The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People - Review and Critique

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People – Book Review

            This is a book that covers what the author, Stephen R. Covey, believes to be seven habits that effective people possess that you can apply to your own life in order to help you transform it and ultimately be more successful, both professionally and personally. The book begins with a discussion on paradigms and principles. This discussion included information on personality and character ethics that he ties into an example on how he changed his relationship with his son by separating himself and acknowledging his individuality as valid. Covey discussed a “paradigm shift” and the belief that we have an objective point of view, however we usually don’t see that larger picture or take other perspectives into account. This is part of the paradigm shift and how our perception of things change, whether good or bad, when we have this shift.

The main part of the book goes into detail on the seven habits as described by Covey. The first of these habits is “be proactive.” This is described as the idea of taking responsibility for our own actions and to be self-aware and conscious of our response to a given situation. It is the idea that we need to focus on what can be controlled in our environment and respond accordingly, rather than focusing on the result.

The second habit that Covey outlines is “begin with the end in mind.” Another way to put this is that things should be examined with a comprehensive view and with a goal in mind. Having that goal helps the personal actualize what they want and live accordingly in a way that this goal influences their daily decisions and actions. In order to create this desired outcome, we can write our own plan. This section also focuses on principles and how to visualize what we want.

Covey’s third habit is “put things first.” This primarily focuses on prioritization and time management as a key to being effective. He divides things into four categories: important and urgent activities, important but not urgent activities, not important but urgent activities and not important and non-urgent activities. Surprisingly, Covey states that we should focus on important but non-urgent activities when prioritizing our time. This is because focusing on these reduces the probability of urgent and important activities coming up.  

The fourth habit, “think win-win” centers around the idea of focusing on results and relationships when working and collaborating with others. This includes the mindset of essentially being considerate of others in order to foster a mutually beneficial relationship. This ties into how one interacts with people and stresses the importance of the five dimensions when creating this win-win scenario: character, relationship, agreements, systems, and processes. These tenets tie into this habit and allow the person to reframe their thinking from a scarcity mindset to an abundance mindset and focus on a mutual gain.

“Seek first to understand, then to be understood,” is the fifth habit outlined by Covey. This habit is pretty self-explanatory, however it can be described as trying to understand others perspectives before rushing into some kind of judgement. One must actually understand the problem before attempting to fix it, just as a professional would. Covey ties this into the idea of listening to others and being considerate, drawing on this idea of an “emotional bank account.” Covey provided a good example of this when he discussed his experience earlier in the book, where he sat in a train. A father, and his children came in and while the children became disruptive, Covey became increasingly annoyed and asked the father to manage his children better. The father then revealed that his wife and the children’s mother just passed away in the hospital an hour ago and they weren’t handling it well. Ultimately, you never really know what people are going through and it’s better to be more considerate and understanding as opposed to rushing in.

 The sixth habit, “synergize,” is the idea of collaborating and creating something that takes from different perspectives and creates something greater than “the sum of its parts.” Covey details ways to achieve this synergy, which includes seeking diversity, valuing differences, listening to others, and finding collaborative solutions.  

“Sharpen the saw” Is the seventh and final habit. This is rooted in self-care and the belief that you can become dull, as a saw would after continual use. In order to combat this, Covey stresses the importance of focusing on your physical, spiritual, mental and emotional/social health. These aspects all intertwine with each other and boosting one can help others as well. Covet details key ways we can engage in these, be it through exercise, journaling, reading books, volunteering or spending time with family and friends.

Overall, this book draws heavily on the idea of emotional intelligence, understanding others and being more intuitive and self-aware. Out of all the habits, I find myself agreeing most with the fifth habit, seeking to understand first. It’s easy to have a reactive response rather than taking in the entire situation. A lot of people’s instinct is to act first, rather than thinking, and even I am guilty of this, however, it is important to remember that people carry their own perspectives and views.

                           The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People – Critique

        While this book was highly informative, my primary critique comes from the belief that putting all these habits into practice can be difficult for the average person. Even in my own personal life, as much as I’d like to live up to these ideals, it’s sometimes difficult to escape our own limitations. By this I mean, we all have our individual backgrounds that have shaped our point of view, which can be influenced by trauma or negative experiences. Some people have difficulty with insight or self-awareness, which I believe is an important component of every habit listed.

        Another critique would be how convoluted each of these habits can be. Most of these habits have multiple components and dimensions that all correlate to each other, but to be honest can be difficult to remember and therefore implement. Rather than simplifying things, I feel this book heavily went into details that could otherwise be summarized and condensed into something shorter. The overall habits were all something that people should implement into their lives, however the presentation was unnecessary complex at times.