A classic by any standards, "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People", is by far one of the best books I have ever had the privilege of reading. Regardless of what your ambitions in life may be this is simply a book that you must read. Knowing that better than 80% of the people in world will never read a book once they have completed their formal education, I realize that I am talking to a very small crowd in the grand scheme of things.
I have just recently decided to take Stephen Covey up on his recommendation that this book is not simply a book to read through once and put on a shelf somewhere….which by the way is exactly what I did. For whatever reason I picked it up again and began from page one with the intent of reading it again from cover to cover.
As I began, something seemed to have jumped off the page at me. Very clearly Stephen points out that the material in this book is setup such that it is designed to be a companion as we go through this process of changing, growing, and understanding. While I distinctly remember this being there before it impacted me differently this time through.
Closely behind that, Mr. Stephen Covey asks that as the reader we shift our paradigm from that of the learner to that of a teacher. As he plainly describes that with the knowledge that we will be sharing this information, we are bound to take away a much deeper level of understanding. So, in keeping with his recommendation that within 48 hours of reading/learning the material from “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People”, I will be doing my best to explain what I have learned from this fantastic book, how I plan to implement the recommendations contained with these pages and lastly how I see it impacting my life.
While I will be sharing this information one on one with a number of close friends and family, I feel that by taking the time to express these thoughts through the written word I may actually see these lessons in yet another light. With that said I would welcome thoughts feedback, questions, etc, etc. I am very certain that with an ongoing exchange of ideas I will not only learn from what Stephen Covey has to say, but will learn much from you, the readers of the Persistence Marketing Blog.
For those of you who have never been so fortunate to read “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People”, you may be wondering what to expect. The short answer is that regardless of your goals (Personal Development, Improved Leadership Skills, More Success in Life, More Success in your Network Marketing, More Success in your Career, etc, etc), this book has well defined set of steps that will give you a tremendous start.
Right from the cover of the book you will see that Stephen Covey provides you with a step by step process for living life with fairness, honesty, integrity and a integrated principle centered approach to solving both personal and professional challenges. As you can see from the previous statement, Covey has provided us with material for a solid foundation in life regardless of our dreams, goals or current situation.
Maybe I will be so lucky has to have a few of you read through the book at roughly the same time, thereby increasing our ability to share ideas and exchange thoughts on this classic.
As you are well aware my primary focus on a day to day basis is in the Network Marketing (MLM) industry and helping those that have a desire to succeed in freeing themselves from the limitations of a conventional job. With that said please do not let that prevent you from participating as I spent far too many years in what I consider classic employment, after which I owned my own company for a number of years and then was blessed enough to move to the world of Network Marketing. With that said I hope that you can see that I can probably relate to whatever your current situation may be at this time.
Oh, did I mention that I was the victim of a major company downsizing and shortly there after found myself more broke/broken than I had ever been. Pretty much felt that I had hit bottom. A massive change of status for someone that made VERY good money and pretty much did as I wanted. Life is not fair and at times may deal what we think is a unfair hand, but something I have come to learn. God always has my back and he has me right where I am supposed to be. Further more I am a firm believer that we never fail till we quit getting up. If you don't believe that look at all the great accomplishments in this world that were preceded by multiple failures.
Looking forward to a great exchange of ideas regardless of your current situation and where you may be heading in life.
The 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People
I have noticed that you can't or shouldn't read it until you're ready. Let me explain that:
I read it in 1993 when I was 20. If I had read it when I was 19, I would have gotten nothing out of it. To be honest, when I did read it, it was an answer to my prayers.
There are concepts in this book that are so powerful, that even just reading them (without consciously putting them into action) changed how I live.
For example, I continuously found myself comparing what was happening in my life to what I had just read. If someone said an insulting thing to me, my initial feeling would be anger, but on the heels of that thought would come something I'd read in 7 Habits. I'd be thinking, "Hey! That reminds me of when Covey wrote about ___________." And by the time that thought was gone, so was the negative situation.
Thinking became a whole lot of fun!
Even the first 3 Habits were enough to get me incredibly excited about interaction with others. You could live 1000 years and not come up with these concepts on your own.
The 4th habit was my favorite. It's called "Seek First to Understand, Then to be Understood". I wish I did this more...now that I'm married! But back then, this helped me to become a very good "Speaker". I could talk to people and help them not "drown for psychological air" around me. People want to be understood. If you argue your point all the time, no one feels understood and ideas are harder to be put into action. ANY IDIOT CAN ARGUE! The whole world seems to place a huge importance on debate...and being able to destroy other people's points of view with your logic and wit.
But that's not strength. Like I said: any idiot can argue. Not 1 in 1000 people can REALLY consider another person's opinion as being the right one. Even fewer can actually stop and say to themselves: "I'm positive that I'm 110% right and that other person is wrong, but who knows? Maybe I am wrong. Let me consider their point and listen to what they need to express."
Now that is real strength.
I once shared this concept with an opinionated individual. They started yelling at me and saying I was wrong and that if you know you're right, you need to stand up for yourself and prove the other person is wrong. With a grin on my face, I replied, "Maybe you're right". LOL! They didn't even pick up on the fact I had just done to them what I was advocating.
It's amazing what happens to people when you state back to them what you think is the point they're trying to make. You'll end up starting a lot of your sentences with: "...so, what you're saying is....". Once you begin to show the person you're not there to argue, their backs go down; the urgency in their voice drops; they calm down; and then they listen to your point without fighting.
As Covey explains, the best way to influence others is...to be INFLUENCED.
It's such a good book and it's filled with principles that will help you in all your dealings, but I find you have to be in a position in your life to put it into action. It will work great if you can practice it every day in a setting as:
-a family member dealing with difficult situations
-a manager
-a salesperson
...or anyone who needs to deal with people day-to-day. If you feel a strong need to know how to deal with others more effectively, maybe you're ready for this book now.
Both Glenn Antoine & Shawn Bremner are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Glenn Antoine has sinced written about articles on various topics from Marketing, Wellness and Supplements. A professional internet marketer, trainer and mentor in the network marketing (MLM) industry. I focus on helping Network Marketer's achieve their Goals and more importantly their Dreams.To learn more about me visit:. Glenn Antoine's top article generates over 135000 views. to your Favourites.
Shawn Bremner has sinced written about articles on various topics from Book Reviews, Writing and Business and Finance. Shawn M. Bremner writes book reviews on his site at and loves to collect. Shawn Bremner's top article generates over 33100 views. to your Favourites.
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