The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People

Restoring The Character Ethic

By Stephen R. Covey

The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey is still on the bestseller lists having sold some fifteen million copies. And, people want to know more about Covey's The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. So, we decided to review The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People in more detail.

Borrowing slightly from the concepts of Quantum Mechanics, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People begins with the astute observation that people perceive the world differently, and because we view the world with our own unique "lens," it is difficult to separate the observation from the observer.

Covey says that we all have our own paradigm, which is our own map of how we perceive the world and how we think the world should be in our ideal view. Covey writes, "The way we see things is the source of the way we think and the way we act."

Covey goes on to explain: "...[T]hese paradigms are the source of our attitudes and behaviors. We cannot act with integrity outside of them. We simply cannot maintain wholeness if we talk and walk differently than we see. ... To try to change outward attitudes and behaviors does very little good in the long run if we fail to examine the basic paradigms from which those attitudes and behaviors flow."

So, part of achieving insight involves making a "paradigm shift" which causes us to perceive things differently. Covey notes that life threatening experiences or a major role change in a person's life can change a person's paradigm. Sometimes, just a little more knowledge might help us examine our paradigms.

By Ken Speakman

In the 1930s, Napoleon Hill suggested in his book "Think and Grow Rich" to take out an advertisement in the newspapers in order to exhibit yourself to prominent people you would like to consider you for employment, or other endeavors. How things have changed -- and yet at the same time remained the same. 

Machiavelli, Dante, The Medicis, The Borgias, Alexander, Hannibal, Julius, Lord Byron, Coco Chanel, Josephine Baker, Cleopatra, Casanova, Napoleon, JFK, Richard Branson, Donald Trump, Lady Gaga, 50 Cent -- even today, these names provoke thoughts of what these "personal brands" represent. Personal brands can seduce, incite fear or trust, or elevate the individual to a position of leadership, authority, or power. Personal brands open up doors and create opportunities -- and they also can do the reverse.