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Top positive review
499 people found this helpful
5.0 out of 5 starsThis book will change the way you look at life.
ByLAon April 2, 2017
This is, hands down, one of the best and most powerful books I've ever read in my life. I have recommended it to countless people. The fact that you're seeking it out says volumes about your level of self-awareness as it is and this book builds on that. Very seldom do books really make me get involved when I read them, but this book made me break out my highlighter and notepad. There was so much good stuff I just had to take notes I could quickly reference. You know how some books make you say things out loud? You'll read something and say, "YES! EXACTLY!" or read something profound and just sit dumbfounded, going "Wow," and you have to take a moment to reflect on it? This book is full of moments like that.
There is a lot of practical stuff in here, too. Challenges for you. Ways you can start to shift your thinking by taking an emotional inventory of your life and what you're doing/feeling every day. Just writing about it makes me want to go back and read it again. If you're here looking for a book that will help you harness that little spark inside of you that's saying, "You can be better" then this book is it. You're not an animal. Life doesn't condition you like a dog. This book is about the untouchable part of your human spirit that no one besides you controls. This book is about carrying sunny weather with you where ever you go, learning how much a proactive attitude benefits you, and really how sad and wasteful it is to walk through life allowing things to ruin your day. Things don't ruin your day. YOU ruin your day. You are always in control.
Seriously, read this book. You won't regret it.
There is a lot of practical stuff in here, too. Challenges for you. Ways you can start to shift your thinking by taking an emotional inventory of your life and what you're doing/feeling every day. Just writing about it makes me want to go back and read it again. If you're here looking for a book that will help you harness that little spark inside of you that's saying, "You can be better" then this book is it. You're not an animal. Life doesn't condition you like a dog. This book is about the untouchable part of your human spirit that no one besides you controls. This book is about carrying sunny weather with you where ever you go, learning how much a proactive attitude benefits you, and really how sad and wasteful it is to walk through life allowing things to ruin your day. Things don't ruin your day. YOU ruin your day. You are always in control.
Seriously, read this book. You won't regret it.
Top critical review
12 people found this helpful
2.0 out of 5 starsGet to the point!
ByA. Cichonon August 21, 2017
There is so much fluff and filler that this book is a slog to get through. I'm sure there's some good material here, but I was too busy trying to just get through it that I didn't ingest and internalize it. He needs to read a book about being a concise author before the next edition.
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ByLAon April 2, 2017
This is, hands down, one of the best and most powerful books I've ever read in my life. I have recommended it to countless people. The fact that you're seeking it out says volumes about your level of self-awareness as it is and this book builds on that. Very seldom do books really make me get involved when I read them, but this book made me break out my highlighter and notepad. There was so much good stuff I just had to take notes I could quickly reference. You know how some books make you say things out loud? You'll read something and say, "YES! EXACTLY!" or read something profound and just sit dumbfounded, going "Wow," and you have to take a moment to reflect on it? This book is full of moments like that.
There is a lot of practical stuff in here, too. Challenges for you. Ways you can start to shift your thinking by taking an emotional inventory of your life and what you're doing/feeling every day. Just writing about it makes me want to go back and read it again. If you're here looking for a book that will help you harness that little spark inside of you that's saying, "You can be better" then this book is it. You're not an animal. Life doesn't condition you like a dog. This book is about the untouchable part of your human spirit that no one besides you controls. This book is about carrying sunny weather with you where ever you go, learning how much a proactive attitude benefits you, and really how sad and wasteful it is to walk through life allowing things to ruin your day. Things don't ruin your day. YOU ruin your day. You are always in control.
Seriously, read this book. You won't regret it.
There is a lot of practical stuff in here, too. Challenges for you. Ways you can start to shift your thinking by taking an emotional inventory of your life and what you're doing/feeling every day. Just writing about it makes me want to go back and read it again. If you're here looking for a book that will help you harness that little spark inside of you that's saying, "You can be better" then this book is it. You're not an animal. Life doesn't condition you like a dog. This book is about the untouchable part of your human spirit that no one besides you controls. This book is about carrying sunny weather with you where ever you go, learning how much a proactive attitude benefits you, and really how sad and wasteful it is to walk through life allowing things to ruin your day. Things don't ruin your day. YOU ruin your day. You are always in control.
Seriously, read this book. You won't regret it.
499 people found this helpful
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ByAmazon Customeron April 6, 2018
I rarely if ever leave reviews on purchases, but I felt the need to share this one. I've spent the past several years trying to figure out what I was doing wrong when it came to happiness. I had every reason to be happy, but yet felt this deep hollowness inside. I've tried all the positive thinking quick fixes, meditation, law of attraction, etc. Nothing seemed to click or "cure" this aching inside. It wasn't until I read the 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People, that the fog finally lifted. This book taught me why all those quick fixes don't work and how my happiness depended on my own internal work and efforts. I encourage anyone who is struggle with a similar situation or everyone for that matter to read this book. It'll change your perspective on life!
ByBillie Pritchetton November 16, 2014
Books like Stephen Covey's 7 Habits of Highly Effective People Personal Workbook and its counterpart The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People sell for the same basic reason cookbooks or diet and exercise books do: People are eager to improve their lives. I've met several people who feel that self-improvement books are hogwash and say they don't need a book to give them motivation to do something. That's fine, and if you're one of those people, then this book isn't for you. However, if you do happen to struggle with improving certain aspects of your life, you might want to read this. And if you do read it and don't like it, what did you lose, really, except the bit of time you spent reading and the cost of the book?
Essentially, this book is a kind of cognitive therapy. Cognitive therapy is a mode of therapy whose sole aim is to get a person to improve his or her stinkin' thinkin'. Any person can do that with a little reorientation regarding what's important to them, especially as these personal values turn into a real action plan. In other words, the aim is to get a person to discover what he or she values the most and then after landing on that then put those values into action in daily life, constantly renewing what was committed to. I'll state this a bit more concretely in a moment, but first let's see what Covey's actual recommendations are.
The first point is that you have the choice to how you would like to respond to any event. You can choose to be angry, choose to be sad, choose to be happy, puzzled, etc., but the ultimate realization here is that between that moment when an external event occurs and your response to that external event, you can choose to respond any way you want. Now, it's true, our default settings are sometimes overwhelming, and sometimes naturally we all feel like we can't choose how to respond to a situation because a feeling overwhelms us. But any time before you find yourselves beginning to act out one of these default responses, ask yourself if this is the only way you can respond to it and if it is the best way.
Points two and three involving keeping your endgame in mind when making plans and prioritizing activities that get you closer to your endgame. A person playing chess wants to checkmate the king. Presumably, a person doing exercise wants to get healthier (or lose weight or feel better, etc.). Think about the ends you want to put your activities toward and realize that if you are getting too concerned in life now with matters that don't matter, that is, that don't match the end-states you want to reach, then maybe you should reconsider the activities you're engaging in now to better reach those end-goals. There should be constant movement toward those ends and less time spent with distracting matters. This step, by the way, involves a lot of discernment on someone's part to find out what he or she really wants to achieve here, and, yes, is very difficult.
Fourth point: When you want to do anything together with anybody, ever, work hard to make the situation a Win-Win situation, and if you can't arrive at a Win-Win situation, then it just must be a No-Deal situation. Any given solution must be good for both parties and if it isn't then it really shouldn't be done. If an agreement is made that's not Win-Win, then one party will feel like he or she is getting the bad end of the stick.
The fifth point is more difficult than it seems, and that is engage in empathic communication with other people. This means listen first before you yourself want to be understand. To make sure you're listening well, track the other person's feelings about something and be able to rephrase what that person's concerns are as though they were your own. If you do this, then you will truly be able to understand another person better.
The sixth point is about creative cooperation, which translates to engaging in activities with other people that will not only be mutually beneficial but will arrive at a result that no one could have done alone. This could be all sorts of things: getting along well with your significant other to make the quality of both your lives better, collaborating with someone at work to do a better job on something, and those kinds of things. As for other points, this is more difficult than one would think when trying to actually make the world better for two or more people. But when implemented, it really strikes at the heart of a lot of problems, which is not making the world better by you being in it; the world should be a better place before of people.
The last and final point is balanced renewal regarding spiritual, mental, social, and emotional priorities. Everyone should be doing something every day to make these priorities a way of life, and that involves the real grind of life. With this last point, I'll be able to give you a practical example of all the points through sharing something personal. Here goes.
Because I realize I can choose what to be concerned about (point 1), I check my anger and frustration and negative emotions. By doing so, I can spend more of my time and energy thinking about what I want to accomplish (2), which is going back to school to pursue clinical psychology with the hopes of one day being a working therapist. So now I prioritize (3) what I need to do to accomplish that goal, namely by taking classes and reading about the field and workplace of clinical psychologists. I plan to move back to the U.S. with my significant other, and we both talked about and understand that to make our relationship work we will need to be together there, and she wants to be in the U.S. and I want her to be there while I pursue my studies (4). I have asked her about her concerns (5) and must take them into account in my decision making. We plan to work together (6) while we are there professionally to have dual incomes, and I and she will also continue to do what we will do to make ourselves happier and healthier people (the final point 7).
This is way too long and all just to say I'd recommend this book, and the counterpart The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. It's really helped me to be less of a lazy slub and more of a productive, thoughtful person. I hope it would help some of you too.
Essentially, this book is a kind of cognitive therapy. Cognitive therapy is a mode of therapy whose sole aim is to get a person to improve his or her stinkin' thinkin'. Any person can do that with a little reorientation regarding what's important to them, especially as these personal values turn into a real action plan. In other words, the aim is to get a person to discover what he or she values the most and then after landing on that then put those values into action in daily life, constantly renewing what was committed to. I'll state this a bit more concretely in a moment, but first let's see what Covey's actual recommendations are.
The first point is that you have the choice to how you would like to respond to any event. You can choose to be angry, choose to be sad, choose to be happy, puzzled, etc., but the ultimate realization here is that between that moment when an external event occurs and your response to that external event, you can choose to respond any way you want. Now, it's true, our default settings are sometimes overwhelming, and sometimes naturally we all feel like we can't choose how to respond to a situation because a feeling overwhelms us. But any time before you find yourselves beginning to act out one of these default responses, ask yourself if this is the only way you can respond to it and if it is the best way.
Points two and three involving keeping your endgame in mind when making plans and prioritizing activities that get you closer to your endgame. A person playing chess wants to checkmate the king. Presumably, a person doing exercise wants to get healthier (or lose weight or feel better, etc.). Think about the ends you want to put your activities toward and realize that if you are getting too concerned in life now with matters that don't matter, that is, that don't match the end-states you want to reach, then maybe you should reconsider the activities you're engaging in now to better reach those end-goals. There should be constant movement toward those ends and less time spent with distracting matters. This step, by the way, involves a lot of discernment on someone's part to find out what he or she really wants to achieve here, and, yes, is very difficult.
Fourth point: When you want to do anything together with anybody, ever, work hard to make the situation a Win-Win situation, and if you can't arrive at a Win-Win situation, then it just must be a No-Deal situation. Any given solution must be good for both parties and if it isn't then it really shouldn't be done. If an agreement is made that's not Win-Win, then one party will feel like he or she is getting the bad end of the stick.
The fifth point is more difficult than it seems, and that is engage in empathic communication with other people. This means listen first before you yourself want to be understand. To make sure you're listening well, track the other person's feelings about something and be able to rephrase what that person's concerns are as though they were your own. If you do this, then you will truly be able to understand another person better.
The sixth point is about creative cooperation, which translates to engaging in activities with other people that will not only be mutually beneficial but will arrive at a result that no one could have done alone. This could be all sorts of things: getting along well with your significant other to make the quality of both your lives better, collaborating with someone at work to do a better job on something, and those kinds of things. As for other points, this is more difficult than one would think when trying to actually make the world better for two or more people. But when implemented, it really strikes at the heart of a lot of problems, which is not making the world better by you being in it; the world should be a better place before of people.
The last and final point is balanced renewal regarding spiritual, mental, social, and emotional priorities. Everyone should be doing something every day to make these priorities a way of life, and that involves the real grind of life. With this last point, I'll be able to give you a practical example of all the points through sharing something personal. Here goes.
Because I realize I can choose what to be concerned about (point 1), I check my anger and frustration and negative emotions. By doing so, I can spend more of my time and energy thinking about what I want to accomplish (2), which is going back to school to pursue clinical psychology with the hopes of one day being a working therapist. So now I prioritize (3) what I need to do to accomplish that goal, namely by taking classes and reading about the field and workplace of clinical psychologists. I plan to move back to the U.S. with my significant other, and we both talked about and understand that to make our relationship work we will need to be together there, and she wants to be in the U.S. and I want her to be there while I pursue my studies (4). I have asked her about her concerns (5) and must take them into account in my decision making. We plan to work together (6) while we are there professionally to have dual incomes, and I and she will also continue to do what we will do to make ourselves happier and healthier people (the final point 7).
This is way too long and all just to say I'd recommend this book, and the counterpart The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. It's really helped me to be less of a lazy slub and more of a productive, thoughtful person. I hope it would help some of you too.
ByAndrewon April 13, 2013
I would not usually read a book like this, but this was recently recommended to me. I was a little skeptical at first, but as I read more and more of this book, I started to learn some interesting new insights on self-improvement.
At its core, author Stephen Covey seeks to promote the idea of the "character ethic." He criticizes the other idea of management and effectiveness called the "personality ethic." While the personality ethic focuses on techniques and appearances, the character ethic focuses on core principles such as integrity, courage, and compassion. While the personality ethic means appearing to be someone, the character ethic means to actually live that. This is where the seven habits come in.
The first three habits focus on private victories. The ideas of proactivity, planning, and management are described in these three habits among other concepts. The next three habits focus on public victories, using the principles of the first three to become more effective with other people. These are concepts such as synergy, understanding, and the win/win strategy. The seventh and final habit is called "sharpen the saw" which is renewal and learning and encompasses improvement of self with the first six habits.
The book is interesting for the variety of situations people and organizations might face in which the ideas and principles can be applied. From a better marriage and relationship with a spouse to more effective management in a business and among co-workers. It seems there are few times, outside of emergency situations, in which these seven habits cannot be applied.
I found this to be an interesting and thought provoking book. I would recommend it to those who need or want to be more effective with other people and to pursue better relationships or to those just looking for some fascinating insights in the area.
At its core, author Stephen Covey seeks to promote the idea of the "character ethic." He criticizes the other idea of management and effectiveness called the "personality ethic." While the personality ethic focuses on techniques and appearances, the character ethic focuses on core principles such as integrity, courage, and compassion. While the personality ethic means appearing to be someone, the character ethic means to actually live that. This is where the seven habits come in.
The first three habits focus on private victories. The ideas of proactivity, planning, and management are described in these three habits among other concepts. The next three habits focus on public victories, using the principles of the first three to become more effective with other people. These are concepts such as synergy, understanding, and the win/win strategy. The seventh and final habit is called "sharpen the saw" which is renewal and learning and encompasses improvement of self with the first six habits.
The book is interesting for the variety of situations people and organizations might face in which the ideas and principles can be applied. From a better marriage and relationship with a spouse to more effective management in a business and among co-workers. It seems there are few times, outside of emergency situations, in which these seven habits cannot be applied.
I found this to be an interesting and thought provoking book. I would recommend it to those who need or want to be more effective with other people and to pursue better relationships or to those just looking for some fascinating insights in the area.
ByA. Cichonon August 21, 2017
There is so much fluff and filler that this book is a slog to get through. I'm sure there's some good material here, but I was too busy trying to just get through it that I didn't ingest and internalize it. He needs to read a book about being a concise author before the next edition.
ByG. L. Beachon August 11, 2018
This is an excellent book - even after the 20+ years since it was originally published. Dr. Covey was a fine teacher and story teller and those skills are on display here. In spite of his success, he remained humble, admitting her struggles daily to live the "7 Habits". This book - a classic business read can hello you identify how to be more of what you want to be and less of what you don't want to be.
ByJoeSixPackon September 16, 2014
I'd actually recommend this condensed version for anyone with a little time in a commute. I had the book -never read it. The spoken word is much more effective and the abridged version is quite to the point. Although the title suggests habits to improve one's workplace and career performance, in reality this is a book about relationships, and how they can become out of balance.
If one partner is making more withdrawals than deposits in any relationship, this should become "must listen" reading.
The very fact that it also serves as career advice perhaps makes it that much more acceptable to men - though certainly many women are the ones fostering an uneven relationship whether they know it or not.
Beyond that the underlying advice of "be more proactive" is excellent - it's just easier said than done - as the author acknowledges.
If one partner is making more withdrawals than deposits in any relationship, this should become "must listen" reading.
The very fact that it also serves as career advice perhaps makes it that much more acceptable to men - though certainly many women are the ones fostering an uneven relationship whether they know it or not.
Beyond that the underlying advice of "be more proactive" is excellent - it's just easier said than done - as the author acknowledges.
5.0 out of 5 starsI don't have the words to adequately express what a treasure this book has been to me.
ByAshleyon July 27, 2014
I have been putting off writing a review for this book, because I am afraid that nothing I can write about it will actually do it justice and convey exactly to what extent this book has transformed my life, as well as the lives of my closest friends and family members. Everyone in my family has read it, and it completely changed (for the better) the way we interact with each other and approach life. Countless ideas from the book have become such a part of my paradigm (to borrow a term from the book) that I don't even realize it until I reread a portion of the book and marvel at how that concept has rippled throughout my life.
I encourage anyone who has any desire at all for self-improvement to read this book with an open mind. Read it slowly, digest it along the way, and then after a few years, go back and read it again. The wisdom Stephen Covey left the world in this book is definitely a treasure.
I encourage anyone who has any desire at all for self-improvement to read this book with an open mind. Read it slowly, digest it along the way, and then after a few years, go back and read it again. The wisdom Stephen Covey left the world in this book is definitely a treasure.
Bychrismon June 15, 2017
A classic that has changed my life for the better. I first "read it" via Audible.com 10 years ago during endless hours of sitting on my lawn mower. A printed copy is easily accessible to me in the bathroom (don't ask ;-) and now I needed the electronic equivalent. The forewords of this 25th anniversary edition shone some additional light on this fabulous man that left this earth way too early, but already had left his positive mark on this earth and, I imagine, on the lives of millions of people (directly and indirectly).
What astounds me over and over (that's what my bathroom copy taught me) is that there is profound insight or profound guidance on virtually every page (like, >90%) of this book. No matter where I open it and read it, it teaches me something. There is almost no fluff (except a few quirky quotes from people I've never heard of) and what impresses me is that even the author himself struggled seemingly a lifetime to consistently implement it all, all the time. That's a relief.
If you are in doubt, get it and read it. If you've read it before, read it again (a friend of mine tries to read it every year, at the beginning of the year).
What astounds me over and over (that's what my bathroom copy taught me) is that there is profound insight or profound guidance on virtually every page (like, >90%) of this book. No matter where I open it and read it, it teaches me something. There is almost no fluff (except a few quirky quotes from people I've never heard of) and what impresses me is that even the author himself struggled seemingly a lifetime to consistently implement it all, all the time. That's a relief.
If you are in doubt, get it and read it. If you've read it before, read it again (a friend of mine tries to read it every year, at the beginning of the year).
ByAmazon Customeron January 11, 2014
Way too muddled in anecdotal "Aunty May" stories. Trying to find specific information on what constitutes the Character Ethic, for example, i.e. what exactly IS the theory is, is like pulling teeth. And the author defines Principles by refusing to define them, just offering a kinda few examples of what would be considered a Principle (without explaining why they're considered principles). What you get instead 98% of the time are "good ol boy" stories, how he mis-related with his son, yada-yada. Unflatteringly feels like a Sunday-school class for fourteen year olds. Get ready for a long winded soft sales pitch. 'Pitty, because there are bits of brilliance to be found, if you can stomach your way through the 98% FLUFF. The author doesn't even talk about Dependent, Independent & Interdependent levels of maturity until AFTER the meat of the book, i.e. it's added as an afterthought, even though this critical point supports WHY one is supposed to strive for interdependency in one of the 7 habits.
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