stephen covey's seven habits of highly effective people review the seven habits of highly effective people® Dr Stephen Covey's inspirational book - 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People® Dr Stephen Covey (1932-2012) was and remains a hugely influential management guru. Covey's most famous book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, became a blueprint for personal development when it was published in 1990. The principles may be used for life in general - they are not limited to workplaces, management, leadership, etc. Covey's concepts actually can help people to grow, change, and become more effective in really any other aspect of human responsibility that you might imagine. Covey's Seven Habits are easy to understand, but like all the best and simplest models, can be a little more difficult to apply in practice. The 'Habits' seem very simple, and in many ways they are, yet to varying degrees they may entail quite serious changes to thinking and acting. Be inspired by Covey's ideas nevertheless. They are wonderful.

The 'Seven Habits' are a remarkable set of inspirational and aspirational standards for anyone who seeks to live a full, purposeful and good life, and are applicable today more than ever, as the business world - and life beyond business and work - become more attuned to humanist concepts. Covey's values are full of integrity and humanity, and contrast strongly with the authority-driven process-based ideologies that characterize management and leadership thinking in earlier times. Indeed Covey's methods extend and adapt with increasing relevance to many more areas in the modern world, for example parenting, relationships, mediation, counselling, etc. Stephen Covey, as well as being a renowned writer, speaker, academic and humanist, also built a huge training and consultancy products and services business - Franklin Covey which has a global reach. Stephen Covey at one time or other also consulted with and provided training services to most of the world's leading corporations. Covey produced a substantial body of educational and teaching work. The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People was his first significantly popular creation, and probably remains his greatest. Here is a quick summary. I encourage you to explore and use his ideas.

Stephen Covey's Seven Habits of Highly Effective People® habit 1 - be proactive® This is the ability to control one's environment, rather than have it control you, as is so often the case. Self determination, choice, and the power to decide response to stimulus, conditions and circumstances habit 2 - begin with the end in mind® Covey calls this the habit of personal leadership - leading oneself that is, towards what you consider your aims. By developing the habit of concentrating on relevant activities you will build a platform to avoid distractions and become more productive and successful. habit 3 - put first things first® Covey calls this the habit of personal management. This is about organising and implementing activities in line with the aims established in habit 2. Covey says that habit 2 is the first, or mental creation; habit 3 is the second, or physical creation. (See the section on time management .) habit 4 - think win-win® Covey calls this the habit of interpersonal leadership, necessary because achievements are largely dependent on co-operative efforts with others.

He says that win-win is based on the assumption that there is plenty for everyone, and that success follows a co-operative approach more naturally than the confrontation of win-or-lose. habit 5 - seek first to understand and then to be understood® One of the great maxims of the modern age. This is Covey's habit of communication, and it's extremely powerful. Covey helps to explain this in his simple analogy 'diagnose before you prescribe'. Simple and effective, and essential for developing and maintaining positive relationships in all aspects of life. (See the associated sections on Empathy , Transactional Analysis , and the Johari Window .) habit 6 - synergize® Covey says this is the habit of creative co-operation - the principle that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts, which implicitly lays down the challenge to see the good and potential in the other person's contribution. habit 7 - sharpen the saw® This is the habit of self renewal, says Covey, and it necessarily surrounds all the other habits, enabling and encouraging them to happen and grow. Covey interprets the self into four parts: the spiritual, mental, physical and the social/emotional, which all need feeding and developing.

Stephen Covey's Seven Habits are a simple set of rules for life - inter-related and synergistic, and yet each one powerful and worthy of adopting and following in its own right. For many people, reading Covey's work, or listening to him speak (now in recordings, videos, etc), literally changes their lives. Covey's thinking is powerful stuff indeed and highly recommended. This 7 Habits summary is just a brief overview - the full work is fascinating, comprehensive, and thoroughly uplifting. Read the book, or listen to the full audio series, which is particularly impressive because it features Covey speaking to an audience. In his more recent book 'The 8th Habit', Stephen Covey introduced (logically) an the eighth habit, which deals with personal fulfilment and helping others to achieve fulfilment too, which aligns helpfully with Maslow's notions of 'Self-Actualization' and 'Transcendence' in the Hierarchy of Needs model , and also with the later life-stages in Erikson's Psychosocial Life-Stage Theory . The 8th Habit book also focuses on leadership, another distinct aspect of fulfilment through helping others.

Time will tell whether the The 8th Habit achieves recognition and reputation close to Covey's classic original 7 Habits work. N.B. Various phrases on this page are registered trade marks belonging to Stephen Covey . Stephen Covey's principles are protected intellectual property and feature strongly in the Franklin Covey organization's portfolio of products and services. see also Stephen R. Covey, Herald of Good Habits, Dies at 79 - The New York Times The New York Times Business Day |Stephen R. Covey, Herald of Good Habits, Dies at 79 Search Continue reading the main story Stephen R. Covey, who won a global following and a five-year run on best-seller lists by fusing the genres of self-help and business literature in his 1989 book “The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People: Restoring the Character Ethic,” died on Monday at a hospital in Idaho Falls, Idaho. He was 79. The cause was complications of a bicycle accident three months ago, his family said in a statement. Mr. Covey’s book sold more than 25 million copies worldwide, and also became the first audiobook to sell more than a million copies.

After conferring with Mr. Covey over Thanksgiving in 1994, President Bill Clinton said American productivity would greatly increase if people followed Mr. Covey’s advice. More than two-thirds of Fortune 500 companies flocked to use a consulting company he had founded. Mr. Covey was a bit baffled by his success. He said he was simply telling people what he thought they already knew: the efficacy of good behavior. All that people had to do was form habits out of their best instincts, he said, calling his seven nuggets of knowledge natural laws, like gravity. They are: 1. Be proactive 2. Begin with the end in mind 3. Put first things first 4. Think “win-win.” 5. Seek first to understand, then to be understood 6. Synergize 7. Sharpen the saw; that is, undergo frequent self-renewal. “We believe that organizational behavior is individual behavior collectivized,” Mr. Covey said. He expanded the lesson in 2004 in “The 8th Habit: From Effectiveness to Greatness,” in which he urges people to find their own distinctive voices and to encourage others to find theirs.

Continue reading the main story Among his other books, “Seven Habits for Highly Effective Families,” published in 1997, advocates that families come up with mission statements. “The Leader in Me,” published in 2008, embodies his ideas for educational reform. His goal was to change society, he said, calling his catechism first and foremost an action plan. “What is common sense isn’t common practice,” he declared. Advertisement Continue reading the main story Mr. Covey was a Mormon, and some saw large elements of Mormon theology in his work, though his language was ecumenical. He denied any Mormon bias in his books, saying he drew inspiration from the Scriptures and from history’s great thinkers. In 1996, Time magazine named Mr. Covey one of the 25 most influential Americans, and Forbes called “Seven Habits” one of the top 10 business management books ever. As speaker of the House, Newt Gingrich drew on Mr. Covey’s advice and asked him to help write a chapter on personal strength in American culture for a student reading in a college course Mr. Gingrich taught. “Seven Habits” became part of the vernacular.

Campaigning in the Iowa Republican primary last year, Mitt Romney referred to the book in offering his “seven habits for highly successful economies.” Parodies have cropped up. One, published in 1996, was titled “The 7 Habits of Highly Defective People: And Other Bestsellers That Won’t Go Away.” Photo Stephen R. Covey in 2010. Credit Luis Tejido/European Pressphoto Agency Stephen Richards Covey was born on Oct. 24, 1932, in Salt Lake City, and grew up on an egg farm outside the city. A promising athletic career was cut short by degeneration in his legs, causing him to use crutches for three years as a teenager. In an interview with Fortune magazine in 1994, he told of his parents’ constant encouragement. “You’re going to do great on this test,” he remembered his mother saying as he went to sleep the night before a school exam. “You can do anything you want.” He entered the University of Utah at 16 and earned a degree in business administration. He spent two years in Britain as a Mormon missionary before returning to the United States to earn an M.B.A. from Harvard Business School.

He sometimes preached the Mormon doctrine on Boston Common. After another missionary stint, in Ireland, he earned a doctorate in religious education from Brigham Young University. His thesis was on “success literature” in American history. At Brigham Young, he became an assistant to the university’s president and began teaching his self-help ideas on campus, drawing as many as 1,000 students in a single class. In 1983 he gambled everything he owned on starting the Covey Leadership Center, a training and consulting concern in Provo, Utah. Advertisement Continue reading the main story In 1997 it merged with Franklin Quest, founded by Hyrum Smith, a time-management expert, to become the Franklin Covey Company . It now operates in more than 50 countries and had $160.8 million in sales last year. Mr. Covey is survived by his wife, the former Sandra Merrill; nine children; and more than 50 grandchildren. Mr. Covey hated to waste time. He made copies of documents and kept them in briefcases under his desk in case he lost an original. And he liked to do more than one thing at a time.

Fortune reported that he was once seen at a gym lying on the floor of the shower room being sprayed by three shower heads while he brushed his teeth and shaved. In explaining his second recommended habit — Begin with the end in mind — Mr. Covey urged people to consider how they would like to be remembered. “If you carefully consider what you want to be said of you in the funeral experience,” he said, “you will find your definition of success.” A version of this article appears in print on July 17, 2012, on Page A22 of the New York edition with the headline: Stephen R. Covey, Herald Of Good Habits, Dies at 79. Order Reprints | Today's Paper | Subscribe Stephen Covey, A Highly Effective Leader - Success Magazine Stephen Covey, A Highly Effective Leader Over the past six months, the world has witnessed the financial consequences of what happens when the basic principles of honesty, thrift, living within your means and saving for a rainy day are substituted for a me-first, win-at-all-cost, grab-all-the-money-you-can kind of culture.

What is needed more now than ever is a dose of common sense, back-to-basics thinking—a commitment to tried-and-true principles that best-selling author, entrepreneur and leadership icon Stephen Covey has taught throughout his distinguished career. "Financial success—prestige, wealth, recognition, accomplishment—will always be secondary in greatness," Covey says. "Primary greatness is about character and contribution. Primary greatness asks, What are you doing to make a difference in the world? Do you live truly by your values? Do you have total integrity in all of your relationships? And when correct principles are not followed or ignored, the result can be catastrophic as we have witnessed the past year in the financial markets." Money, whether in government or on Wall Street, can change one's motivation and integrity if money is the No. 1 objective, Covey says. "At this crucial time in our history, we need leaders who can affirm other people's worth and potential to help them find their voice," he says. Sound advice like this has made Covey one of the most sought-after voices in business, education and government.

To date, Covey has personally taught 36 heads of state, and his company, FranklinCovey, has worked with 800 of the Fortune 1,000 companies. Covey has seen and done it all when it comes to helping people from all walks of life realize the greatness that lies within them. His first book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, which has sold more than 20 million copies worldwide, was named the most influential business book of the 20th century by Forbes magazine. (The audio version became the first nonfiction audio-book in U.S. publishing history to sell more than 1 million copies.) In 1996, TIME magazine named Covey one of the 25 most influential Americans. Tens of millions of people in business, government, schools and families have greatly benefited by applying the principles of Covey's classic book. Born in 1932 in Salt Lake City, Covey benefited from strong family influences. His mother and father constantly confirmed his worth and potential even as a young child. His business acumen was fostered by his Grandfather Covey, an entrepreneur who set up businesses all over the western United States.

The spiritual side that is so prevalent in Covey's books results in part from many days at the knee of his Grandpa Richards, who was a great spiritual leader in his church. Being the eldest sibling, Stephen Covey was the heir apparent destined to take over the family business, which owned several hotels, motels and lots of land. But he found his calling elsewhere. While serving his church as a young missionary in Great Britain, he had a mentor who taught him the art of training leaders. Although he felt inadequate for the job at first, his mentor saw in him a rare and natural talent. Covey says he had never experienced such satisfaction than training those leaders and soon developed a passion for teaching. After he finished his academic work at Harvard Business School, he made it known to his father that he would not be taking over the family business, but instead wanted to teach principles that had universal and timeless applications. Bringing Back the Character Ethic The genesis of Covey's work started when he was working on his doctorate. He immersed himself in an in-depth study of many authors of success literature over the past 200 years. He pored over thousands of articles and essays from popular psychology, personal development and self-help.

It wasn't long before he noticed a pattern in the content. Almost all of the literature in the first 150 years focused on what Covey calls "character ethic" attributes such as integrity, humility, courage, patience and the Golden Rule. "These basic principles of effective living and true success depended on integrating these principles into one's character," Covey says. One of his favorite authors was Ben Franklin, whose autobiography was representative of this kind of literature. Conversely, Covey noticed a distinct shift in the success philosophy published after World War II. "I became enamored with how we had moved away from the character ethic toward what I call the personality ethic, where success was more based on personality, technique, appearance and having a positive mental attitude," Covey says. While beneficial, personality ethic attributes are secondary to character ethic traits, he says. "We have become so focused on building ourselves up we have forgotten the foundation that holds it up is that of character and integrity. Many are focused on reaping the goods without the need to sow the fields." Covey says people can get by using the personality ethic to help make favorable first impressions, but these secondary traits have no long-term worth in long-term relationships.

"Eventually, if there is no integrity, the challenges of life will reveal one's true character," Covey says. "As Emerson once said, 'What you are shouts so loudly in my ears I cannot hear what you say.' " Out of these findings Covey went on to write The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, which received critical acclaim when it debuted in 1990, and today remains one of the best-selling business books. Finding Your Voice and Inspiring Others to Do the Same The world has changed drastically since Covey's 7 Habits book was published. Being effective as individuals, entrepreneurs and business organizations is no longer an option, he says. This topic is the main voice of The 8th Habit: From Effectiveness to Greatness. During research for this book he was amazed at how alienated people are in their job environments. "We came to realize the need to affirm people's worth and potential so clearly that they come to see it in themselves," he says. "We need to help people gain access to those higher levels of genius and motivation.

We need to help find their voice and have them help others to do the same." The central theme of the book is that if individual business owners would see their roles of leadership as being based on helping other people and inspiring them to find their voices, they would not only keep their own integrity, but would develop such a reputation for trustworthiness that it would be like a magnet, drawing other people to them. One of those magnets Covey points out in his book is Muhammad Yunus, founder of the Grameen Bank in Bangledesh. His story beautifully illustrates the path to finding one's voice and helping others find theirs. Yunus saw a need to help his impoverished fellow citizens in Bangladesh. He met a woman who made bamboo stools for pennies a day. In discussing the business with her he learned she didn't have the money to buy the necessary bamboo and was forced to get it from a local trader who would buy her product at an unfair price. In fact, the entire village worked under these unfair restrictions. After some research, Yunus found it would only take US$27 to help them out. After giving each the same amount, he told them it was a loan and they could repay him when they were able.

Yunus even asked the local bank to participate, saying he would guarantee each loan the villagers were not able to pay back. Yet each villager who was loaned money repaid every penny. This led Yunus to establish his own microcredit lending institution called the Grameen Bank in which he duplicated this year to empower the poor, most of whom are women. The microcredit movement has now spread the world over, helping millions escape the grips of poverty. "Survival today requires new skills, new mindsets," Covey says. "People will be required to build on and reach beyond effectiveness to greatness, just as Muhammad Yunus did. People are longing for fulfillment, to experience passion and to contribute to society. The 8th Habit is about finding your voice while inspiring others to do the same." Principles are Timeless Covey believes being principle centered lies at the heart of leadership— principles that are universal and timeless that provide a foundation and compass to guide every decision and every act. "?I've based my life's work on promoting principle- centered leadership," he says. "The principles I teach—integrity, honesty, trust, compassion, accountability— world, including many religions and philosophies.

If you deal with principles honestly, they apply everywhere and in every situation." Covey is quick to clarify that leadership is not defined by one's position, title, status or rank. "Working with people, including 50-plus heads of state, from all over the world and from all walks of life, I can't tell you how important it is to communicate effectively to people their worth and potential so clearly that they come to see it in themselves," he says. "We need to help more people to find their own purpose and unique contribution." With so many accolades and skins on the wall, you would think Covey is ready to ride off into the sunset. "I still have a lot of work to do and am currently working on several books," he says. "I'm turning more and more toward the social goals of crime, education and poverty. My work will always consist of trying to get people focused upon good principles, especially character and contribution." Stephen Covey: Discover The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People Contact Me Stephen Covey: 7 Habits Model Stephen Covey reviewed 200 years of success literature and crystallized what he learned into seven habits that took the world by storm in 1989.

Twenty-five years later The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People continues to be an influential business book delivering powerful lessons in personal change. The seven habits are not a quick and easy formula for success. But together they form a powerful model for personal change and leading change. This page provides you with an excellent overview of the seven habits. However, it's best to read The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People as there's a wealth of information in the book that you are not going to find on any web pages. I really recommend Covey's The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. In fact, I first listened to Stephen Covey speaking about the seven habits on a set of CD's and it was useful to go back to this as I read the book. Have a look at the CD's, DVD's and books that are available and get your copy now. The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Teens, published in 1998, adds value to the seven habits model, and helps to make it more accessible. Stephen R. Covey emphasizes a return to principles or values in order to achieve change in our lives. The seven habits are a step by step model that empower you make decisions and take action rather than reacting to events around you.

The reason I favor this model is that it has strong links to Emotional Intelligence and emphasizes the importance of self awareness before successful engagement with others. Stephen Covey suggests that this model is a process of learning new habits that are aligned with the seven habits he presents in his book. Learning a new habit is not easy. It takes time and practice. For most of us this is a big ask! But if you're willing to make the time and put in the practice then Stephen Covey is the best place to start. Stephen Covey: what are the seven habits? The seven habits are not intended to be a formula that we can just apply and be "better". Stephen Covey says that the seven habits build on each other to create personal and interpersonal effectiveness. The seven habits are divided into two groups of three which focus on: "Private Victory" (personal change), and "Public Victory" (interacting with others). According to Covey it's essential to master personal change before we can enjoy success outside of ourselves and with others. If you're paying attention you'll realize that one habit is missing from this formula. The last habit (number 7) focuses on sustaining these habits and continuing development.

Habit 1: Be Proactive Being proactive is more than just taking action. In this first habit Stephen Covey tells us we are responsible for our reactions to people or events. We are Response-able and have Response-ability because we have the ability to consciously choose how we respond to any situation. Stephen Covey makes the point that humans can think things through and don't need to be caught up in simple stimulus --> response patterns like Pavlov's dogs. To be proactive is to choose your response rather than relying on instinctive reactions. So, what's your Response-ability like? Stephen Covey introduces the story of Viktor Frankl to emphasise the point that we have the freedom to choose our response to whatever happens to us. Frankl was a psychiatrist and is well known for his theory of Logotherapy and publishing "Man's Search for Meaning". While enduring Nazi concentration camps Frankl realised that we can always choose our response, no matter what happens to us. "Man's Search for Meaning" is essential reading, by the way, and should be high on your list. It's an easy powerful read. People who do not consider their reactions are reactive and often blame others or things outside of themselves for what happens. They don't take any responsibility.

They'd say I failed the paper because the examiner doesn't like me. Proactive people take responsibility for their response, often looking for what they can learn from what happened. They might say I failed the paper...maybe I didn't spend enough time learning, or didn't plan my time. What can I do differently next time? The Circle of Influence To help you develop proactivity Stephen Covey introduces the concept of the Circle of Concern and Circle of Influence. He says proactive people focus their time and energy in the Circle of Influence where they work on things they can do something about. This is a powerful metaphor and I use it often in organizations involved with change. It's a tool that helps people identify what's important and what they can do to positively influence their future rather than feeling like a pawn on a chessboard. Habit 2: Begin With The End In Mind When I read The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People I was struck by the wonderful metaphors that Stephen Covey uses to help us understand the points he makes.

For example, he talks about how easy it is to get caught up in the busy-ness of life, working hard to climb the ladder of success, only to discover that all this time the ladder has been leaning against the wrong wall. I find this a very simple and powerful image. It's this metaphor that Stephen Covey uses to describe Habit 2, Begin With The End In Mind. It's a simple idea really and is about making an effort to start with a clear understanding of your destination and where you are going. Making sure your ladder is up against the right wall before you start climbing. This is essentially about planning so that we know where we are going all the time instead of being busy with day to day activities that actually take us nowhere. Taking the time to see the bigger picture, to plan where we are heading, leads to personal effectiveness. "“Begin with the end in mind” is based on the principle that all things are created twice. There’s a mental or first creation, and a physical or second creation to all things.” Stephen Covey makes the point that everything is created twice, first in the mind and then in reality.

If you're building a house you plan every detail with architects drawings, builders and landscapers according to what you want to create. Only then does the physical work begin. Before you go on a holiday you've usually planned the trip very carefully before you set foot out of your front door. If you're giving a business presentation you plan it before you present it. The question of course is why we neglect to do this when it comes to our own lives? Life throws so many things at us that keep us so busy that often we have never thought about where we are heading and if what we are doing is taking us closer to, or further from our destination. Stephen Covey provides many effective ways to begin this level of planning in your personal life together with lots of examples. He also provides very useful suggestions for applying the ideas he has presented at the end of each 'habit' chapter. Habit 3: Put First Things First This is the last of the habits that deals with self awareness and "Private Victory". Stephen Covey recommends that you identify what is important to do in order to keep you heading towards your destination, and then do those things. Ok, so how do you know what's important and what is not?

It's about managing our time and what we do in that time. Now, I have always struggled with traditional time management ideas. I resist being told that I must manage my time better, or worse, being told how to manage my time. Stephen Covey has a 4-quadrant time management model that actually got me interested in thinking about how I manage my time. Covey spends a lot of time working with this model and emphasizing that we should aim to spend our time in Quadrant II. This is where you focus on activities that are important to your values and goals, but that are not urgent. "If we don't practice Habit 2, if we don't have a clear idea of what is important, of the results we desire in our lives, we are easily diverted into responding to the urgent". The urgent things are often those things that keep us away from focusing on what is important. As with the other habits Stephen Covey provides lots of practical thoughts and examples to help you develop and practice Habit 3 including a useful template for a weekly worksheet (printed in The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People) to help you focus your week on what is important to you.

Habit 4: Think Win/Win Habit 4 is the first of the Habits dealing with what Covey calls interdependence - working effectively with other people. In describing each habit Stephen Covey shares powerful insights and "Think Win/Win" is no exception. Stephen Covey makes the point that the habit of effective interpersonal leadership is Think Win/Win. This is the habit of always looking for a solution that benefits you AND the other person or group. What's fascinating is that the solution is usually unexpected. "Win/Win is a belief in the Third Alternative. It's not your way or my way; it's a better way, a higher way". Most of us will say "yeah, yeah, we know this already. Win/Win's the way to go..." It's almost as if it's the socially acceptable attitude. But in reality people are likely to act in their own best interest and when we look we find a 'Win/Lose', 'Lose/Win', or just a plain 'Win' scenario playing out. After all, many of us are brought up to believe that winning is everything. I just have to watch the dad's on the side of their kids sports field to see this!

So in reality this is a habit to be learned and practiced. Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood Stephen Covey believes this principle is the key to effective interpersonal communication. Seek first to understand, then to be understood. This habit is about communicating with others. It's about developing the habit of listening carefully and really understanding the other person BEFORE giving your thoughts. This is not easy to learn to do. In my practice I've often heard people saying that no-one really understands what they're feeling. If you're a parent you might hear that from your teenage son or daughter (I do!). This is because we often feel compelled to give an opinion or to give advice to someone in need. Couples in counselling typically spend more time trying to get their partner to understand their position than they spend listening and understanding their partner's position. I really enjoy the examples that Stephen Covey shares to demonstrate this habit, especially the conversations between a father and his teenage son. Listening to these on the CD version of The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People really captures the humour that becomes apparent when we realise the ways we often "listen" and respond, even when we have good intentions. So start practicing this right now. Have fun with it!

In your next conversation with someone put your natural and automatic responses aside and focus on genuinely understanding them. Ask questions such as "Tell me more..." or "What happened next...?". Spend time with your children, your partner, your colleague, or even your boss, working to genuinely understand them before you respond. You'll find that when you 'seek first to understand' your response might be different to what you expect, and that you start finding the creative solutions and third alternatives described in habit 4. Habit 6: Synergize Dictionary definition: syn·er·gy [sin-er-jee] 1. The interaction of two or more agents or forces so that their combined effect is greater than the sum of their individual effects. 2. Cooperative interaction among groups, especially among the acquired subsidiaries or merged parts of a corporation, that creates an enhanced combined effect. The word synergy comes from the Greek synergos meaning working together. Stephen Covey says,“Synergy is everywhere in nature. If you plant two plants close together, the roots commingle and improve the quality of the soil so that both plants will grow better than if they were separated.

If you put two pieces of wood together, they will hold much more than the total weight held by each separately. The whole is greater than the sum of its parts. One plus one equals three or more.” In Habit 6 Covey directs our attention to the power of effective relationships. We can achieve so much more when we engage in effective relationships with others than if we acted alone. Stephen Covey notes that synergy is difficult for many of us as independence is promoted as a strong value in the Western world today. Achieving synergy requires high trust and high cooperation and can lead to better solutions than anyone thought of alone. Habits 4, 5, and 6 work together and create an opportunity to discover alternative and creative solutions. If you're concerned about synergy because you know you don't trust people easily it's ok - go back to habit 1 and Be Proactive about your response to situations or other people. You don't have to get it all right first time. This is part of a life journey of learning and developing. You will get there if you're willing to spend the time and effort developing new habits. Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw Habit 7 is about looking after yourself.

You are the greatest asset you have and we have to learn to take time to look after ourselves. Stephen Covey suggests we pay attention to four areas in our lives: Physical: Exercise, Nutrition, Stress Management Spiritual: Value Clarification and Commitment, Study and Meditation Mental: Reading, Visualizing, Planning, Writing Social/Emotional: Service, Empathy, Synergy, Intrinsic Security. When I work with someone who has experienced extreme stress to the point of 'breakdown' we often find that their lives have been narrowly focused on work and home. They go to work (often working overtime) and go home simply to eat and sleep so they can go to work again! Is this you? The most important thing you can start doing now is looking after yourself by focusing on the four areas above. Stephen Covey tells the story of meeting someone who has been sawing down a tree for more than 5 hours. When you suggest that they take a break and sharpen their saw so the job might go faster they tell you they don't have time to sharpen the saw because they're too busy sawing! It's so easy to get caught up in the demands of life, or even developing the Habits, that we forget to look after ourselves.

In reality it's very unlikely that anyone else is going to step in and do it for you. Covey writes "We are the instruments of our own performance, and to be effective, we need to recognize the importance of taking time regularly to sharpen the saw in all four ways". All four dimensions of renewal are thoroughly investigated and Stephen Covey ends this chapter with a discussion about the importance of renewal in our lives, and thinking of this as an upward spiral of growth, change, and continuous improvement. Find out more about work life balance. Personal and Professional Change Stephen Covey provides a useful diagram in The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People illustrating how the seven habits work together. The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People is a powerful book containing effective principles for personal change and for leading change in organisations. Other authors and commentators have noted that the equivalent of an entire library of success literature is found in this one volume and that there are many more than seven good reasons to read this book. I highly recommend this book and the practice of the principles contained in it. You really should get a copy or download an audio version! An 8th Habit?

Stephen Covey published The 8th Habit in 2004 to answer challenges presented by a world that had significantly changed since 1989 when The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People was originally published. "The 8th Habit...is not about adding one more habit to the 7 - one that somehow got forgotten. It's about seeing and harnessing the power of a third dimension to the 7 Habits that meets the central challenge of the new Knowledge Worker Age. This 8th Habit is to Find Your Voice and Inspire Others to Find Theirs" and is available in print, audio download or DVD. Intrigued? Get some Stephen Covey on your bookshelf or in your CD collection. You will not be sorry. --------------------------------------------------------------------- Dr. Stephen R. Covey Enjoy complimentary films, articles, challenges and exercises that enhance your reading of the 8th Habit. Follow Dr. Covey Books - 7 Habits of Highly Effective People email: Password: Books The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People® Stephen R.

Covey's book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People®, has been a top-seller for the simple reason that it ignores trends and pop psychology for proven principles of fairness, integrity, honesty, and human dignity. Celebrating its fifteenth year of helping people solve personal and professional problems, this special anniversary edition includes a new foreword and afterword written by Covey exploring the question of whether the 7 Habits are still relevant and answering some of the most common questions he has received over the past 15 years. 7 Habits of Highly Effective People | 2012-07-16 | SUCCESS Magazine | Your Personal Development Resource 7 Habits of Highly Effective People Stephen Covey's personal development classic for reinvention Shelby Skrhak July 15, 2012 "The world has changed dramatically since The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People was first published," the late Stephen Covey wrote in the foreword of his 1989 personal development classic. "Life is more complex, more stressful, more demanding." Covey died today, July 16, 2012 at the age of 79, his daughter announced.

Said Covey, "My answer: the greater the change and more difficult our challenges, the more relevant the habits become. We face challenges and problems in our personal lives, our families, and our organizations unimagined even one and two decades ago. His holistic, principle-centered approach for solving personal and professional problems is as relevant today as it ever was. His habits--which Covey says create a composite of our character--provide a step-by-step pathway for living with fairness, integrity, service and human dignity. Habit 1: Be Proactive Being proactive means more than taking the initiative, Covey wrote in this 2008 article for SUCCESS . "It means that we are responsible for our own lives. Our behavior is a function of our decisions. Not our conditions." Habit 2: Begin with the End in Mind Begin today with the image or picture of the end of your life as your frame of reference by which everything else is examined. It also means start with a clear understanding of your destination. It means know where you're going so that you better understand where you are now and so the steps you take are always in the right direction.

Habit 3: Put First Things First It's very easy to get caught up in an activity trap, in the busy-ness of life, to work harder at climbing the ladder of success only to discover it's leaning against the wrong wall. It is possible to be busy—very busy—without being very effective. Habit 4: Think Win/Win It's the basic idea of the Golden Rule. It's mutual respect and mutual benefit. If you have a win-win spirit, you want the other person to win as well. Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood When both parties are trying to be understood, neither party is really listening. Covey called this interaction, "the dialogue of the deaf." But to understand is an important key to interpersonal relationships and can magically transform the course of discussions. By making the investment of time and effort required to understand the other party, we change the dynamics of the interchange. Habit 6: Synergize The highest forms of synergy focus the four unique human endowments, the motive of Win/Win, and the skills of empathetic communication on the toughest challenges we face in life.

Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw First of all, decide what is truly important and distinguish it from that which is urgent but not important. Half the time people spend is on things that are urgent but not important, like a ringing phone, something that is pressing, something that is proximate or popular, but it may not be important at all. You must learn to say no to the unimportant so you can say yes to the important. Read more about the life of Stephen Covey on SUCCESS.com. Which of the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People do you identify with most? Join the discussion with the SUCCESS community below. The Best Insights From Stephen Covey's '7 Habits of Highly Effective People' - The Atlantic The Atlantic The Best Insights From Stephen Covey's '7 Habits of Highly Effective People' Most Popular Some of the author and motivation master's most indelible advice AP Images, Free Press In 1989, Stephen R. Covey penned The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People ( public library ), a book that went on to sell millions of copies worldwide and defined a new genre bridging self-improvement, business management, and personal productivity.

This week, Covey died at the age of 79. Here's a look back at his legacy with some of the keenest insights from his beloved bestseller. Habit is the intersection of knowledge (what to do), skill (how to do), and desire (want to do). Sow a thought, reap an action; sow an action, reap a habit; sow a habit, reap a character; sow a character, reap a destiny.* People can't live with change if there's not a changeless core inside them. Until a person can say deeply and honestly, 'I am what I am today because of the choices I made yesterday,' that person cannot say, 'I choose otherwise.' To learn and not to do is really not to learn. To know and not to do is really not to know. It is one thing to make a mistake, and quite another thing not to admit it. People will forgive mistakes, because mistakes are usually of the mind, mistakes of judgment. But people will not easily forgive the mistakes of the heart, the ill intention, the bad motives, the prideful justifying cover-up of the first mistake . Admission of ignorance is often the first step in our education.

Our behavior is a function of our decisions, not our conditions. The ability to subordinate an impulse to a value is the essence of the proactive person. How you treat the one reveals how you regard the many, because everyone is ultimately a one. There's no better way to inform and expand you mind on a regular basis than to get into the habit of reading good literature. And, of course, the meat of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People : Habit 1: Be Proactive Habit 2: Begin with the End in Mind Habit 3: Put First Things First Habit 4: Think Win/Win Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood Habit 6: Synergize Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw * Covey is, of course,

Question: Stephen Covey's first hugely popular guide to business and life is called The Seven 'what' of Highly Successful People?
Answer: Habits