The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People 1

The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People

The Seven Habits of Highly EffectivePeople

Author Stephen R. Covey

Country United States

Language English

Subject Self-help

Genre non-fiction

Publisher Free Press

Publication date 1989

Mediatype Print (Hardcover, Paperback)

Pages 380

ISBN 0-7432-6951-9

OCLC 56413718 [1]

Dewey Decimal 158 22

LCClass BF637.S8 C68 2004

Followedby The 8th Habit: From Effectiveness to Greatness

The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, first published in 1989, is a business and self-help book written byStephen R. Covey. It has sold more than 15 million copies in 38 languages worldwide, and the audio version has sold1.5 million copies, and remains one of the best selling nonfiction business books. Covey presents an approach tobeing effective in attaining goals by aligning oneself to what he calls "true north" principles of a character ethic thathe presents as universal and timeless.[2] In August 2011 Time listed Seven Habits as one of "The 25 Most InfluentialBusiness Management Books".U.S. President Bill Clinton read the book and invited Covey to Camp David to counsel him on how to integrate thebook into his presidency.

The 7 HabitsThe book first introduces the concept of paradigm shift and prepares the reader for a change in mindset. It helps thereader understand that a different perspective exists, a viewpoint that may be different from his or her own, andasserts that two people can see the same thing and yet differ with each other. Once the reader is prepared for this, itintroduces the seven habits in a proper order.Each chapter is dedicated to one of the habits, which are represented by the following imperatives:

The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People 2

IndependenceThe First Three Habits surround moving from dependence to independence (i.e., self-mastery): Habit 1: Be ProactiveTake initiative in life by realizing that your decisions (and how they align with life's principles) are the primarydetermining factor for effectiveness in your life. Take responsibility for your choices and the consequences thatfollow. Habit 2: Begin with the End in MindSelf-discover and clarify your deeply important character values and life goals. Envision the ideal characteristics foreach of your various roles and relationships in life. Habit 3: Put First Things FirstA manager must manage his own person. Personally. And managers should implement activities that aim to reachthe second habit. Covey says that rule two is the mental creation; rule three is the physical creation.

InterdependenceThe next three habits talk about Interdependence (e.g. working with others): Habit 4: Think Win-WinGenuine feelings for mutually beneficial solutions or agreements in your relationships. Value and respect people byunderstanding a "win" for all is ultimately a better long-term resolution than if only one person in the situation hadgot his way. Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, Then to be UnderstoodUse empathic listening to be genuinely influenced by a person, which compels them to reciprocate the listening andtake an open mind to being influenced by you. This creates an atmosphere of caring, and positive problem solving. Habit 6: SynergizeCombine the strengths of people through positive teamwork, so as to achieve goals no one person could have donealone.

Continuous ImprovementsThe final habit is that of continuous improvement in both the personal and interpersonal spheres of influence. Habit 7: Sharpen the SawBalance and renew your resources, energy, and health to create a sustainable, long-term, effective lifestyle. Itprimarily emphasizes exercise for physical renewal, prayer (meditation, yoga, etc.) and good reading for mentalrenewal. It also mentions service to society for spiritual renewal.Covey explains the "Upward Spiral" model in the sharpening the saw section. Through our conscience, along withmeaningful and consistent progress, the spiral will result in growth, change, and constant improvement. In essence,one is always attempting to integrate and master the principles outlined in The 7 Habits at progressively higher levelsat each iteration. Subsequent development on any habit will render a different experience and you will learn theprinciples with a deeper understanding. The Upward Spiral model consists of three parts: learn, commit, do.According to Covey, one must be increasingly educating the conscience in order to grow and develop on the upwardspiral. The idea of renewal by education will propel one along the path of personal freedom, security, wisdom, andpower.Sean Covey (Stephen's son) has written a version of the book for teens, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens. This version simplifies the 7 Habits for younger readers so they can better understand them. In September 2006, Sean Covey also published The 6 Most Important Decisions You Will Ever Make: A Guide for Teens. This guide

The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People 3

highlights key times in the life of a teen and gives advice on how to deal with them.

Abundance mentalityCovey coined the idea of abundance mentality or abundance mindset, a concept in which a person believes there areenough resources and successes to share with others. He contrasts it with the scarcity mindset (i.e., destructive andunnecessary competition), which is founded on the idea that, if someone else wins or is successful in a situation, thatmeans you lose; not considering the possibility of all parties winning (in some way or another) in a given situation(see zero-sum game). Individuals with an abundance mentality reject the notion of zero-sum games and are able tocelebrate the success of others rather than feel threatened by it.Since this book's publishing, a number of books appearing in the business press have discussed the idea.[3] Coveycontends that the abundance mentality arises from having a high self-worth and security (see Habits 1, 2, and 3), andleads to the sharing of profits, recognition and responsibility. Organizations may also apply an abundance mentalitywhen doing business.Since this book was published in 1989, at the outset of pan-globalization, it has been suggested Wikipedia:Manual ofStyle/Words to watch#Unsupported attributions to review the Habits from an eastern perspective including morefocus on context and interdependence Wikipedia:Citation needed .

References[1] http:/ / www. worldcat. org/ oclc/ 56413718[2] Bill Gordon: "A Closer Look At Stephen Covey And His 7 Habits" Apologetics Index (http:/ / www. apologeticsindex. org/ c13. html).

Retrieved December 23, 2007[3] See for instance the chapter in Carolyn Simpson's High Performance through Negotiation.

External links Official Stephen Covey homepage (https:/ / www. stephencovey. com/ ) Video of the 7 habits in 3 Minutes. (http:/ / www. brevedy. com/ 7-habits-3-minutes-video/ )

Article Sources and Contributors 4

Article Sources and ContributorsThe Seven Habits of Highly Effective People Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=605734856 Contributors: (GD), 72Dino, 7habits, Aaronchall, Adilsm, Aggi74, Ajraddatz,Alanbly, Alanlemagne, Aleksandr Grigoryev, Altt311, AndrewHZ, Andycjp, Andyhartman, Antandrus, Arthur Smart, As56, AstroHurricane001, AxelBoldt, Az1568, B Smart 4evr, BD2412,Bcusc316, Bearian, Biblbroks, Bilbo1507, Blancodesijamin, Bsadowski1, Cadsuane Melaidhrin, Champthewonderdog, Chaudire, Chause4, Cnilep, Conifer, Coveylink, Cryingnoise, CyberSkull,DCDuring, Dagonet, Damon Mah, Dan Hilbert, DandyDan2007, Darth Molo, DavidWBrooks, Dddstone, Deansfa, Deeptrivia, Delohr, DerHexer, Destynova, DonnEdwards, DoubleBlue,Dougweller, Downtown dan seattle, Dr.JunaidAslam, Dylan620, Engtech, Estinate, Eturk001, EvelinaB, Excirial, FireflySixtySeven, Fluffernutter, Flyer22, Frogan, Fyghtingwolf,GavinMcGimpsey, Gbroiles, GcSwRhIc, Gilliam, Glane23, GoingBatty, Graham87, Greg Hertfelder, Hallows AG, Heracles31, Hqb, Hut 8.5, Iamisha, Igoldste, Imasmartwoman, Inostranetz,IronGargoyle, JCWilson, JDoorjam, Jabberwoch, James086, Jandalhandler, Jay-Sebastos, Jimbelton, Jj137, Jnfrank, John Rotenstein, Johnteslade, Karlwick, Kdavies4, Keilana, Keimzelle,Khazar2, Kingturtle, Kkm010, Konitzer95, Kuteni, Larrymcp, Lawrencec, Leszek Jaczuk, Lifefeed, Lizdonne, Lotje, Luna Santin, MLauba, Macinnir, Malenien, Mariadhariwal, Mark Renier,Materialscientist, Mathx314, MaxEnt, McSly, Mdbest, Meghufree, MelbourneStar, Mercurywoodrose, Mglennie, Migiloviz, Mistercupcake, Mmurdoch, Moe Epsilon, Mr. Lefty, MusikAnimal,Nasnema, New worl, NuclearWarfare, Ohconfucius, Ollie87, OneWeirdDude, Otnick, Ottre, Parhamr, PaulHanson, Pavi.thespirit, PeaceNT, Petersam, Petrarchan47, Pieguy48, Pine, Pinto24601,QuackGuru, Quarague, Quercusrobur, Qxz, Rainer Wasserfuhr, Ranger1991, Rawling, Rich Farmbrough, Richard0612, RichardF, Rohan Jayasekera, Rookkey, Rushbugled13, SDC, SHCarter,Sadads, Saikat.m21, Scarpy, Scott Delaney, Shanman7, Shirt58, Shortride, SimonP, Sir Nicholas de Mimsy-Porpington, Skr15081997, Skyfaller, Slon02, Smokum454ss, Some jerk on theInternet, Spudbud, Sterling.morris, Taikanatur, The Interior, ThePlaz, Thesoupnzi, Thumperward, Timtak, Timtimim, Tommy2010, Tompagenet, Trivialist, TrustTruth, Ulterior19802005, UncleDick, Utcursch, Vanished User 4517, Vanisheduser12345, VeryVerily, WLU, Welsh, WereSpielChequers, Widr, Wikiborg4711, Wikitr0ll1776, Wrathkind, Xezbeth, Yamaguchi ,Yamamoto Ichiro, Yamla, ZeroKool79, ZimZalaBim, ZofC, Zsinj, Zwheat, 612 anonymous edits

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The Seven Habits of Highly Effective PeopleThe 7 Habits Independence Interdependence Continuous Improvements

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