Observation Mode

Observation Mode is the most common and possibly the least understood of the seven basic Modes in the Michael Teaching. Simply put, if you are in Observation Mode the first thing you will do in any situation is observe and evaluate it. You want to know what you're walking into and to you, that just seems obvious. Why would anyone approach life in any other way? Observation Mode people are also excellent at noticing details and tend to have very good memories. You not only remember your sister’s birthday party but also that she wore a pink floral dress. You also remember birthdays, anniversaries, and important dates in history, and all of this just seems normal to you.

What is harder to comprehend is that half the population at any one time is NOT in Observation Mode. Relevant details slip right by. Important information is forgotten or never heard in the first place. And many new adventures are faced with enthusiasm and no planning whatsoever. This is the way the “other half” may live. Some of the people not in Observation may think of you as cautious, although you can slide to Caution Mode or any other Modes for that matter, and occasionally you do, you are not particularly cautious. Although by nature, simply investigatory, you want to see what you're doing and where you're going. And anything less just doesn’t seem sensible.

Because fully half the population is in Observation, making it the most popular Mode of all, Observation can look like a state of normalcy. Enough people are not in Observation, however, to contest that perspective. And it's an interesting dance to see people with good observation skills interacting with and living with people with lower observation skills.

There is a reason why Observation Mode is the most commonly chosen Mode; it is not only the neutral mode, but it can slide most easily to any of the other six modalities. That can be useful. After all, people do not just observe life, they observe and then proceed. And use one of the other six modes to proceed forward. This means, those of you in Observation can understand quite clearly what it means to be in Cauton or Passion or any of the other Modes even while people in those modes do not really understand Observation Mode folk. So the insights are not mutual. As you can imagine, this can lead to misunderstandings, and a frequent complaint of Observation Mode people is that others did not pay enough attention to remember something important. They can assign a meaning to this perceived flaw and decide that it means people in other modes simply don’t care. This is not true, however; other folk are just wired differently, and once that’s recognized, it's easier to have a sense of humor about it.