'The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People' by Stephen Covey

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change was a groundbreaker when it was first published in 1990, and it continues to be a business bestseller with more than 10 million copies sold. Stephen Covey, an internationally respected leadership authority, realizes that true success encompasses a balance of personal and professional effectiveness, so this book is a manual for performing better in both arenas. His anecdotes are as frequently from family situations as from business challenges.

Before you can adopt the seven habits, you'll need to accomplish what Covey calls a "paradigm shift"--a change in perception and interpretation of how the world works. Covey takes you through this change, which affects how you perceive and act regarding productivity, time management, positive thinking, developing your "proactive muscles" (acting with initiative rather than reacting), and much more.

This isn't a quick-tips-start-tomorrow kind of book. The concepts are sometimes intricate, and you'll want to study this book, not skim it. When you finish, you'll probably have Post-it notes or hand-written annotations in every chapter, and you'll feel like you've taken a powerful seminar by Covey.

This is an excellent book that probably almost everyone has heard of. Millions of people have read it, but unfortunately many people don't make the commitment to actually apply the habits in their everyday life. If they did, it's a "can't miss" success formula. However, it is not an "instant fix" formula that is the rub for many.

Dr. Covey writes well and holds the reader's attention. His arguments are sound and it comes across that he practices what he preaches. The section on the basic life assumptions that are unconsciously adopted by people that keep them stuck is particularly useful. These fall under the general category of the psychology of "paradigm changing," which is a revelation to a lot of readers.

I also like that the book sticks to seven pivotal habits and puts the spotlight on them. From these, most other productive habits logically follow as a consequence. In this sense, his formula is simple. However, the application of his ideas is more difficult.

I would recommend this book to anyone in business. It gives great, practical advice that one could start implementing immediately.


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