Author: Stephen R. Covey

Publisher: Free Press, 15th Annv edition

Pub. in: November, 2004

ISBN: 0743269519

Pages: 384

Measurements: 8.6 x 5.3 x 1.0 inches

Origin of product: USA

Order code: BA00018

Other information:  

One of the best business books ever written with more than 15 million copies sold. This book ranks #134 in books on Amazon.com as of December 7, 2006.

In The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, author Stephen R. Covey presents a holistic, integrated, principle-centered approach for solving personal and professional problems. With penetrating insights and pointed anecdotes, Covey reveals a step-by-step pathway for living with fairness, integrity, honesty, and human dignity – principles that give us the security to adapt to change and the wisdom and power to take advantage of the opportunities that change creates.

The National Bestseller presents an "Inside-out" approach to effectiveness that is centered on principles and character. Inside-out means that the change starts within oneself. For many people, this approach represents a paradigm shift from the Personality Ethic to the Character Ethic.

According to the author, our character is a collection of our habits, and habits have a powerful role in our lives. Habits consist of knowledge, skill, and desire. Knowledge allows us to know what to do, skill gives us the ability to know how to do it, and desire is the motivation to do it.

The 7 Habits moves us through the following stages:

1) Dependence: the paradigm under which we are born, relying upon others to take care of us.

2) Independence: the paradigm under which we can make our own decisions and take care of ourselves.

3) Interdependence: the paradigm under which we cooperate to achieve something that cannot be achieved independently.

To make the choice to become interdependence, one first must be independent, since the dependent people have not yet developed the character for inter- dependence. Therefore, the first 3 habits focus on self-mastery, that is, achieving private victories required to move from dependence to independence. The first 3 habits are:

1) Habit 1: Be proactive

2) Habit 2: Begin with the End in Mind

3) Habit 3: Put first things First

Habits 4, 5 and 6 then address interdependence:

4) Habit 4: Think Win/Win

5) Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, then To be Understood

6) Habit 6: Synergize

Finally, the 7th habit is one of renewal and continual improvement, of building one's personal production capability. To be effective, one must find the proper balance between actually producing and improving one's capability to produce.

Some more background information about this book. The Personality Ethic has failed man, hence the Character Ethics was invented. This is what Covey meant when he took almost the greater part of his time to write one of the best and most inspirational book of the century.

The book is a teaching based on the higher level of learning from independence to inter-dependence, showing that synergy is the best option to move ahead with people. This is a book that i have re-read over and over again and all the time i never wanted to put it down or even let it go. its one of those books that once you flip-open its first page, you will keep on turning the pages until you get to the last page and you don't dare put it down and even when on the last page, you MUST ask for more fast enough than Oliver Twist.

As a best seller, the book will knock you off if you refuse to give heed to its advice and adhere to the principles. it is based on self-discipline and principles that really works. It is not a matter of flipping over the pages like the usual SQ3R methodology but it is just as though Covey is talking directly to the reader. He has the exposure and experience to capture his audience as well as keep the listener going all through the pages of the book.

It is a book that every house needs, it is for both the family, the individual, the scholar, the organization, the management and even the government. In fact it is a must-read for all aspiring intellectual. It is an extraordinary masterpiece where Steven tries to use his experiences to coach the hopeless and restore back courage to the depressed about life issues. He faults the orthodox fundamentalists of the personality ethics and invented the Character ethics to show how synergy can make the perfect functionality of interdependency as a means to forge ahead to greater height. Major instances where those from his family, business and academic life experience which spurs the reader never to accept defeat in life.

For lovers of inspirational and motivational books, its the right stuff and believe it, if you haven't seen the book, then you have not even started the journey into classics I can not agree with your ideology and philosophy about life if you have not seen the seven habits of highly effective people. I mean its really for the Highly Effective Intellectuals. Finally, the knowledge to be derived from this book is worth million times than rubies for this is sound wisdom itself coated with understanding. (From partly quoting Cherub, USA)

Target readers: All the working professionals

Better with Your Erroneous Zones (Mass Market Paperback) :

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