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Notes on :The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People:

Restoring the Character Ethic

Stephen R Covey

1. Be proactive (Principles of Personal Vision)

2. Begin with the end in mind (Personal leadership)

3. Put first things first (Personal Management)

4. Think win-win (Interpersonal Leadership)

5. Seek first to understand then to be understood (Empathic

Communication)

6. Synergise (Creative Cooperation)

7. Sharpen the saw (Balanced self Renewal)

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OVERVIEW

“HABITS” defined: A habit is an intersection of knowledge, skill and desire.

Knowledge is about what is to be done and why.

Skill is about how something is done.

Desire is concerned with motivation or wish to do something.

Creating a habit requires work on all these three dimensions.

EFFECTIVENESS defined: It is a function of (i) what is produced and (ii) the

producing asset and the capacity to produce. Effective achievement is optimum

production with care for the preservation of the assets responsible for production.

These assets are- physical, financial and human. This means a balanced use of

assets.

These principles apply to individuals, families and organizations.

HOW TO READ THE BOOK:

Read this book completely once to get a sense of the theme.

KNOWLEDGE

SKILL

DESIRE

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Go back time and again to the principles contained in each habit and work to

expand your knowledge, skill and desire.

Try to explain and share the principles you have learnt with others.

True effectiveness is a function of what is produced (P) and the capacity to

produce (PC) it: the first is necessary while the second is to be developed and

maintained. Balance both P / PC

Seven Habits practiced will CHANGE you: Self-growth.

PRIVATE VICTORY: HABIT 1: BE PROACTIVE

Self-awareness enables us to stand apart and examine even the way we „see‟ ourselves-

self-paradigm, the most fundamental paradigm of effectiveness.

Do not allow yourself to be influenced by conditioning or conditions. Our behavior is a

function of our decisions based on our conscious choice, and not our conditions.

STIMULUS FREEDOM

TO

CHOOSE

RESPONSE

SELF

AWARENESS

IMAGINATION CONSCIENCE

INDEPENDENT WILL

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Do not blame circumstances, conditions, or conditionings for your behavior; make it a

product of your own conscious choice, based on values.

The ability to subordinate an impulse to a value is the essence of a proactive person.

Taking the initiative means recognizing our responsibility to make right things to happen.

Act before you are acted upon: not facing reality would have been to accept the reality

that what is happening in our environment had to determine us.

Within our circle of concern, there are some things over which we may not have any

control and others that we can do something about. We can identify those concerns in

latter group by circumscribing them within a smaller circle of influence. Proactive people

focus their energies in the circle of influence. They work on the things they can do

something about.

The problems we face fall in one of three categories: (i) direct control-problems

involving our own behavior. (ii)indirect control- problems involving other people‟s

behavior. Or (iii) no control-problems we can do nothing about such as our past or

situational realities.

Working on our habit solves direct control problems. They are within our circle of

influence. These are „private victories‟ of habits 1,2 and 3.

Changing our methods of influence solves indirect control problems. These are „public

victories‟ of habits 4, 5 and 6.

No control problems involve taking the responsibility to change the line on the bottom of

our face to smile, to genuinely and peacefully accept these problems and live with them,

even though we don‟t like them.

No concern

Concern:

Health,

family,

problems at

work, etc.

c. of concern

c. of influence

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CHANGING OUR HABIT

CHANGING OUR METHODS OF INFLUENCE

CHANGING THE WAY WE SEE OUR ‘NO CONTROL PROBLEMS’

*

IN CHOOSING OUR RESPONSE TO CIRCUMSTANCE,

WE POWERFULLY AFFECT OUR CIRCUMSTANCE

The proactive approach is to change from inside out: to be different, and by being

different, to effect positive change in what is out there.

RESOURCEFUL

I CAN BE MORE DILIGENT

CREATIVE

COOPERATIVE

Not to acknowledge a mistake , not to correct it and learn from it is a mistake of a

different order.

It is important to immediately admit and correct our mistakes so that they have no power

over our future and we are empowered again.

The power to make and keep commitments to ourselves is the essence of developing the

basic habits of effectiveness.

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PERSONAL VISION

Explain ‘Proactivity’

V R responsible for our own lives

V decide, not conditions

Values, not feelings

V make things to happen

V R ‘proactive’, OK?

In order to write a personal mission statement, we must begin at the very center of our

Circle of Influence. That center is the lens through which we see the world.

Whatever is at the center of our life will provide us security, guidance, wisdom and

power.

Security represents –Sense of Worth, Identity, emotional anchorage, self-esteem, and

basic personal strength/weakness.

Guidance means – source of direction in life, internal frame of reference that interprets

for you what is happening out there, implicit criteria that govern moment by moment

decision making and doing.

Wisdom- Perspective on life, Sense of balance, Understanding of how the various parts

and principles apply and relate to each other.

Power is the faculty or capacity to act, the strength and potency to accomplish something.

It is the vital energy to make choices and decisions.

CENTER

GUIDANCE POWER

W

I

S

D

O

M

SE

CU

RI

TY

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These four factors are interdependent- security and guidance bring true wisdom, and

wisdom becomes the catalyst to release and direct power. When these four factors are

present together, harmonized and enlivened by each other, they create the great force of a

noble personality, a balanced character a beautifully integrated individual.

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True effectiveness is a function of what is produced (P) and the

capacity to produce (PC) it: the first is necessary while the second is to

be developed and maintained. Balance both P / PC

Three kinds of assets: Physical, Financial and Human. Effective use of

all three means that while achieving production, the assets need to be

developed and maintained.

It is not what happens to us but our response to what happens to us

that hurts us.

To begin with the end (goal, purpose, target to be achieved) in mind

means to start with a clear understanding of your destination.

Things which matter most should not be at the mercy of things which

matter least

Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things

The Laws of Love and the Laws of Life:

When we love unconditionally, we help others to feel secure and safe,

validated and affirmed in their essential worth, identity and integrity.

As human beings we are responsible for our lives. Our behavior is a

function of our decisions and not our conditions. We can subordinate

feelings to our values.

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BRAIN DOMINANCE THEORY

LEFT HEMISPHERE RIGHT HEMISPHERE

More logical / verbal More intuitive / creative

Deals with words Deals with pictures

Deals with parts and specifics Deals with whole & relations between

parts

With analysis (break apart) With synthesis (Put together)

Sequential thinking Simultaneous & holistic thinking

Time bound Time-free

One side or the other tends to dominate in any individual; Cultivate ability to ‘cross

over’

Between both sides. Consciously use our both sides to understand a situation or

issue.

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SEVEN HABITS OF EFFECTIVE PEOPLE

RESTORING THE CHARACTER ETHIC

By STEPHEN.R. COVEY

Seven Habits Of Effective People

Be proactive

Begin with the end in mind

Put first things first

Think win-win

Seek to understand, then be understood

Synergize

Sharpen the saw

Proactive model: freedom to choose; no conditioned response

Personal Leadership

Know where U R going; then go on….

Mind’s visualization, plan and achieve

Leadership is: doing the right things

Management is about doing things right

Monitor change; respond correctly: rescript!

Principle centered 4 factors give balanced personality (security,

guidance, wisdom & Power)

The lens through which U C the world

security, guidance, wisdom, power

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U R self esteem, identity, sense of worth

Implicit criteria-governs decision making

U R sense of balance, perspective on life

Strength to achieve – to be effective by cultivating higher habits

Personal Management:

Put first things first

R U an effective manager of UR self ?

Follow UR own deep values, their source.

Act to actualize UR proactive first creation.

Organize & execute around priorities

FIRST:Important-Urgent, then

[+Important-not-urgent]

Focus on relationships & results

Know when U got to say a firm ‘NO’

First:Important-urgent

ACTIVITIES:

CRISIS

PRESSING PROBLEMS

DEADLINE DRIVEN PROJECTS

Second: Important-not-urgent

ACTIVITIES:

PREVENTION

RELATIONSHIP BUILDING

RECOGNIZING NEW OPPORTUNITIES

PLANNING, RECREATION

Third:Not important- urgent

ACTIVITIES:

Interruptions, some calls

Routine with deadline

Popular activities

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Fourth:Not important-not-urgent

(control these)

ACTIVITIES:

Trivia, busy work

Time wasters

Workaholism

Postponing routine

Maintenance!

Pleasant Activity

SIX CRITERIA FOR ORGANIZING:

1. COHERENCE, 2. BALANCE,

3. QUAD2 FOCUS, 4. A ‘PEOPLE’

DIMENSION, 5. FLEXIBILITY,

6. PORTABILITY

BECOMING A SELF MANAGER:

IDENTIFY ROLES

ADAPT DAILY / ORGANIZE-WEEKLY

ORGANIZE- LONG TERM

FOCUS ON RELATIONSHIPS

Delegation to Time & to people

If we delegate to time, we think efficiency

If we delegate to other people, we think effectiveness

Delegation with 1 to 1 supervision- may not be effective

Delegation to Time & to people

Delegation with

mutual faith- Effective

Stewardship delegation:

State desired results-

give guidelines-

resources-

accountability-

consequences-

Trust

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Six major deposits that build the emotional Bank Account:

1) Understanding the individual; 2) Attending to the

little things; 3) Keeping commitments: 4) Clarifying

expectations; 5) Showing personal integrity; 6)

Apologizing sincerely when you make a withdrawal.