Jun 20
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People — A Brief Introduction To The Book
“The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” is a reference in the field of personal development, effective communication and productive interdependence.
Covey does not claim to present a quick miracle method, but a real process of change that, with practice over time, shows profound transformations.
He offers us the keys to a deep exploration of ourselves, our paradigms, our frames of reference that underlie our actions and reactions to the stimuli of the moment.
It also puts us in direct contact with our true, most enduring and deepest values.
The 7 Habits defines not only a progressive sequential methodology for success in business, but also the philosophy of a lifestyle based on the principles of ethics, integrity, wisdom and common sense.
The laws of success, explained in The 7 Habits, are universal and applicable to all areas of life. Nevertheless, they must be translated into daily habits. Success is a habit, so is failure.
Part 1 of the book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Paradigms and Principles
Most people spend their lives looking for the happiness that comes from material acquisitions and displayed success. But they always end up feeling an inner emptiness, a terrible lack of meaning and balance. These deep-seated problems cannot be solved by using superficial techniques.
The roots of these problems lie in the nature of our perceptions of external events and stimuli. We interpret the world through our frame of reference, which is programmed and shaped by the social, family and cultural environment in which we live.
Any effort to change that is limited to our attitudes and behaviors is often counterproductive. For greater effectiveness, the focus must be on our perceptions and paradigms. True success comes from integrating the principles of effective living into our fundamental character.
For decades, the success literature promoted the cult of personality. These were techniques that focused on branding, influence, manipulation and persuasion through charm of any kind (communication, prestige, image…).
According to Stephen Covey, these techniques have a secondary role in achieving a happy and successful life. To be more effective over time, these techniques must be subordinated to a character centered on our most natural values such as sincerity, empathy, dignity and trust. “Only fundamental goodness gives life to the technique! It is character that communicates most eloquently.
The effect of these techniques is short-lived, as they often go against the natural laws of growth and development. “You reap what you sow”. There is no shortcut. This principle is also true, with the same force, in other human activities. These too are natural systems that do not deviate from the ‘law of the harvest’.
The power of paradigms
The habits presented by Covey are both fundamental and natural. They embody the internalization of the principles upon which sustainable success and happiness are built.
The difference lies in our paradigms: how we perceive and interpret things. “The map is not the territory.
Our paradigms are our maps that guide us in our daily lives. They are scripts that have been instilled in us by others (family, society…).
These programs guide both our perception of reality and our expectations of this so-called reality. For us, reality is as we perceive it.
Therefore, this perception is the source of our thoughts, emotions and actions. However logical our perception may be, it is always tainted with subjectivity. We see what we want to see.
In this register, we can cite denial, which is a psychological defense mechanism, where the individual refuses the reality of a perception experienced as painful.
The more we are aware of our basic paradigms, and the different programming we have undergone, the more we can assume our responsibility and take our destiny in hand.
We can examine these paradigms, test them, and even change them completely. Our perspectives become broader, the images sharper and the perceptions more objective.
Paradigm shifts propel change in life. We can see that significant breakthroughs in all fields (science, religion, art..) were, above all, breaks with traditions, old ways of thinking and old paradigms.
The principle of growth and change
What we see on the outside is strongly related to what we are on the inside.
Principles are like lighthouses. They are natural laws that cannot be violated. They are not esoteric, mysterious or religious. The keys to success transcend beliefs, schools of thought and cultures. They are indisputable because they are obvious.
Moreover, principles are not practices. The latter are specific actions that may work in one case and not in another.
Principles are not values either. Gang members might share values of friendship, compassion and respect, but in violation of the most humanly recognized principles as the basis of morality and ethics.
The literature is full of theories promoting shortcuts to get-rich-quick schemes or success without work. These methods only inflate the bank accounts of their authors, and break the lives of people who still believe in the magic wand.
Any natural process is composed of sequential steps of growth and development. Each step is important, and must consume its time. We all accept this truth in its physical dimension, but few integrate it into the emotional and relational dimensions. We want things in the immediate.
The idea of achieving the result, quickly, with the least effort, violates the natural law of growth, and often leads to frustration and desolation.
The way you see the problem is the problem
The more people look for quick fixes, and focus on problems and pain, the more this way of thinking contributes to the long-term bogging down of the situation.
Most people who attend seminars on time management, strategic planning or emotional intelligence building do so in a logic of looking for miracle recipes. They often fail to make sense of their lives and lead productive, happy and peaceful lives.
We forget that the roots of our existential misfortunes are to be found deep within ourselves, at the level of our ways of thinking that affect the meaning we give to events.
Albert Einstein observed that “the important problems we create cannot be solved at the same intellectual level as the one we have at the time of their creation”. Problems are signals of failure in thinking; the solution, therefore, requires a change in that failure mode. “Stop criticizing the neighbor’s laundry if your windows are dirty”.
Events are neutral and have no intrinsic value beyond that which we attribute to them.
The effective principled approach advocates, in the first place, the cleansing of the interior and the reconciliation of our soul with Nature.
The power of habits
We are the product of what we repeat. Excellence is not an act, but a habit. “Plant a thought, reap an action! Sow an action, reap a habit! Sow a habit, reap a character! Plant a character, reap a destiny!
Habits have a powerful force of attraction, often underestimated. Their force of inertia is too paralyzing. To break a habit requires a huge and sustained effort.
Ultimately, as Marilyn Ferguson observed, “Each of us holds a door to change that can only be opened from within. No argument or emotional appeal can open that door from the outside.
Continued Maturity
To reach maturity, the individual must move from the state of dependence to the more effective state of independence (personal) and interdependence (relationships).
The dependent person defines him/herself by his/her habits, and through the opinions of others, and their behaviors. They build their emotional life on the weaknesses of the people around them.
True independence of character makes us responsible and more proactive than reactive.
At a higher level, interdependence denotes a higher level of maturity, as people share vast resources and opportunities that one person alone is unable to gather.
Nevertheless, productive interdependence involves independent people. Dependence never leads directly to interdependence.
Definition of efficiency
If we adopt a way of life that focuses on results, neglecting our vital resources, we will sooner or later suffer the total exhaustion of our means of production.
Efficiency means always keeping the balance between production and the means of production.
In our quest for quick gains, we ruin our priceless resources (our golden goose), thus condemning long-term results.
Efficiency balances the short term (production) with the long term (resources).
Events are neutral and have no intrinsic value beyond that which we attribute to them.
The effective principled approach advocates, in the first place, the cleansing of the interior and the reconciliation of our soul with Nature.
