INTRODUCTION
I understand that this book is a seminal work in modern business literature, probably widely considered a classic. However I find Covey’s work overly simplistic, and his recommendations things that have been ingrained in me since childhood by parents, coaches, even public school teachers, as keys to being successful. As someone who was not raised with religion my parents let me develop my own moral compass through everyday activities, and I attempt to apply these values I have developed to my professional and personal life. What made the true difference for me morally were the punishments I received as a young child when perhaps I was a bit ‘too big for my britches’ and thought I could get away with poor behavior, and was filled with the shame of disappointing my folks and of myself acting in a cruel or stupid manner.
Covey’s text ignores the true shaping of a leader that occurs as a child. I think executive who don’t already embody these habits will find it near impossible to adopt said habits. This is the second time that I have read this book, and still I struggle to find the innovative thought in it, and struggle to find the arena in which I believe it could actually change things for the positive. Perhaps though Covey may succeed in molding leaders who are close to reaching these ideal behaviors on their own to reach a highly effective state, or may give those who educate young people a platform on which to stand and pass along to their students these effective habits with dynamism to inspire their own internal motivation for a lifetime.
PART I – Habits 1, 2, and 3 – Covey takes credit for common sense and strong parenting…
HABIT 1 – Be Proactive
In this part Covey introduces the concept of taking control over one’s life, developing a strong internal locus of control. Doing so allows people to be more effective leaders as they are not focused on the negativity of situations, or behaviors of others, in which they cannot control. The best way to better understand this habit is to use baseball as a metaphor. One may be a great hitter, doing their best to succeed at the plate they hit a screaming line drive toward left-center field, but the center-fielder makes a great diving play and catches the ball before it drops to the pitch. Could the batter have done anything better in that situation? No, he hit the ball as well as possible he could not control the outfielder’s excellent effort, and to dwell negatively on this event would only serve to cloud his ability in his next at bat which, as Covey states, he should be proactive and be thinking about as soon as that hit died in the center fielder’s glove. Goals and personal vision must be controllable, realistic, and measurable, and if one gives their best effort in pursuit of such properly crafted goals, then most likely one will achieve that goal, and if one does not it is most likely because of a factor outside of one’s personal control. Therefore, one should not dwell upon the negativity of the factor they cannot influence and instead should move on to focus upon what can be done differently to succeed the next time.
HABIT 2 – Begin with the End in Mind
Having a clear vision of what one wants to accomplish is key to success in business according to Covey. The idealized future state is crucial to forming a strategic plan to reach that vision, though crafting the implementation is crucial as well. The clearer one can illustrate one’s accomplishments in their mind the easier it is to formulate the plan to reach that idealized vision. Some of our greatest leaders have religiously practiced this habit, such as Martin Luther King, Jr. But something that Covey misses is that just as essential to having a vision that is clear and based upon deep, fundamental, classic truths is the ability to share that vision with others and to help others picture that idealized future as plainly and vividly as the leader himself does. Otherwise one is just another Don Quixote charging windmills on a grassy Spanish plain. But how does one transfer that vision? Personally I think that through integrity and passion shown by a leader’s communications with their employees and displayed in their behaviors not only quarterly and annually but over the long-run of an organization’s life is the only way to achieve “buy in” through the entire organization.
HABIT 3: Put First Things First Principles of Personal Management
Covey states Habit 3 as the execution step. So already one is proactive enough to not dwell in a blame game therefore one is free to craft their idealized vision of the future, but the question still remains… how does one reach that glowing picture of success and happiness? This is probably the most difficult step of all, as many people can learn to focus on the future, and many can sufficiently picture a realistic, achievable ideal state, but channeling their energy and resources to reach that state is quite difficult. If it was easy we would have been living in utopia millennia ago. Here Covey presents his four quadrants of time management, with the axes being ranges of a specific activities’ importance and its urgency. Covey states that to be effective one concentrate upon the activities in quadrant II, activities that are important but not urgent. The idea being that one can tackle all of one’s important activities before they become urgent. Unfortunately those of us whom operate in the medium and small business sectors know that urgent and important activities often crop up without warning, and if one is not prepared to meet the requirements of such events because they are always wearing the rose colored glasses as a result of their retentive personality, any sort of abnormality in routine brings on such a high level of stress that anxiety is transferred onto one’s employees. This is hugely detrimental to one’s organization, and if it happens too often can be crippling to an organization. Therefore strict adherence to the quadrants, I think will ultimately cause a business especially a small one to become ineffective.
PART II – The Scientific Method of Management
HABIT 4: Think Win/Win
Covey states that thinking win-win is one of the six philosophies of human interaction. When one is a win-win person one seeks symbiotic relationships based in principle behaviors where one is afforded mutual benefit. This is opposed to other situations where one views the world as a zero-sum equation, or one seeks to win at the expense of others or their own values, or one is the “doormat” for the world always the victim or one refuses to play the game if they cannot win. There must be integrity in order to establish trust in the relationship and to define a win in terms of not only one’s personal values but in terms of the values they have instilled in their organization as its leader. And in a win-win situation one is focused on the relationship they are building with the stakeholder instead of on the immediate transaction of the situation. Therefore, creating a long-term symbiosis that will help one sustain productivity in one’s organization for the long haul. Occasionally though one may be forced into a win-lose situation because of a coveted resource, then one must do business and lead to win but not at the personal expense of their competitor. And what happens between the lines should always be left between the lines because one does not know what the future holds, and to burn bridges or create enemies could surprise one unpleasantly on their path to their idealized vision.
HABIT 5: Seek First To Understand Then To Be Understood
This is my favorite of all the habits as it speaks to the scientist that is fundamental in my personality. I always seek to gather information and observe before deciding or acting unless required by the situation. Only when one deeply understands all the parameters and variables in a situation, can one come to a conclusion as to how to best proceed in pursuit their personal and organizational vision. Effective listening and empathy is the key to this habit, again something that was ingrained in me as a child. Our prejudices and stereotypes are ingrained very early in our psyche and are extremely difficult to break, and heavily influence the depth of our understanding of our co-workers, customers, investors, and employees’ issues. These mentalities act like a brick wall between true understanding and listening for show. When one truly listens empathetically one gains the trust of the other person, therefore when one speaks with that same individual in the future one’s voice is suddenly highly respected. And most likely that individual will pass their experience of the boss being an empathetic and understanding leader further widening and deepening one’s “circle of influence”. Additionally I like this habit because empathetic listening will pay off hugely for a leader when one attempts to share one’s ideal organizational vision. The wider and deeper the circle of influence the more effective the sharing of personal vision will be, and the more able the organization will be to proceed with the end in mind.
HABIT 6: Synergize, Principles of Creative Cooperation
Synergy means the whole is greater than the sum of its parts and the essence of synergy is to value and respect differences, to use them to build on strengths, to compensate for weaknesses, and to remain adaptable and therefore prepared for whatever the future may hold. Key to synergy is recognizing one’s own weaknesses and failures and not fearing them. To create a team more effective than the sum of their parts one must integrate parts that complement. If one is open with their own weaknesses as a leader one will not feel threatened by others contributing ideas because they will be secure in their position of authority and their ability to be the most effective person for that leadership position. If one doesn’t truly believe that then one probably shouldn’t be in that position in the first place, and perhaps one should care deeper about the success of the organization than one does about their own interest, and if a better candidate comes along be prepared to improve oneself for the sake for the organization or step aside for its benefit. Our human bodies operate in a way to be in a productive state of homeostasis through the existence of positive and negative feedback loops that make small adjustments to keep the body functioning smoothly. If it wasn’t for these wonderful loops that slow our hear rate to allow our brain and digestion to function at higher levels then perhaps we would just be lumps of flesh in a primordial sea or monkeys in a jungle. An organization is the same way, if it doesn’t have the dual feedback loops it is mired in a blame-game of negativity or a runaway group think sycophantic mentality. Balance is the key to synergy, and complementary skills and personality types are the key to creating those synergistic highly effective organizational teams.
PART III – Lucky Number Seven, and Bringing it all Home to Roost
Habit 7: Principles of Balanced Self-Renewal
Number seven is holistic approach to management which insists that every aspect of one’s life is a crucial component of one’s managerial effectiveness. It is the insurance that one’s gun will always be fully loaded with bullets to attack any situation that may arise. It is the belief in the preparation of the batter before he steps into the batter’s box, that one’s preparation can fully enable you to do your absolute best effort to reach your realistic and measurable goal. So that there is no excuse for not being proactive and equipped. Covey extols upon the necessity of keeping your mind sharp by reading, writing, organizing and planning. Reading
broadly and exposes oneself to great minds, thereby absorbing the thoughts of great thinkers and leaders so that an effective course of action will present itself readily when needed.
Covey finishes with the potential effects of following the seven habits and the benefits they can help one’s organization realize. Following the habits will enable courage in the face of challenge, projects will be seen to effective completion, conflicts will be resolved without ineffective resolution, and the most important things will be tackled first and directly. Most importantly though the habits will help a leader achieve that desired state of a shared organizational vision and purpose. Through this team members will achieve a deeper sense of ownership in the organization and their role within it. Teams will be enhanced by desired diversity and creative solutions and pathways will abound.
I understand what Covey is trying to say and perhaps my low opinion of this text stems from the fact that these are things I have been instilled with since childhood. Perhaps what Covey has wrought is less a management manual and more a guide book to parenting and raising a child that can think critically and problem solve; a child with empathy that listens deeply to their fellow citizens and acts effectively on the information they observe and gather. Something our nation desperately needs to foster in its youth. So instead of this book being a seminal text in a business school perhaps high school and university professors should be the ones adapting this to enhance their own character building curriculum.
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