Highly Effective People Book Review

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Book Review

I) About the Author

Stephen Richards Covey, recognized as one of Time magazine’s 25 most influential Americans, was born

on October 24, 1932. Until his death on July 16, 2012, he was a professor at the Jon M. Huntsman School

of Business at Utah State University. Dr. Stephen R. Covey was an American author, businessman,

educator and motivational speaker who devoted his live in demonstrating how every person can live

effectively and orderly.

He became well known in the field of business administration and management because of his book

entitled “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” which was named the #1 Most Influential Business

Book of the Twentieth Century. His success continued as he published more blockbuster books which

include First Things First, Principle-Centered Leadership, and The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Families

with sales exceeding a million copies each.

Covey’s last book, the 8th habit, was written as sequel to the Seven Habits. He suggests that

effectiveness does not suffice in the “Knowledge Worker Age” and he says that challenges and everyone

must find their voice and inspire others to find theirs. This book, having sold more than 400,000 copies

worldwide, shows how people admire the works of Stephen Covey.

II. Synopsis

A. Paradigms and Principles

A paradigm is the way we see and understand the world around us. It is a mental map by which we

interpret the information we receive. Principles are guidelines for human behavior that have been

proven over time to have enduring and permanent value. The challenge is to develop our own

paradigms that are based on principles. Everyone carries with them two mental maps – the way things

are and the way things should be. People always assume that the way they see things is the way

they really are which affects the way they interact with other people. In other words, people of the

same perception communicate and act the same. The 7 habits are a new level of thinking that is a

paradigm shift based on a principle-centered, character-based inside-outside approach to personal

effectiveness.

When this book was first written, much of the literature was focused on creating a better personality for

business success. For Covey this is backwards. Covey sees the development of a good character, one that is

based on good principles, as more important as this forms the basis for you as a whole. Covey sees this

Amanda M’hango Student#


approach as a paradigm shift: something that will move people from one (usually wrong) way of doing

something to a new direction.

Specifically, the shift is going from a deterministic/genetic approach to personality and character, Covey

believes that you can change you who are, because who you are is a collection of habits. Therefore, if you

change your habits, you can change you are. Covey also believes there are certain principles and values

which make us more effective.

INTRODUCTION

The Stephen R. Covey's book “The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People” tells about ways to increase

individuals’ effectiveness and make them more successful. To accomplish these goals, the author proposes

the practice of seven main principles or habits. These include: being proactive; beginning with the end in

mind; putting first things first; thinking win-win; seeking first to understand rather than to be understood;

synergizing; and sharpening the saw.

To combine all of the habits, the author uses the concept of a “Maturity Continuum from dependence to

independence to interdependence” (Covey, 1989, p. 49). In other words, Covey anticipates that individuals

go through each suggested step, meaning that all men and women start as dependents. Then, as they

mature, people start to become more independent, physically, emotionally, financially, etc. However,

interdependence focuses on arriving at the effectiveness's maximum through independence, and also

emphasizes teamwork, which works to combine all talents and abilities. Based on these, Covey creates the

concept of the ideal formula for highly effective people.

Our character, basically, is a composite of our habits. Because they are consistent, often unconscious

patterns, habits constantly express our character and produce our effectiveness or our in-effectiveness. In

the words of Aristotle, “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”

The author has identified here the seven habits shared by all truly effective people. Fortunately, for those

not born effective (no one is), these habits can be learned. Furthermore, the collective experience of the

ages shows us that acquiring them will give us the character to succeed.

iii) Habits and its meaning



Covey looks at each of the habits in turn, explaining why they are necessary, and how to develop them.

One should always be proactive, for example, keep the end goal in sight, and prioritise. Everyone should

begin with private victories, then move on to public ones and then work to synergise all parts of their life

to create something that is more than the sum of its parts.

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People is based on a compelling premise: that we will succeed more in life

if we decide to effect change first within ourselves, then project that change out, rather than let

circumstances control us. Covey encourages the reader to be in charge of his or her own life: a message

that's inspiring and motivating

Habit 1: Be proactive.

You take responsibility for your own behavior. You don't blame circumstances, conditions, or

your conditioning for your behavior. You choose your response to any situation and any person.

We can choose our own response to any signals of information we receive. Covey says that we must use

our resourcefulness and initiative to work for our personal goals. Moreover, he says that each person has

both a circle of influence and a circle of concern. Worrying and thinking too much about things outside

our circle of influence is unproductive. Working within our circle of influence is productive and the more

effective we become, the larger the circle becomes.

Habit 2: Begin with the end in mind.

You can visualize the future that you want to achieve. You have a clear vision of where you want

to go and what you want to accomplish. You live your life according to some deeply held beliefs,

principles, or fundamental truths.

‘Beginning with the end in mind’ means using an image of yourself at the end of your life as a starting

point or reference of every action. Covey starts with the extreme example of considering one’s death.

How would you want yourself to be remembered? What do you want people to talk of you after you die?

To begin with the end in mind requires a clear vision of your destination and where you are. Then you

clarify what needs to be done and where you’d like to end up.

Covey writes, “The most effective way I know to begin with the end in mind is to develop a personal

mission statement or philosophy or creed.” This statement describes your goals and the type of person

you want to become. You should think carefully about the statement and make a commitment to your-

self to keeping it.



Habit 3: Put first things first.

This habit involves self-leadership and self-management. Leadership decides what the first things are,

and management is the discipline of carrying out the program. The heart of effective personal time

management is to spend the maximum time possible doing important jobs in a non- urgent

atmosphere that increases efficiency.

Many people make the mistake of putting what is urgent ahead of what is important, but by

focusing on what is important first, you develop the ability to prevent emergencies in the first

place. As Covey says, “Effective management is putting first things first.”

Figuring out what is important is not as easy as seeing what is urgent, so put an emphasis on

planning, avoiding mistakes, developing relationships, creating opportunities and having a good

time once in a while. We fill many roles in our lives, and it is necessary to give each one focus and

time.

Habit 4: Think win/win.

You have an "abundance" mentality. You believe there is plenty for everybody. You don't believe

that one person's success requires another person's failure. You look for synergistic solutions to

problems. You seek to find solutions in which all parties benefit.

The outcome of any situation, of any relationship should be win-win. Simply put, everybody wins more

when everybody wins. As our interconnected lives become more apparent, this point becomes much

easier to see. In our age, Machiavelli’s adage that it is better to be feared than loved has been turned on

its head: it is better to be loved than feared.

Effective interdependence can only be built on a foundation of true independence. Private victory

precedes a public victory. A person cannot be successful if he/she has not been successful.

Interdependence opens up world worlds of possibilities for meaningful productivity.

Habit 5: Seek first to understand, then to be understood.



You listen with the strong intent to fully, deeply understand the other person both emotionally

and intellectually. You diagnose before you prescribe.

Part of building win/win relationships involves listening to what the other party want. Before

stating your objectives, listen to what theirs are, put yourself in their shoes. The easiest way to

put forth the strongest possible argument for something is to be able to put forth the strongest

argument against it. This way, when you outline your objectives to the other party, you can put

them in terms that respond to their goals.

The importance of empathic listening, meaning to listen with the intent to understand and not

just to respond. To build the skill of relating to other people effectively is to understand their

point of view without judgment, like seeing the world through their eyes. It is not about agreeing

or disagreeing, solving or fixing, nor figuring something out; merely reflecting on what they feel

and saying it in your own words is the key to opening people’s hearts.

Habit 6: Synergize.

One person cannot lift a car, but 100 certainly can. Groups of people working together create synergy,

where the entire group is much more powerful than the sum of each individual. Connected with the last

two habits, synergy is about listening to what the other people say and reacting appropriately. The two

keys to synergy are cooperation and communication. Get a group doing these two elements and anything

is possible.

You are creative. You are a trailblazer and a pathfinder. You believe the whole is greater than the

sum of its parts. You value differences between people and try to build upon those differences.

When presented with two conflicting alternatives, you seek a third, more creative response.

Habit 7: Sharpen the saw.

You seek continuous improvement, innovation, and refinement. You are always seeking to learn.

Covey uses the tale of a man cutting a log with a saw. Over time, the saw gets dull, and cuts less

making him work more. A passerby suggests stopping to sharpen the saw, but the man cannot,

because he is too busy sawing! Covey sees the saw as our minds, bodies, souls and hearts, and

highly effective people sharpen their saws all of the time.

Covey promotes a life of exercise for the body, prayer and meditation for the mind, reading and

mind games for the mind, and better communication with those around you for the mind. On



this last point, the easiest way to approach it is to leave others better off than when you first

met them. To make all the others possible is to have ourselves the time to renew. Not too much but

not too little, but regular effort in maintaining the physical, mental, social, emotional and spiritual aspect

of our being. Balance progress in each of these dimensions will be our foundation for growth and change,

the key to the development of the 7 habits.

IV. Strengths of the Paper

If you are someone who’s into leadership, then this book is a good one. This book discusses things

that have something to do with leadership, modeling, path finding, empowering, and all those other

concepts that are related to leading. This book speaks of how we need a complete up-to-date

conviction in today’s world. If you feel dispirited and unacknowledged, then this book is really for you.

After reading this book you may find that your viewpoint on life has changed. You’ll find

yourself reaching out to find your goal or meaning in life. Throughout the book, Covey has put

illustrations to help with his clarifications in each chapter. He also scattered quotes from others

throughout, which can help in better understanding the ideas in this book and inspire the reader.

The author presents that one of the most important habits of highly effective people is to “be proactive”.

To support this position, Covey uses the comparison between proactive and reactive people. In the first

case, the author says that “as human beings, we are responsible for our own lives” (Covey, 1989, p. 71).

In addition, the behavior of proactive people is “a product of their own conscious choice, based on their

own values” (Covey, 1989, p. 71). However, reactive people “build their emotional lives around the

behavior of others” (Covey, 1989, p. 72). The analysis of this saying creates a controversial opinion. On

the one hand, this is absolutely true that people must act in accordance with their own life principles,

regardless of the conditions and circumstances.

V. Weaknesses

However, this book is not that easy to read. It is too complex, and it's a system/philosophy/set of

habits all to itself. Although it's easy to understand and comprehend the idea behind being a trim-tab

spirit in your organization, it's a bit more difficult trying to see the practical application of circle of

knowledge/ignorance by the time you get to the end. It’s something you’ll need to ponder on as you go.

Therefore, it is highly recommended to read each chapter at least twice to get the real meaning of what

the author is trying to express.



It can also be said that presented author's inaccuracy forces to assume that Covey describes the non-

existent world, or a utopia. In other words, the author describes the ideal society, and business without

deficiencies. In addition, he loses sight of global problems, such as crises, revolutions, recessions, which

can make people to be slaves of circumstances. But definitely, using these seven habits may be effective

for individuals, but they should also see and understand the world more broadly and deeply. In other

words, people should think more realistic and rational.

Also According to the book, the habit “think win-win” means that “all parties feel good about the decision

and feel committed to the action” (Covey, 1989, p. 207). However, this position can cause a wave of

protest from game theory's followers. According to this theory, there are two or more groups or

individuals, that waging a struggle for their interests' realization. Furthermore, each group has its own

goals and strategies, which can lead to a win or lose. Nowadays, there is a high level of competition, and

adversarial principle or win-lose is more popular than win-win way. Further, the majority of businessmen

think that only competition can make the organization to be more effective and successful. According to

Dock Trecee's article, the competition is “is an ever-present facet of life and a driving force behind

progress, and should be appreciated as such” (Competition moves society forward, 2010).

VI. Lessons learned

The book has a lot to offer to its readers when it comes to being an efficient and effective leader.

The most important lesson that I learned from the book, and the one I think I will be using in real life, is

the second habit which states that people’s actions must always begin and be aligned with the end in

mind. I realized that no matter how much effort we put into an activity or an endeavor, if the end is not

justifiable, all the hard work will be futile. It is like climbing the long ladder of success only to find out

that the ladder is leading towards the wrong wall.

In order to succeed, Covey proposes visualization. In this habit of personal leadership, one must be able

to lead himself towards his own aims. Through developing the habit of concentrating on relevant

activities, one can create his own pathway towards success.

VII) Recommendations

First of all, as it was found, that the author does not give the definition what he understands by highly

effective people. In other words, Covey provides seven habits, which can make the reader to be more

active, and etc. However, it does not give the exemplar, neither the individuals, nor the business



organizations. The interviews of celebrities, such as Top Managers, or Presidents, CEO could more support

Covey's theory.

Secondly, using additional sources and criteria could advocate author's position. For example, there are

several indexes, such as Happy Planet Index, and Workforce Productivity, to reflect the living quality, and

productivity of people. The Happy Planet Index provides the information about the countries, where is a

high level of “happiness” or “life satisfaction”. According to the statistic of 2012, top three happiness

countries were Costa Rica, Vietnam, Colombia, and “only four countries have a GDP per capita of over

$15,000. The highest ranking OECD country is Israel in 15th place, and the top Western European nation is

Norway in 29th place”. It shows that there are different measures to identify the happiness. The level of

innovations is a main indicator of the workforce productivity. More than that the highest level of

innovations in the specific country shows that people work there much more effective, because it has the

positive business environment for high level of technologies. It also means that the theory of

being proactive could be modified.

VIII. Conclusion

This book does comprise particular effective ideas and some new styles to think about self- development

and leadership but works best when it’s directly applicable to life. It is only highly recommended to those

people who are determined about leading and supporting others, and only for those who are willing to

take the book in small portions, trying hard to learn it as you go. If you try and read the book through in

a session or two, you'll come away with some useful and helpful tips, but nothing close to what Covey

intended you to take away. While this book is helpful for those who are involved in business

management, it’s a good material for others as well, especially for those who aim for excellence in their

lives.

Changing our habits to improve what we are can be a painful process. It must be motivated by a higher

purpose, and by the willingness to subordinate what you think you want now for what you know you want

later. Acquiring the seven habits of effectiveness takes us through the stages of character development.

Habits 1 through 3 make up the “private victory” - where we go from dependence to independence by

taking responsibility for our own lives. Acquiring habits 4through 6 is our “public victory”: Once

independent, we learn to be interdependent, to succeed with other people. The seventh habit makes all

the others possible periodically renewing ourselves in mind body, and spirit.



It is a self-help book influencing the lives of thousands of people all around the globe. This book has

become a best-seller as it helps in developing the character, personality of the people.

References

Covey S. (1989). The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. New York, NY: Designed by

Irving Perkins Associates.

Human Development Report. (2013). Human Development Report. Retrieved from

http://hdr.undp.org/sites/def ault/files/re ports/14/hdr2013_en_co mplete.pdf

Trecee D. (2010). Competition moves society forward. Retrieved from

http://www.safeh aven.com/articl e/19015/c ompetition-moves-society-f orw ard

Linder D.O. (2011). Al Capone Trial (1931): An Account. Retrieved from

http://law2.umkc.edu/faculty/projects/ftrials/capone/caponeaccount.html

Cain S. (2013). Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking.

New York, Broadway books.

Balzano F.J., Ward J. (1999). Why Should Extroverts Make All the Money? Published by

Contemporary Books, 1999.


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Highly Effective People Book Review