Meet Ken Lay

former chairman of Enron Corporation

** (Click here to listen to a brief analysis) **

Do you know this face? It belonged to Kenneth Lay, former chairman of the now defunct Enron Corporation. He died in 2006.

Mr. Lay's face embodied many characteristics of someone who--because of their innate personality--can be an effective corporate leader. Why do I say that?

What I notice first is his forehead. See how wide it is, especially compared to the width of his chin? That's the sign of a manager. He naturally needs to be in charge. He is also highly practical. The other interesting thing about this trait is that people with this feature are almost always looked up to by others. That's because they tend to have personalities that dominate and loom larger than the rest of us.

Now look at Mr. Lay's eyes. Intuitively you might feel that they are not "kind" eyes. You're right from a face reader's viewpoint, too. The shape and structure of his eyes are a clear sign that Kenneth Lay was not someone who has others' best interests at heart.

Next, notice how wide his entire head is, not just the forehead. I can tell from that trait that Mr. Lay retained everything. He was probably excellent remembering with names and faces, and just about anything else that interested him. Plus, he probably had a house full of objects that he collected throughout his life.

But the question that many people asked about Kenneth Lay is: could we have predicted from his face that he might be a scoundrel? Does he have the personality of someone who would intentionally rob others of their money for his own, or his company's, benefit?

We can't tell a person's CHARACTER from their face. However, what we can tell is that Mr. Lay was certainly smart enough (he was brilliant); he certainly had the ability to put aside others' well-being for the sake of his own; I can tell you that he could easily compromise his values; and I also see that he was a risk-taker. In some people, that can add up to criminal behavior.

Want to know more? In a nutshell...Ken Lay can be highly persuasive, a born salesman...He is a risk-taker and is very willing to put himself in harm's way, thinking nothing can happen to him...He doesn't value "truth" and has the ability to deceive others...He is highly critical of others and very good at discerning what they could do to improve themselves and their efforts...He is extremely pragmatic.