Alva Lee Struthers Discussed the Implications of Physical Traits: 100 Years Ago in Insurance

Here is an article that appeared in the Dec. 29, 1921, issue of The National Underwriter Life Insurance Edition.

SEATTLE—The December meeting of the Seattle Association was featured by a scientific treatise of salesmanship by Alva Lee Struthers, a vocational expert from Vancouver, B.C.

The speaker analyzed the selling process and made clear that there is a mental transformation [that] takes place in the brain of the prospect at the time a sale is made.

The matter of character analysis through physical peculiarities was shown by selecting members of the audience, and a few of his deductions follow: If your hand is as hard as an inch board, you will be hard to convince; if your hand is soft like an overripe apple, you are easy to sell.

If the outer corner of your eye is much lower than the inner, you are willing to listen to figures.

If the outer corner is higher than the inner, figures are a bore.

If you have a wide nose and mouth, you like a good story; if they are narrow, you are “exclusive.”