[Harumanbo Harucheonja] "To strengthen brain muscles, I write for 20 minutes daily... holding a pen instead of dumbbells"

'Korea's First Handwriting Expert' Gubonjhin, CEO and Lead Attorney of Roplex
Revealing Inner Self Through Handwriting
"Practicing Writing Helps Brain Health and Character Development"

[Asia Economy Reporter Myunghwan Lee] "Practicing handwriting only requires scrap paper and a ballpoint pen. It costs just a few thousand won a month at most, and you can do it anytime, anywhere, in your spare moments."

In an interview with Asia Economy, Bonjin Koo, the representative lawyer of Lawflex Law Firm, explained the advantages of transcription practice this way. He said it is the best method to develop brain health and inner self without being constrained by time or place.

Attorney Koo Bon-jin, a handwriting expert and the representative of the law firm Roflex. He is talking about handwriting and people while looking at the handwritten note by independence activist Kim Kyu-sik hanging in his office. Photo by Heo Young-han younghan@

Lawyer Koo is famous as the "first graphologist in Korea." He academically studied Korean graphology, which had not been properly researched domestically. Graphology is a research method that analyzes handwriting in detail, examining the shape, size, slant, spacing of letters to understand an individual's personality and inner traits. What drew a legal professional with nearly 30 years of experience to the charm of graphology?

Koo is a former violent crimes prosecutor. While working in the violent crimes division, he often encountered heinous criminals such as murderers, robbers, and drug offenders. While receiving written confessions for investigations, he noticed the unusual handwriting of violent criminals, which differed from that of ordinary people. Many had crooked or irregularly spaced handwriting.

This sparked his interest in graphology, and he began researching by personally acquiring foreign graphology books and papers. While graphology research on Roman alphabets and Japanese characters was actively conducted abroad, there was virtually no research on Korean graphology at that time.

Handwriting expert and CEO of Law Firm Roflex, Attorney Bonjin Koo. Photo by Younghan Heo younghan@

He first started collecting handwriting samples. Beginning with a gift of handwriting from independence activist Myeonwoo Kwak Jong-seok, he started collecting autographs of independence activists. Later, he expanded his collection to include handwriting of pro-Japanese collaborators and famous figures. Even now, Lawyer Koo's office is filled with autograph collections of celebrities he personally gathered. Based on this, he has been researching Korean graphology for over 20 years.

Though graphology may seem unscientific at first glance, it is already widely used abroad. In a bombing case in Switzerland, handwriting analysis of a letter sent by the suspect helped identify the culprit, who eventually confessed, providing a breakthrough in the case. In the U.S. anthrax mail terror case, the FBI identified the suspect through handwriting analysis. Thus, handwriting analysis is used overseas to solve cases.

Lawyer Koo emphasizes that handwriting reveals a person's inner self more than nonverbal cues like tone or eye contact. Specifically, he explained that one can discern introverted or extroverted traits and decisiveness through spacing, direction, and the shapes of consonants and vowels in handwriting.

Can changing handwriting also change a person's inner self? Lawyer Koo confidently answered, "It can definitely be changed." Just as in the East, character was cultivated through calligraphy, practicing changing handwriting steadily once a day can transform a person.

The handwriting of the late Chung Ju-yung, Honorary Chairman of Hyundai Group. / Photo by Gu Bon-jin

The best handwriting, according to Lawyer Koo, is that of the late Chung Ju-young, Honorary Chairman of Hyundai Group. He described Chairman Chung's handwriting as a typical "wealthy person's handwriting." Lawyer Koo analyzed, "Chairman Chung's handwriting has all the traits of a successful person: long horizontal lines indicate patience, tightly closed consonants show decisiveness, and upward slanting letters reflect positive thinking." He added that Lee Byung-chul, founder of Samsung Group, Jack Ma, chairman of Alibaba Group, and Masayoshi Son, chairman of SoftBank, show similar handwriting traits.

On the other hand, there are handwriting styles to avoid. First, handwriting that is difficult to read should be avoided as it fails as a communication tool. Also, handwriting that slopes downward to the right as one writes is often interpreted negatively and should be refrained from.

Handwriting expert and CEO of Law Firm Roflex, Attorney Koo Bon-jin, is writing a message supporting Asia Economy with a pen. Photo by Heo Young-han younghan@

Lawyer Koo stressed that nothing helps brain health and character cultivation more than handwriting practice. It is a good method to maintain brain health and develop the inner self with little cost and without being restricted by time or place. He recommends practicing transcription steadily for about 20 minutes a day. He advised, "Writing 1,000 characters a day takes just under 20 minutes. Practicing like this for 6 to 8 weeks will change the brain and be very beneficial."

He also advised that handwriting practice is the best way to change the inner self. Handwriting has two functions: communication and inner transformation. With the development of information technology (IT), its role as a communication tool is declining. However, handwriting practice remains an excellent method for inner change, Lawyer Koo emphasized. He said, "If you practice transcription with a desirable handwriting style or one that reflects the human ideal you aspire to, it will improve even more."

Below is Lawyer Koo's main career history.

▶ Born in Seoul, 1965 ▶ Bachelor’s in Law, Seoul National University; Ph.D. in Law, same university graduate school ▶ Passed the 30th Judicial Examination; 20th Judicial Research and Training Institute ▶ Director of Information and Communications at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office ▶ Head of Advanced Crime Investigation Division, Seoul Central District Prosecutors' Office ▶ Deputy Chief Prosecutor, Ulsan District Prosecutors' Office ▶ Deputy Chief Prosecutor, Seoul Southern District Prosecutors' Office ▶ Chief Prosecutor, Seongnam Branch, Suwon District Prosecutors' Office ▶ Current Representative Lawyer, Lawflex Law Firm; Member of Korea Copyright Commission