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3.10.06

Face off and ‘prosopagnosia'

Face blindness! Good piece about this in Management Today.
I’ve suffered from this since I left the womb – admittedly I’m also dyslexic too (had to do the spell check on that one!) and always see the glass as half full rather than half empty, which a suprising number of people also see as a handicap.
Also known as ‘prosopagnosia', face blindness means the inability to recognise faces even though your eyesight is perfectly good, However, when I’m introduced to Jim at a party – I continue to address him variously as Tim, Tom, John and Abdul.
We know it all too well from the PR party circuit, and everyone suffers from it, especially when the really important person is heading your way. At this point I break into a sweat and can't see their face at all.
The Yanks describe it as 'cutting people dead' but I am English and I prefer to think we are just being polite and, by avoiding any embarrassment, we pretend we're suddenly developed a deep fascination in the flower arrangements.
Prosopagnosia is best treated with American sang froid (do they have that?) by asking “how are you?' then moving on before they can respond.
Anyway… who are you?

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