Your mode in the Michael Teachings overleaf framework is your interaction with life.  While the Goal is what you want to learn about in life, within the context of your Role and Soul Age, your mode is how you approach it.

Like all the overleaves, there are 7 of them, with 3 pairs across the axis' of Inspiration, Expression, and Action, and the single overleaf on the Assimilation axis. The pairs are grouped into the Ordinal and Cardinal Overleaf.

Reservation

Those in reserve approach life with care and restraint.  While not necessarily overtly cautious, like the caution mode, those with the reserve mode are more dignified, bringing a more pristine and careful modality to how they live their lives.  A good example of this is the ballet dancer: years of training go into making sure each move is repeatable, fluid, and full of grace.  There is no desire for the spontaneity of free-form dancing, which is more related to its partner, the Passion Mode.  The stereotypical "I can't show any feelings" british Jane Austen character is also of the Reserve Mode; this mode has strongly affected British upper class culture.

As the more Cardinal modes are about gathering experience, the Ordinal modes of Reservation, Caution, and Persistance are more about processing existing experience.  There will be less tendancy to get into drama or emotive explosions with these modes.  As the most Ordinal of modes, resonating with the number one, this is the most inner-focused mode.  It is related to the Re-evaluation goal and to the Server.

Being on the Inspiration axis, there is an inspiring quality to this mode.  In the positive pole, there is a quality of peace and not adding to anyone's troubles.  The positive pole is +Restraint, in which there is a quality of being in control of one's self - intellect, emotions, and actions - without suppressing them or denying them.  There is peace within restraint in this manner.

The negative pole is -Inhibition, in which suppression and denial are the route to achieving the quality of reservation.  There is a quality of being "stuck" as the inward journey has far enough that connection to desires and to Self has been lost.

Caution

Those in caution mode tend to dip their feet in life gradually.  Rather than bring their energy forward in a directed rush like its complement of Power mode, there is an entension of awareness into possibilities that is explored before a choice is made.  This is much like how the Role of Artisan explores a particular artistic project through various inputs before its creation.  Because there is so much exploration, it can use much energy before balance is attained between moving forward and exploring possibilities.

Make no mistake, caution is on the Expression Axis.  It can be a very emotional and expressive experience, because to someone in Caution mode, the possibilities are lived somewhat in advance.  Being ordinal, it is a mode designed to increase connection to Self and therefore enhance some sensitivities.  There can be great advantages in choosing this if Essence desires to expand on these sensitivities and expression.  Such a mode can do wonders for a painter of masterpieces, for example, for the painting is explored beforehand so as the right choices can be made with deliberation.

+Deliberation is the positive pole of caution, whereas -Phobia is the negative pole.  Deliberation is the proper balance between the exploration of possibilities described above and a definitive choice, creating movement.  This is a gateway to the balancing mode, the Power Mode.  In -Phobia, essentially all of life is lived in exploration of possibilities and there is a feedback loop which creates very heightened sensitivities.  This can result in a retreat from live, although those in the negative pole do not always think of this as such.

Perseverance

Those in Perseverance will tend to always have a steady source of action- focused energy that will help them continue on their endeavors and rarely give up.  Like its Warrior Role counterpart, there is a sense of single-directedness that will help the fragment choosing this energy to meet many physical challenges.  Thomas Edison is a good example of this mode, trying literally hundreds of possibilities without exhaustion before finding the right combination of elements for the light bulb.

While perseverance can look somewhat like Stubbornness, that Chief Feature is truly on a different axis and energy.  Perseverance is about accessing a source of steady energy and in its positive pole has little to do with defence or fear of the unknown.  There is a very real joy in persevering to completion.

The positive pole is +persistence, in which the energy for an endeavor is maintained despite any obstacle, yet there are no "blinders" up as to the difficulties involved.  The negative pole of -immutability can indeed look much like Stubbornness in that there is little flexibility involved.  The energy has set its course and while there is direction given to it, there is no flexibility and so the person may literally be trying to move a mountain until exhaustion sets in.

Observation

Observation is by far the most common mode; 50 percent of all human personalities are incarnated with this mode. In this mode, the person takes a step back and observes life even as they are involved in it. There is a detached quality, related to the Scholar Role that encourages insight and learning.

It is this learning quality that creates the impetus why Essence chooses this mode so often.  Being neutral, it mixes well with all other Goals and Attitudes, and will create a focus on awareness of choices to balance more outward-directed overleaves.  In combination with ordinal, inward focused overleaves, it will aid in being objective so that a fragment is not stuck in "staring at their navel" for an entire lifetime.

Because the mode is essentially how a person interacts with life, enjoyments will often be related to watching, and this will show up in the fragments Trues, such as True Rest and True Study.   "Watching kites go by" is a fine example.

The positive pole of observation is +clarity.  This energy strikes the balance between allowing "the observer" to be present while most definitely living the life and being involved.  There is participation in every moment, and this allows the innate perceptions from within to manifest in clarity.  The negative pole is -surveillance, in which there is a withdrawl into observing life from afar rather than living it.  This is on an energetic level; sometimes the fragment is very active, but within a high tower in their psyche, not being truly touched by life.

Power

Power mode is the Cardinal mode on the Expression Axis. This means that Power mode you will feel. Someone with this mode generally desires to make ripples in powerful ways.

Perhaps the best example of this is Al Pacino in the movie "Scent of a Woman". Whatever state he is in, whatever thought he is having, he expresses it powerfully in a way that gets through to others. In the positive pole this is +authority, a sense of inner power and connection to self that moves outward without interfering with others' perceptions and choices. In the negative pole this is -oppression, a constant pushing outward that seeks to make up for a lack of perceived inner power by using power over others.

Because this is a mode, the focus of Power is about interaction and moving in the world. It is different from the goal of Dominance in that it is not a goal, it is a means of achieving whatever goal the Essence has chosen.

If Imprinting in childhood and other experiences has taught someone that using this mode can create intense negative reactions in others, then there will be either repression of the energy or discernment of where to use the energy. In this case, the lion is silent until it decides to roar.

Passion

Passion mode is an intense, yet inspiring experience. Passion throws itself into everything, bringing on intense joy, suffering, sadness, and hope - the full range of the human experience of intensity.

The positive pole is +self-actualisation, in which the experience of Self is known through these intense experiences. Through experiences of connection in the world, you constantly discover your Self. In the negative pole of - identification, there is a loss of connection to Self as you identify with your experience to the degree of not seeing anything else. If you see someone starving from this pole, you would intensely identify with them, fight for them and speak out without necessarily seeing context or the most effective way of action. It is often an intensely emotional experience for all around.

Aggression

Often people have a negative association with the word Aggression. It is true that of all the modes, this is the one you feel the most, as it is the most Cardinal and outward focused. At the same time, a manifested aggression mode can be intensely beautiful, motivating, and dynamic. Tigers in the wild can show this quality of aggression in its natural state.

Those in aggression mode typically have chosen to have a large source of energy within which can require constant action externally. They need to "push" outward in some way, but there is enormous flexibility in how this can be done.

The life of the spiritual teacher J.K.Krishnamurthi is an example of the aggression mode turned into spiritual pursuits. Mike Tyson is an example of aggression in more typical pugilistic expression. The TV character of "House, MD" is also in aggression mode, albeit with a goal of Rejection.

The positive pole of Agression is +Dynamism, a very motivational outward focused state. In this state, the large internal reservoirs of energy go outward without resistance or looking for battles. There is less perception of separation, and thus the response is different than in the negative pole of -Belligerence.