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THE 7 HABITS OF HIGHLY

EFFECTIVE PEOPLE AUTHOR: STEPHEN COVEY

THIS POWER SUMMARY WAS CREATED BY DAVID RIKLAN

Original Publication Date: 1989

Updated and Revised: 2013

This book has sold over 20 million copies worldwide and was named the #1 Most

Influential Business Book of the Twentieth Century.

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Summary

In “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People”, Covey lays out seven proven principles

for success. He teaches that you are what you habitually do, so you should adopt

productive habits. This book has sold over 20 million copies worldwide and was

named the #1 Most Influential Business Book of the Twentieth Century.

Key Takeaways

What exactly are the 7 habits?

1) Be Proactive

“Taking initiative does not mean being pushy, obnoxious, or aggressive. It does mean

recognizing our responsibility to make things happen.”

You are responsible for your life and every decision you make. Your choices alone

determine the path you follow, so take initiative and steer the things you can control

in the direction you want them to go.

2) Begin with the End in Mind

“(This habit)…is based on imagination—the ability to envision, to see the potential, to

create with our minds what we cannot at present see with our eyes...”

Determine your ultimate goal. You must visualize what you want before you can

create it. "The End" is really the goal of your goals.

3) Put First Things First

“Create a clear, mutual understanding of what needs to be accomplished, focusing on

what, not how; results not methods. Spend time. Be patient. Visualize the desired

result.”

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Focus on your top priorities. "Top" doesn’t always mean "urgent." For example, when

the phone rings, picking it up might seem urgent, but the caller is not always

important. The energy you expend should drive you toward the goal you established

in step 2.

4) Think Win-Win

“Win-Win is a frame of mind that constantly seeks mutual benefit in all human

interactions. Win-Win means that agreements or solutions are mutually beneficial

and satisfying.”

A "win" for everyone involved is better than a one-sided win or a lose-lose situation.

Aiming for an outcome in which everyone is content with the results creates an

environment where people work together rather than against one another.

5) Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood

“‘Seek First to Understand’ involves a very deep shift in paradigm. We typically seek

first to be understood. Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they

listen with the intent to reply. They’re either speaking or preparing to speak. They’re

filtering everything through their own paradigms, reading their autobiography into

other people’s lives.”

Communication is a two-way street. To develop win/win relationships, find out what

the other parties want and what winning means to them. Trying to get your point

across right off the bat usually means you are not really listening to what the other

person has to say.

6) Synergize

“Synergy works; it’s a correct principle. It is the crowning achievement of all the

previous habits. It is effectiveness in an interdependent reality—it is teamwork, team

building, the development of unity and creativity with other human beings.”

Cooperation multiplies the power of one and lets people achieve things that may not

be able to accomplish alone. Everyone has something unique to contribute, and the

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sharing of different opinions and ideas can inspire everyone to think about things in a

new light to allow for amazing results.

7 ) Sharpen the Saw

“This is the habit of renewal...It circles and embodies all the other habits. It is the

habit of continuous improvement...that lifts you to new levels of understanding and

living each of the habits.”

There’s an old story about a man sawing a log. The work is going slowly and the man

is exhausted. The more he saws, the less he cuts. A passerby watches for a while and

suggests that the man take a break to sharpen the saw, but the man says he can’t

stop to sharpen the saw because he is too busy sawing! A dull saw makes the work

tiresome, tedious and unproductive. Highly effective people take the time they need

to sharpen their tools: their bodies, souls, mind and hearts.

Action Steps

1) Get started with your journey today by being proactive. It’s time to take action and

begin doing instead of saying.

2) Begin with the end in mind by identifying your top 5 goals.

3) Prioritize your top 5 goals.

4) Do first things first by beginning to working on goal # 1 while keeping all 7 of the

Stephen Covey’s Habits in mind.

Thought Provoking Questions

1) What does it mean to be proactive? What qualities are needed to be proactive?

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2) Have you established a mission statement?

3) What is an example from your own experience where you achieved (or not) a

win/win situation?

4) How is Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood relevant to your life?

5) What does synergy mean and how does it apply to personal effectiveness?

6) What are you currently doing to sharpen your saw? What one thing do you need

to do that you aren’t currently doing?

Quotes and Excerpts

"Each of us tends to think we see things as they are, that we are objective. But this is

not the case. We see the world, not as it is, but as we are—or as we are conditioned

to see it."

"Effective people are not problem-minded; they’re opportunity minded. They feed

opportunities and starve problems."

"Without involvement, there is no commitment. Mark it down, asterisk it, circle it,

underline it. No involvement, no commitment."

Biography

Dr. Stephen R. Covey was the co-founder and vice-chairman of FranklinCovey

Company, a leading global professional services firm. He was respected

internationally as an author, lecturer, teacher, and leadership mentor. His New York

Times best-selling book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, has sold more than

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13 million copies in 36 languages, and the audio book on tape has sold over 1.5

million copies.

Dr. Covey earned his B.S. degree from the University of Utah, his M.B.A. from Harvard

University, and his doctorate degree from Brigham Young University. He served as an

administrative assistant to the president of B.Y.U. and a visiting professor at the

University of Utah and Belfast Technical College. He was also an officer and board

member of several corporations.

Dr. Covey taught principle-centered living and is the founder of Covey Leadership

Center. In 1997, a merger with Franklin Quest created the new FranklinCovey

Company with over 3,000 employees and $350 million in annual revenue.

FranklinCovey offers learning and performance solutions to assist professionals in

increasing their effectiveness in productivity, leadership, communications and sales.

Dr. Covey passed away on July 16, 2012.

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http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ISBN=1451639619/selfimprovemeonlA/

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