The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People contains so much wisdom and so many life hacks that I regularly refer back to it. Whenever I do, I always find something good that I had forgotten or never noticed before. I’ve been thinking lately of how to incorporate every habit into a strategy that will help you in any given pursuit. The exact steps you take will vary depending on your goals, but I think the approach I’ve laid out below based on Stephen Covey’s habits will maximize your effectiveness and give you the best chance of succeeding. Without further ado, here are his habits and my take on applying them to a practical plan.
- Be Proactive: Take action whenever you feel strongly about something. You don’t need anyone to agree with you or help you in order to get started; there’s always something you can do by yourself to make a positive difference. You’ll feel better afterward and, while you’re working, you won’t have time to care about what other people think of you.
- Begin with the End in Mind: Know where you want to go and work backwards to figure out a plan to get there. You may end up changing the plan several times along the way, and that’s fine. But if you don’t have a destination in mind, then you won’t get anywhere.
- Put First Things First: Get your priorities together. Figure out the order in which you have to do things to accomplish your goals and then use effective time management to put together a schedule. Try to be efficient with your time whenever possible so that your productivity while working on your goals is maximized.
- Think Win/Win: When working with other people, figure out ways that you can both get what you want. Focus more on your common ground than on your disagreements. You’ll both benefit much more from working together toward shared goals than you will by arguing over your differences.
- Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood: Do your best to understand someone else’s perspective. Don’t make assumptions about what they think or why they think that way. If in doubt, ask for clarification. Once you can repeat their perspective back to them in your own words to their satisfaction, you’ll know exactly where they stand and how much you have in common with them, and they will be much more open to hearing your perspective.
- Synergize: Put your heads together and find Win/Win solutions. Take enough time to think outside the box and come up with potential plans that satisfy everyone involved. If you find several of them, pick the one that appears best suited for your goals, resources, and personalities.
- Sharpen the Saw: Take care of yourself in every area of your life (physical, mental, spiritual, and social/emotional). This includes taking regular breaks to rest and recover before you get burnt out; when you resume your work, you’ll be more effective and you’ll enjoy it more. Try also doing relaxing things with people who see things differently than you. The more you can humanize them in your own eyes, the better your interactions will be and the further your combined efforts will go.