THE SEVEN HABITS OF HIGHLY EFFECTIVE PEOPLE
–Stephen R. Covey
Even many who have great outward success feel like–and are–failures. It shows in their relationships with themselves and with others. They are deeply unhappy, even as they seem to enjoy success. During the past 50 years there has been an emphasis on the “personality ethic”: public image, social consciousness, techniques for success, quick fixes. Prior to that the emphasis was on a “character ethic”: integrity, courage, justice, patience, hard work, and the golden rule. The former focuses on the development of skills, the latter on the development of character. The former is manipulative, the latter tries to build others as well as oneself. The character ethic requires internalization of the following habits, developed through desire, knowledge, and continual practice. The goal is to grow from dependence, through independence, toward a synergistic interdependence.
Private Victory
1] Be proactive: You are responsible. Choose your responses
2] Begin with the end in mind: This is a “spiritual creation”
3] Put first things first: This is a principle of pragmatic faith
Public Victory
4] Think win/win: If everyone involved does not win, it is not worth doing
5] Seek first to understand, then to be understood: Have you ever noticed in arguments people do not even listen to the other side?
6] Synergize: The goal of interdependence. Think what little you could accomplish if you had to do everything yourself!
Renewal
7]Sharpen the saw: Education, recreation, spiritual renewal, friends, exercise. All things in balance