Michael was primarily a slow, methodical thinker. He did not like to be rushed in his thinking and may have needed certain unfamiliar subjects repeated before he could grasp them completely. This manner of thinking helped to curb some of his natural impulsiveness by giving him time to think before acting. The main problem with this type of thinking was that Michael would have accepted what he was told or what he saw, built one fact upon another as though building a brick wall, then he would have come up with his conclusions. In this way, his conclusions may not always have been accurate as the information he based them on was taken only at face value.

At times, Michael would inquire into a subject further, but only to get enough information for what he needed at that point and time. Now and then, he would take the time to sift, weigh and evaluate certain information which slowed down his thinking even more, but would also give him much more accurate conclusions. Every once in a great while, the unknown intrigued him, but again, he would explore only enough to satisfy what he needed to know at the moment.

Traits that intensified Michael's thinking are discussed in the next two paragraphs. Michael showed a strong desire for responsibility. This says that he was reaching for a higher degree of self-value by seeking to assume roles that would make him more important in the eyes of other people. It also shows that he wished to improve his own opinion of himself. Also an aid to his methodical thinking was his care concerning many details. This trait enabled him to think out details of a problem, cut down on mistakes and saved him time through preparing carefully. As an independent thinker much of the time, Michael often formed his own conclusions without worrying about how others viewed things, then he patterned his behavior on his conclusions. This simply means that he thought for himself and acted in the way he felt was best for him. In Michael's case, his independent thinking related to the way he lived - his every day actions and habits. At times his thinking and speech carried a certain amount of rhythm which helped his ideas gain momentum and move forward. This rhythm also was somewhat helpful in controlling some of his emotion. Every once in a while, Michael would allow himself to be a little more conventional in his thinking.

Michael could, upon occasion, focus his attention on one subject at a time. There is some evidence of loyalty which would have strengthened his opinions a bit, and some organizational ability which allowed him to organize his thoughts in a manner that was comprehendable to himself and others. Once in a great while, Michael would willingly tolerate the ideas and opinions of others and at the same time express thoughts and ideas with ease. Upon rare occasions, he was willing to give or share his ideas with others without expecting anything in return, and there were a few concepts that he felt the need to cling to.

The traits discussed in this paragraph show reductive areas in Michael's thinking. There were times when Michael could not help but act impulsively - giving little or no thought to the consequences that would result from what he did. Sometimes making a definite decision was difficult for him. Occasionally, he would jump to conclusions without gathering necessary facts, forming prejudices which limited his learning and understanding. There is some evidence that Michael unconsciously refused to face facts of a problem or situation to escape from dealing with unpleasant truths. He made some avoidable mistakes as well by only taking enough time to skim the surface of certain subjects. A little softness in his thinking sometimes caused uncertainty, changeableness and a muddled point of view, and on rare occasions he absolutely refused to consider any ideas coming from someone else.