Habit 1: Be Proactive

  • The ability to act rather than be acted on.
  • Response-ability – the ability to choose your response.
  • We are responsible – response-able to control our lives and to powerfully influence our circumstances by working on be, on what we are.
  • “What we are communicates far more eloquently than anything we say.”
  • “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” – Aristotle
  • Make and keep a promise.
  • A lie is any communication with intent to deceive.
  • Don’t base your security on the opinions of others.

Habit 2: Begin with the End in Mind

  • Envision the end in mind.
  • If the ladder is not leaning against the right wall, every step we take is taking us to the wrong place faster.
  • Mission statement: FranklinCovey Mission Statement Builder
  • “Measure twice, cut once.”
  • “Management is doing things right; leadership is doing the right things.”
  • “Money will be my servant, not my master.”
  • “Leadership is communicating to another their worth and potential so clearly they are inspired to see it in themselves.” – Stephen R. Covey
  • Manage from the left, lead from the right.
  • Discipline comes from disciple—disciple to a set of values, philosophy, and a purpose.

Habit 3: Put First Things First

  • It is possible to be busy—very busy—without being effective.
  • Management follows leadership; form follows function.
  • Status can be measured by how much leisure time you have.
  • “The crime which bankrupts men and nations is turning aside from one main purpose to serve a job here or there.” – Emerson
  • Set aside time to plan the week.
  • “Effective interdependence can only be built on a foundation of true independence.”
  • “You can’t have the fruits without the roots.”

Habit 4: Think Win-Win

  • Win/Win: I want to win, and I want you to win. Otherwise, no deal.
  • “I wouldn’t want to get my way and make you not feel good about it, as it would only surface downstream. On the other hand, I don’t think you would feel good if you got your way and I gave in. Let’s try and find a mutually agreeable deal; otherwise, let’s agree to not make a deal at all.”
  • Integrity: The value we place on ourselves.
  • Maturity: The ability to express one’s own feelings and convictions balanced with consideration for the thoughts and feelings of others.

Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood

  • Seek first to understand, then to be understood—emphatic listening.
  • Emphatic listening: fully, deeply understanding emotionally and intellectually.
  • Rephrase the content and reflect feeling.
  • Diagnose before you prescribe.
  • “A lot of times transformation needs no counsel, just space to listen, then the solutions usually get answered during their unravelling.”
  • “You want to be able to understand the other person so well that you can say it as well as them.”

Habit 6: Synergy

  • Synergy—open up to work with other people. The whole becomes greater than the sum of the parts.
  • “Good! You see it differently.”
  • “I value that difference.”
  • “We seek not to imitate the masters; rather, seek what they sought.”
  • Every problem is an opportunity.
  • 6 Major Deposits to Build the Emotional Bank Account:
    1. Understanding the individual.
    2. Attending to the little things.
    3. Keeping commitments.
    4. Clarifying expectations.
    5. Showing personal integrity.
    6. Apologising sincerely when you make a withdrawal.
  • Be loyal to those who are not present so you can build trust with those who are.

Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw

  • Exercise 3–6 hours a week.
  • Spend an hour every day planning.
  • Limit TV.
  • Set aside time to plan the week.
  • “Treat someone as they can and should be; treat someone as they are, and they shall remain.”
  • “All things must be done in moderation. Nothing overmuch.”
  • “There are only two lasting bequests we can give our children—one is roots, the other wings!”
  • “He who cannot change the fabric of their thought will never be able to change reality.”
  • “Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it!”

Additional Insights & Quotes

  • “Love her, serve her, sacrifice. Listen to her. Empathise. Appreciate. Affirm her. Love in Hollywood is a feeling. But love is actually a verb.”
  • “Leo Roskin: ‘It is the weak who are cruel. Gentleness can only be expected from the strong.’”
  • “Production / production capability.”
  • “Search your own heart with all diligence, for out of it flow the issues of life.” – Psalmist
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