. If I don't add extra info in the box, I'll usually draw something in it and draw stuff in the margins n any free space on the page that I haven't filled with writing.
Hii from Belgium, here's what I've noticed for both most of French and Belgian handwriting with margins: - writing in the left margin (almost) NEVER happens - there's no limit on how far you can write on the right and the bottom margin (bottom margin depends on the paper format, i.e. if there's a large bottom margin on the paper, we wouldn't write on it and vice versa) All of that also depends on the format and type of paper (for example, letters, etc)
There is definitely truth to this that I've seen in my journaling. When I'm writing about the future, I tend to pull to the right of the right margin, and when recalling something from the past, I'll drift left. I was amazed to go back and just look at my use of margins after watching this.
According to diff graphology colleagues I’ve met that have been studying this stuff longer than me- there really isn’t much of a difference between right handed handwriting or left handed handwriting, but some times letters are formed in a different pattern- like o’s being drawn clockwise, instead of counter clockwise, but that’s all I really know about it currently. Good question I wish I had more info to share tho 😅
Hey Leah, I know you talked a lot about the side margins, but is there any meaning for someone to use up the top and bottom margins entirely versus leaving a wider gap between where they start and finish the page?
I came across your channel not long ago and made me realize how relevant hand writing could be. Every analysis I heard from you was relatable to me. This is so good to learn more about ourselves.
2:20 that's exactly how my friend writes. As she writes down the page she stops reaching the left margins. It's not subtle at all. If you look at her writing you would notice instantly. P.S this was when I looked at her handwriting when she was writing stories. I haven't seen her write stories in a while, but for notes her margin looks normal.
Its so interesting to think about because when I was younger my teacher would always nag me about how my lines were so far away from the margins and looking back I was very excited about growing up and looking ahead but now my writing does stay more in the present area and I’ve become more focused on what’s going on in the present now so it’s interesting to see that reflected in my handwriting in every way not just margins. (I’m going to try and dig up some old writing of mine to look at)
I had never heard of margins on the right (maybe bc I'm french?) But I still lack enough space on that side of the page and felt called out by what you lmao but I think it's also something else: it happens very often but mostly when it's the end of a sentence: starting a new line is like a "fresh start" so I prefer a new line for a new sentence instead of "wasting" that fresh start for the end of a sentence, worse if it's just one word... I hope it makes sense idk
For the margin drift, I have noticed in me it can be afraid to stick out, so when writing every new line I don’t want the line to stick out from the last line so I try my best to line up, but the fear of sticking out is greater so each line would be slightly drifting to the right. It happens ESPECIALLY when I try to be careful and make everything pretty and neat
No margins whine done. I write all over the page after the initial start with neatness in mind. I write sideways in corners back up top with arrows…I just think it all belongs on same page because it’s all related so a new page intimidates me
4:30 I feel called out. I'm just gonna say that. Because in English they're like do your brain storming, drafts, sloppy copies, then write it neet, then type it out. I wrote it, and went straight for the computer. And I recall, staring at the loose leaf paper, trying to discipher my writing, and just seeing, consistently, a curve down, but only at the, VERY, end, abd I recognized it was only really visible looking at the paper fully filled out like I had. But it was true across multiple things, I don't know how it is now, I'm strictly a typer at this point. But that's something I've had in the back of my mind watching these videos, and I guess I finally got my answer. Just saying, time was never really something that got explained to me. Took me years to figure out a week was 7 days. Still couldn't name all the months, led alone tell you what what order they went in.
Sorry I'm late time zones and everything. Loved the video, especially Amber. She's an amazing co-host. I know I'll be paying extra close attention to the next time I write 😅
ok, 1. thinking about the future more, 2. I don't have enough resources and I know about it, I got better at not cramping my words, 3. cheap, cause raised in poverty, 4. racing mind, 5. overwhelming but only when ppl talk about things I love, 6. I respect my lines, 7. grounded.
I use my margins for notes .. left and right. What does that say about me? Also in math for small calculations. Here some topics I'm very curious about! (Maybe you could address them in a video ?) - writing on a tablet - writing on graph paper / doing mathy things - taking the paper horizontally (I do that a LOT when it's dotted, blank or graph)
I crash into the right margin and run out of space almost every line but I swear its not my fault there IS enough space and they're just playing tricks on me
i noticed the accuracy of each section you said in different stages of my life, i have photographic memory which helps me analyze my own hand writing from when i was younger. For instance the blue line margin about how it representa someone who is trying to be perfect all the time, or the very high/floaty baseline and detachment to reality. i could go on i love your videos!!🌟
While writing arabic, unlike latin languages we start the writing and reading from right to left, while i studied both french and english and being fluent in English, i never cross the top margins, but sometimes while writing i cross the left, right and bottom margins if i dont gave much restrictions ( frequently crossing margins in school notebooks whike writing can be seen as untidy, and we were taught since young ages to refrain from crossing margins) or im doodling sentences in an another paper i tend to cross the left, right and bottom (not always) margins, i know nobidy cares but just decided to share.
I could never for the life of me go behind the left red line, but frick the right line with a passion. Idc that my teacher would always point it out and put a dotted line when I passed it to remind me, I refuse to fix it, that line is dumb I also write stories often, so I have indentations at the beginning of paragraphs and stuff, though I feel like that's more an author thing than a personality thing When it comes to sticking to the baseline, I'm a middle-ground since I don't cling to it, but my words don't stay above it. Especially y's and g's, they're fun sometimes (if I have a loopy handwriting in the moment, my handwriting switches around often) Idk I just have fun writing, it's a big hobby of mine lol
great content as always Leah. have you ever read/learrned/seen anything about handwritings of non-alphabet users? probably arabic or chinese? i imagine it would be like a completely different branch of graphology Love from Indonesia ❤
I wish I could! If I had a good knowledge about the copybook- like the way people of that language/country are taught to write then I could say for sure where the writer is deviating from what they were taught, but unfortunately I just don’t know any other language well enough to do that, but I bet there are graphologists somewhere in the world that would know and I would love to meet them lol great question
4:15 ,, and theres my handwriting. its really REALLY true since I constantly try to “finish this one last sentence!” even though there is no time left in class, then i take too long to pack up, and then im late for my next class-
I have strong feelings about margins. A very wide left margin shows an impractical person of culture and refinement with a deep appreciation for the best in art and music. Narrow left margins show the opposite. A very wide right margin shows a person afraid to face reality, oversensitive to the future and generally a poor mixer.
something i find interesting is i write further from the margin with each line (until i realise and try to stop lmao), and when i get to the right side of the page i go all the way to the end/run out of room, which apparently indicates excitement for the future and hastiness. but for me i'm actually incredibly terrified of the future and i think about it a lot in a negative way. i cling to the past with all my might, my bedroom looks the same as it did 4 years ago, i obsessively collect/treasure things from the past (whether it be memories, feelings, smells, photos, or physical objects). most of my dreams are set in a place from my past or include people from my past, and i spend my nights either stressing about my future or being sad/happy over past things. one of my favourite games is also a time travel game about going into the past pffhaha i was wondering if you had any insights about this? obviously you can't see my handwriting here haha but just relating to the way i treat margins, is there any correlation with an obsession with past and future? ps. i also really appreciate that your videos have captions :D
I'd be interested to know what your slant is like, but from what you said about running out of room at the end of the page, that might be a manifestation of your anxiety about the future and about things ending, which is often what an obsession with the past betrays.
I always follow the left margin and completely ignore the right, but sometimes on the left side my writing starts to distance itself from the left line
about the baseline thing usually, my handwriting starts at the top of the line/what would be not being in touch reality, but some letters later it 'fixes' but starts to invade the line below at the end of the words what could this be?
Hmm-- def hard to say since I can’t see the handwriting as a whole, but usually when handwriting tries to “fix it self” like that, and bring itself back down- it means the writer is trying their best to stay grounded and not get too carried away or out of touch with their reality, but that’s not something they can maintain. It’s like they’re trying to reel themselves in, but it just ends up being this battle with themselves. Good question 🙏🏼💜
Before watching - If I’m just brain dumping I’ll respect margins then go back and write in the margins if needed with arrows. If I’m writing something I want to be super neat I’ll keep it close to the margin as possible. Edit - oh wow my personal journal creeps backwards more than forward but my writing journal creeps forward. So interesting! The second margin (future)I don’t use I write from margin to as close to the edge as I can.
I start on the left margin. Then stray to the right side. Then, I realise that I should come back and stick to the margins. It looks like pregnant bellies past margins. I do that even when I have lines to guide me.
i was told that you should start writing at the red line at the left side of the paper and try to stop by where the red line from the other side shows through the loose leaf on the right side of the paper
I checked back through my note books. I make a lot of notes. All my writing crosses the red line a bit. Like the first bottom stroke of a B or R. It also clings to the line. And I never noticed the faint blue line on the page. I write almost all the way to the edge of the page. I have so many note books that I write in through the day because my brain wont shut up, its constantly thinking at 100 miles an hour. Guess I am just one of the crazy ones. Thank you for your wonderful content, I really appreciate your hard work.
When writing, as a Lefty, I go a good half-inch from the Left Margin but also use most of the Right Margin to write comfortably, what does that say about me or do rules kinda go out the window with the Lefty Writing in Graphology
i write from the red line till i get near the blue line, then i start a new line sometimes i try to add a indent but oftentimes i forget, and i often cross out words since i prefer pen (it’s much smoother than pencil), but i allow the words to still be seen because of something my dad told me when i was younger, i don’t remember the details- but it was something about grading i also tend to slowly drift away from the margin after each line until i notice and then start at the red line again
this is a very interesting video! ive seen a few videos on what handwriting that slants to the left or to the right means. however, i didnt know that there was a whole different side to understanding handwriting like this! it's fascinating! :D
My english teacher in middle school was incredibly scary..... and she ENFORCED always starting your sentences ON the left margin. Directly on.... and if we didn't have our margins correctly lines up then we would have to rewrite whatever the assignment was. This has stayed with me and I am 23 years old in college. I ALWAYS start at the left margin for each and every new lines of writing.
I don’t know when I formed this habit, but I always skip the first line after the distinct header line and never write on the last line of lined paper. This is super interesting and 😍Amber😍
I cram into the right margin often because I’m not planning out my hyphenations or word length, and then run out of room. Handwriting isn’t like writing on a typewriter when you get a “ding” when you are approaching the margin and then a hard-stop unless you activate the margin release. Ok, I’m dating myself. 😂
When using lined paper, I find it a bit odd to say that it indicates tension/anxiety when their words "cling" to the baseline. Sure I might be generally anxious, and my lines just so happen to stay on the line. But I think that can also indicate someone who follows the rules. I can accuse myself of being a bit of a stickler for rules. If the lines are perfectly straight when using blank paper, that's odd and might be indicative of something more deep.
OMG, combine those first two examples, with the slant and move foreword, and you have me exactly from ages 5-7, and still describes me very well yep, use every inch of space, am tighter than the scots, don't cross the red line though, do cross horizontal, constant floating, all fits scarily well
It's weird that we've stuck to the portrait layout limits of typewriters for handwriting, documents, and website design, while changing our monitors to widescreen. I turn one of my monitors vertical for website viewing, since it requires far less scrolling.
Great video as always!! I love that not only do you analyze writing yourself ,but provide people with some of the tools to start doing it on their own!!! Also! Dream did a friendship application from a fan who posted it and ik your dms are broken but if you haven’t seen it I have the sc?Much better than the initial from the cards!
Wee hoo! Another leah lesson ^^ These videos are really entertaining and educating for whoever wants to use this however, i really enjoy seeing you upload videos about handwriting, its an intriguing topic that goes into so much detail like i love it! Keep it up! (Extra: what would it mean if you write on the left side of a red line but only if your thoughtfully constrcting a sentence and missed a word or want to add something in but theres no space in the whole of the lined page so you put the extra words before the red line or above the already written words but above it and smaller. Am i explaining that correctly???)
Oh geez .. i do some (many) of that stuff .. diagnosed DID .. makes so much sense ... there was a couple of the examples that i ‘don’t do’ (so glad) ... i don’t write on actual paper very much these days .. i thought my paper diaries were ridiculously mad to re-read at times ... but that says alot
I used to write starting writing on the whole line and then getting smaller forming a triangle until I got in trouble and had to re write work I did triangle margins in
After that I perfectly lined up with the faint margin on the next page, then my writin became illegible then when I got told to improve my wring I started drawing hearts on the eyes and everything was perfectly neat and then when I got told to stop drawing hearts my writing became illegible again and the heart became a v. Currently my writing is becoming obsessively perfect again until I run out of time and go back to illegible. I added more info, anyone who has done more research than me please tell me what this means.
with numbers I mainly notice regional differences.. like in the ways ppl from different countries were taught to write certain numbers in a diff way, but in general I can't get much from numbers other than what I can tell from the writing's size, angularity, and pressure/pressure patterns. hope that helps!!
My words, sometimes cling on to the lines, which does line up with your explaination, as I *do* have regular intrusive thoughts, so that does line up, when im writing personal notes in my school diary, i do ignore the lines and my hand writing gets all weird? it's shaky and long sometimes, or cursive and slant the others, really depends on how i feel that day. my usual handwriting that i use for school work is very different from my school diary handwriting
when im writing on lined paper, i normally write JUST above the line, i never REALLY touch the line unless its a descender. What would you read into that?
I almost always start on the first main line at the red line (where you're 'supposed' to start writing - depending what I'm writing about/doing) sometimes I'll start on the very top line (I do this especially when I need as much word space as possible like with note taking or things like showing work in math assignments). Always keep the red line - try very hard to not go over that, but the blue line is free-game. And often, very, very, very nearly always go completely over the blue line to the edge of the paper. I also almost always use the last line/bottom line. Again especially if I need the area. Like if I'm writing notes and this is the last bit of info I need for that chapter. I don't want to end the info on a new page/other side of the paper.
I always try to on baseline, if its above it, its prickles me all over and my left margins need to be loose and uniform, i try for right margins too but not that picky about it
a weird thing that i do, I disregard the horizontal line at the top(the space which is there to write topic, date, name, those kinda things). Idk i just have this weird need to start from the TOP of the page. other than that, i follow all rules but my handwriting does move a bit forward.
Interesting, but I feel like a lot of stuff isn't taken into consideration... most notebooks aimed at adults don't have line margins on the right, for one, and for another, in some cultures, lined notebooks are supposed to be grown out of by adulthood, by which time unlined paper is used. Similar to that, line spacing: in many cases, 10 mm is too large and reminiscent of notebooks for kids, sometimes, and narrower ruling (7mm/ college ruling and below) is preferred. Like Clairefontaine staplebound notebooks versus Leuchtturm 1917, for ex. Fountain pen users have to use specialty paper to handle the ink, which is often more expensive than printer paper or regular notebook paper. Sometimes there's scarcity involved, like a particular paper being discontinued, or from a specialty shop or imported from another country versus picked up from any drugstore for $5. Using the whole page in that case isn't necessarily reflective of a personality trait so much as reflective of handling that particular type of paper, given the context involved -- and due to being used to that kind of writing, that person will write the same way on cheaper paper, too, I think.
