The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People

I remember once as a student at the university, one of my professors had discussed the difference between being efficient and being effective, I was intrigued! He elaborated that being efficient is doing everything well and on time and being effective is doing what is important well. The definition had stuck to me like glue.

As I sit to write this month’s blogpost, I am reminded of a small incident that took place when I first thought about this topic of effectiveness. I had noticed several times a certain book peering at me during my routine visits to the bookstore; I would catch a passing glance & rudely ignore it. This book magically found its way into my garage, determined to get my attention, insulted maybe, by my cold shoulder as one would feel having spurned by a lover.

Last summer, while packing to go on a camping trip, I made my usual journey around the house collecting books that I intended to read during the trip. My eyes skimmed over this book, a part of me as usual said, heck, ignore it, the other side protested wait, what if it had something of value which might help you? I responded, there, you got me!
While these two warring monarchs (my two sides) were engaged in one upmanship, my truant hand had already reached for it & I was surprised to find myself, book in hand and well into the fifth page.



If you already have a hunch about the book I am talking about?

Yes you guessed right, the book was the Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. The book has sold over 10 million copies worldwide and made Dr. Stephen Covey a world renowned self help author.

Subsequently I have always questioned myself about why had I ignored this book like a plague for so long? Was it possible that I might feel burdened by the wisdom in the book and feel obliged to follow it? Whatever the reason, I realized the very title had had a powerful impact on my psyche.

What are the Seven Habits of highly effective people?



Habit1:Be Proactive
Habit2:Begin with the end in mind
Habit3:Put first things first
Habit4:Think Win /Win
Habit5:Seek first to understand then to be understood
Habit6:Synergize
Habit7:Sharpen the saw

stephen covey
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I take few of the habits to discuss more in detail

Habit 1 (Be Proactive): Dr. Covey begins by saying “The first habit of highly effective people is Proactivity. Proactive people are driven by values that are independent of external circumstances or how people treat them”

Being proactive means making things happen. Proactive people do not stand around waiting for things to happen. They go and create what they want when they want. Proactive people work within the sphere of their influence and know the difference between situations within their control and those without.

Interestingly, management Guru Peter Drucker in his landmark paper “Effective Executive” (a Harvard Business Review classic) also says effective people always first ask what needs to be done now?

Having the choice to react is another quality of proactive people Dr.Covey explains the gap between stimulus and response has infinite possibilities. Animals do not have the privilege of choice, they are reactive not proactive.

One of the greatest examples of a proactive person history has ever seen was Gandhi. The mighty British Empire could throw anything at him; he retaliated by conquering the hearts of men which in the end became the most formidable foe of the British.



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

The following videos by Dr. Covey brilliantly summarizes habit5



Dr.Covey talks about the native Indian way of communication

http://www.betterdaystv.net/play.php?vid=167


The lighthouse example

http://www.betterdaystv.net/play.php?vid=129

Habit 7 (Sharpening the saw)

Sharpening the saw means self renewal. What do we do to be centered, to replenish, to be calm & focused? Some people take retreats, cut off from the world for several days to come back with renewed vigor.

The wealthiest man in the world, Bill Gates of Microsoft, took his retreats seriously. He called his retreats think week which he religiously pursued twice a year. During his retreats, he saw no one, took no calls and would not disclose the location of his retreat. He had a caretaker who would supply him with food twice a day.



According to Microsoft, one think week in 1995 inspired Gates' paper, "The Internet Tidal Wave," which led Microsoft to develop its Internet browser and crush Netscape. Plans to create Microsoft's Tablet PC, build more-secure software and start an online video-game business were also catalyzed during Think Weeks.


Conclusion

Since reading Dr. Covey I had wondered why he never included time management as one of the key habits of a highly effective person? I went back to the definition of being effective and realized being effective is atemporal or not a function of time (though we are all time bound as part of creation).
If we acquire the seven habits we automatically prioritize and do things at the right time with maximum effect. Think of all the great works we have had throughout history like a Milton’s Paradise Lost or a Will Durant’s Story of Civilization or a Thirumoolar’s Thirumandiram they were hardly created on a deadline. It is not for nothing that we call them timeless classics, they are not bound by time while, during or after creation.

So if we want to be highly effective or create something of value let us be unaffected by time first but work on fine tuning in acquiring the seven habits!