Our ability to recognize one familiar face out of the
6.7 billion other possible faces on the planet is a remarkable
form of face reading. However, on another level there
is also an instinctive response to faces on a sub-conscious
pattern recognition level. For example, we often associate
brainy people as having prominent foreheads. I have found
in my workshops and classes that if I show the group a
picture of two men and ask them to pick the one they think
is the college professor, a disproportionate number will
choose the one with the largest forehead. When asked why
they picked the picture with the largest forehead as the
college professor the answer I often get is, " I
don't know, he just looked smart." Besides the relative
size, we are also responding to the shape, width, and
angle of the forehead on a level we are seldom consciously
aware of.
Understanding a person's thinking style allows for more
effective communication and connection. For example, if
we can become consciously aware that the person with the
round full forehead has a strong reaction to feeling micro-managed
and resists being forced to do something in a repetitive
or restricted way, that awareness on our part, may allow
us to give them the space they need to try it their way
first before we criticize or find fault. They may come
up with something we haven't thought of.
If we are dealing with a person who has a straight forehead,
with face reading awareness, we may find the patience
to restrain ourselves from interrupting their systematic
step by step explanation even if we think we know what
they are going to say. Interrupting their flow can lead
to a breakdown which will result in it taking even more
time to communicate.
Finally, if we feel like we didn't get a sufficient explanation
from the person with the hatchback forehead, instead of
taking it personally, we can understand that in their
mind there was only one way to do the task. Therefore,
it did not need a further explanation. Because it seems
so clear to them, they may just be assuming that everyone
has that same perspective.