the 7 habits of highly effective people stephen r covey

While society and most of the self-help books on the market champion independence as the highest achievement, Covey argues that it’s interdependence that yields the greatest results. The seven habits in this book will help you move from a state of dependence, to independence, and finally to interdependence. Rather than focusing on altering the outward manifestations of your behavior and attitudes, it aims to adapt your inner core, character, and motives. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People puts forward a principle-centered approach to both personal and interpersonal effectiveness. What Are the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People?Ĭovey’s seven habits are composed of the primary principles of character upon which happiness and success are based. This is the foundation of his bestselling book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.

When you value the correct principles, you see reality as it truly is. Covey claims that these principles are self-evident and endure in most religious, social, and ethical systems. The “Character Ethic” is based upon a series of principles. What we are says far more than what we say or do. Yet, these were just shallow, quick successes, overlooking the deeper principles of life.Ĭovey argues it’s your character that needs to be cultivated to achieve sustainable success, not your personality. However, after the war, there was a shift to what Covey refers to as the “Personality Ethic.” Here, success was attributed as a function of personality, public image, behaviors, and skills. This included characteristics such as humility, fidelity, integrity, courage, and justice. It was here that he noticed a stark historical contrast between two types of success.īefore the First World War, success was attributed to ethics of character. In an attempt to understand why, he read several self-improvement, self-help, and popular psychology books written over the past 200 years. During his 25 years of working with successful individuals in business, universities, and relationship settings, Stephen Covey discovered that high-achievers were often plagued with a sense of emptiness.

The 7 habits of highly effective people stephen r covey