If you get the opportunity, by all means read Stephen Covey's The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. Thinking the book was for executives or those who aspired to be business executives only and I am neither of these, I haven't - yet. This post is the result of some research I did for a series of articles I was assigned on the subject of self development. I spent a couple of hours on the Stephen R Covey website and came away feeling positively renewed. If you don't have a couple of hours to spare, here are The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People in 7 minutes:
1) Be Proactive: Covey stresses the importance of moving from a state of dependence, to a state of independence and finally to a state of interdependence with others. Being proactive means taking charge of your own life instead of letting outside influences take charge of you. This makes you independent
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2) Begin with the End in Mind: This one is basically about goal setting, but with a twist that makes all the difference. I have always associated goal setting with business or wealth creation goals. This is true enough, but Covey gave me a larger vision of what it means. A person who sets goals is a person who lives fully rather than just letting life happen to him.
3) Put First Things First: In a nutshell, this, the third of Stephen Covey's The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, tells us that part of integrity is in commitment. The reason why effective people use appointment books, prioritize their daily schedules and focus on the minutiae of they daily agendas is because they are committed to their work.
4) Think Win-Win: Why is "Win-Win" more effective than "win at all costs"? It's because if you have long term goals, they will most effectively be achieved through cooperative efforts. A "win-win" attitude not only reflects personal maturity and strength of character, it has practical benefits as well.
5) Seek First to Understand, then to be Understood: This is a reversal of the all-too-common human characteristic of "getting your point across" and "having your say." Just a moment's reflection on the quagmire the world is in should make it clear that if our leaders were listening to each other instead of shouting at one another, we would be finding solutions to our common problems. This is as true on a personal level as on a corporate or political level.
6) Synergize: Stephen Covey sums this up with the old adage, "Two heads are better than one." Synergy is working together. Confucius put the alternative to synergy well when he said, "The knowledge of one man is always one-sided and incomplete."
7) Sharpen the Saw: Here, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People turns back to the individual. You cannot be fully effective if you neglect your physical, emotional, intellectual and spiritual maintenance and growth.
Like I said, I've never read The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People because I am neither a business executive nor aspire to be one. What I do aspire to be, though, is a better person and a better writer. While his book is primarily geared towards the business person, or at least was marketed as such when it was released in 1989, his message is universal. A Buddhist monk, whose only aspiration is spiritual enlightenment, could learn from The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. A housewife whose only aspiration is to be a better mother could learn from the book. Whatever your goals are in life, I believe applying the 7 habits can help you achieve them. But don't take my word for it. I haven't even read The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People - yet.