School Principal 3, the one who knew he could take charge was a present type person. Dr Mann and her colleagues theorize that this time type responds without hesitation to the stimulus presented by the object or person before him. No prearranged plan or commitment gets in this type's way, according to Mann's research.

A present type is superbly equipped to deal with crises and emergencies. He responds to slight cues and acts immediately. He doesn't have to decide between various courses of action. The event itself tells him what to do.

Your brother, for example, might be a present type. He is happy as a policeman, making quick decisions and acting promptly. Or he is a volunteer Red Cross organizer, quick with answers in a flood disaster area.

Because he does not feel any future, even a slightly delay will annoy a present type. Waiting is the same as denial. He will not wait, he may try to manoeuvre others into his wishes and if unable to get his own way, is quite likely to dissolve the relationship.

The fourth type is the person who places faith in the future. He first perceives the future and then works backwards from that vision into, for him, the lesser reality of the present. Future types are more concerned with trying to ascertain what is possible rather than what exists now.

For one of this type, the present is a pale shadow, the past a mist, warmth and sunshine, bright light and excitement are to be found beyond the next bend in the road, on the other side of the mountain.