Book Review and Insights Learning: (The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People)

Book introduction

The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey is a personal development, psychology, leadership, and productivity category book. This book is called a timeless bestseller with millions of copies sold. It states some powerful lessons in both personal and social change.

About Author

Stephen Richards Covey was an eminent American non-fiction author. He was a multi-talented personality who was recognized for his work as a successful businessman, educator, and influential public speaker. He is credited for writing one of the most influential business books of the twentieth century, titled The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. Besides these books, he is also the author of other famous books called The 8th Habit, The Leader in Me, First Things First, Principle-Centered Leadership, etc.

High-level Overview

This book starts with highlighting some real-life, deep, and painful problems of both personal and social levels. And these problems don’t have any quick fixes. To tackle these types of problems and improve effectiveness, there should grow up some habits that effective people practice.

Then gradually open up with ethics (personal and character) and the importance of paradigm and paradigm shifting. The author gives many real-life examples of the power of paradigm shifting and seeing plus being mechanisms. He drew a very good illustration of “the way we see the problem is the problem.”

Habits are something that are the combination of knowledge, desire, and skills that need regular practice. To be effective and successful, we need the P(production)/PC(production capability) balance.

The 7 habits can be divided into 3 types. The first is called Private Victory (habits 1, 2, and 3), which focuses on personal-level improvement by warring with yourself. The second is called Public Victory (habits 4, 5, and 6), which focuses on the circumstance and environment. And the third one means habit 7 is the sharpest of all other habits.

That’s the way this book is organized, and it delivers the contents with great examples and descriptions of scenarios.

Insights and Learning

Paradigm and Paradigm Shifting:

“Paradigm” means “the way we see something,” and paradigm shifting is the process of trying to see things a different way than we normally see them. So paradigm-shifting skill is very powerful and essential for being efficient. As I mentioned earlier, “the way we see the problem is the problem.” To solve the problem, we need to practice the paradigm shift.

P/PC (productive and productive capacity) Balance:

We need to maintain the production and the production capability in parallel. Because if our PC decreases, then P will decrease automatically. So we need to update and practice our skills on a regular basis.

Habit 1 (Be Proactive):

Take responsibility for your life and actions, and focus on what you can control rather than what you can’t.

Some techniques to do so:

• Increasing stimulus will automatically increase response.
• Taking the initiative.
• Act before being acted upon.
• Increase your circle of influence and reduce the circle of concern.

Habit 2 (Begin With The End In Mind):

Have a clear understanding of what you want to achieve and plan accordingly. Define your goals and purpose in life, and use them as a guide to make decisions and prioritize your actions.

Some techniques to do so:

• Create all things twice, first mentally, then physically.
• Be the principal center and rescript your own things.
• Use imagination and act like that.

Habit 3 (Put First Things First):

Prioritize your time and energy on the essential things in your life, and learn to say “no” to less important things. Prioritize the most important things and focus on them first.

Important things:

• Focus on improving relationship works more.
• Use notes or scheduling tools to make things organized and timely.

Habit 4 (Think Win-Win):

Seek mutual benefit in all interactions and relationships, and look for solutions that benefit all parties involved.

Some techniques to do so:

• Deposit in emotional bank account means increasing relationship and trust.
• Clarify and keep commitments and expectations.
• Apologizing sincerely when you make any mistake.
• Put your leg on other shoes to understand other points of view.

Habit 5 (Seek first to understand, then to be understood):

Listen empathetically and seek to understand others’ perspectives before expressing your own. Listen to others before trying to make yourself understood.

Some techniques to do so:

• Practice empathetic listening and be a good listener.
• Try to understand others and dig down to their purposes by questioning.

Habit 6 (Synergize):

Work collaboratively with others to achieve goals and create outcomes more significant than any individual could achieve alone. Work together to achieve more than you could on your own.

Some techniques to do so:

• Increase cooperation and trust.
• Think outside the box, and if stuck, fish for alternatives.
• Valuing the difference.

Habit 7 (Sharpen the Saw):

Take care of yourself physically, mentally, and emotionally to maintain effectiveness. Take time to renew and improve yourself physically, mentally, emotionally, and spiritually for continued success. This is for increasing personal PC (productive capacity).

Some techniques to do so:

• Renew physical level (exercise, nutrition, stress management).
• Renew spiritual level (study, commitment, meditation).
• Renew mental level (reading, travelling, planning, writing, visualizing).
• Renew social/emotional level (synergy, service, empathy).

Summary

All the habits described in this book are fundamental and highly considerable for anyone’s life. If you look closely, all the things mentioned here are part of the religion Islam.

• Islam says, be a hard worker and keep working (be proactive) to change your luck and future.
• Islam says, “Think about the consequences of your work for this life and life after death also (begin with the end in mind).”
• Islam says, do your regular job and maintain the current things without keeping them for tomorrow (put first things first).
• Islam says, “Think about others also; do not always think about yourself only (think win-win).”
• Islam says, talk to your brothers, sisters, and neighbors, and try to understand their happiness and sadness, and try to give a feeling that you are with them (seek first to understand, then to be understood).
• Islam says, lead life and balance your work so that it will be enough for this life and life after death (synergize).
• Islam says, lead a healthy and disciplined life for you, your family, and others (sharpen the saw).

Bonus (The 8th Habit)

The 8th Habit: From Effectiveness to Greatness is a follow-up to The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. It clarifies and reinforces Covey’s earlier declaration that “Interdependence is a higher value than independence.”

Habit 8 (Find your voice and inspire others to find theirs):

This habit refers to discovering your unique talents and passions and using them to make a positive impact on the world around you. More specifically, know your own passion, love, likes, weaknesses, and strengths, and utilize them at their level best. In the Kung-Fu-Panda movie there is great dialogue: “Find the answer ‘who am I’ and try to ’turn into you.’”

Conclusion

The majority of the people in this world are always willing for a quick fix, and minority people are going for long-term vision and sustainability. That’s why these minority people are known as effective and successful. They follow the effective habits, practice them, and implement them in their life. So if we want to be effective as well, we should also be visionary and effective.

Finally, I highly recommend the book “The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People,” and everybody should read this book at least once.