The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
Habit 1: Be Proactive
"Habit 1 is the key to unlocking all the other habits
and that's why it comes first. It says, "I am the captain of my life. I
can choose my attitude. I'm responsible for my own happiness or unhappiness. I
am in the driver's seat of my destiny, not just a passenger."
-Being proactive means to take responsibility for your own
life. We can't always blame our family, friends, or others for certain things
that happen in our life. Proactive people recognize that they are
"responsable." They don't blame genetics, circumstances, or
conditions for there behavior, because they know they choose how to behave.
Opposite to reactive people who for example, might base how they are feeling
off the weather. All of the external sources act as stimuli that we choose to
respond to. Nobody can tell you nothing because it is your journey and you will
manage it in whatever way you want to. Being proactive also means you are a leader.
Your leader, because you are following your own passion and not following
someone else's passion.
Habit 2: Begin with the End in Mind
"Control your own destiny or someone else will." (Jack Welch)
-This habit will help you control your life. Allowing you to
be the catalyst of your accomplishments. For example, when the teacher asks
where you want to go to school and they say UCLA, yet they have not done
nothing to reach that goal. They did not have the end goal in mind. You should
always begin with the End in Mind means to begin each day, task, or project
with a clear vision of your desired direction and destination, and then
continue by flexing your proactive muscles to make things happen. One way I can
incorporate Habit 2 into my life is by creating a personal mission statement.
Habit 3: Put First Things First"Organize and execute around priorities."
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This Habit is Personal Management, the exercise of
independent will to create a life congruent with your values, goals and
mission. The fourth human endowment, Independent Will, is the ability to make
decisions and choices and act upon them. Integrity is our ability to make and
keep commitments to ourselves. Management involves developing the specific
application of the ideas. To live a more balanced existence, you have to
recognize that not doing everything that comes along is okay. There's no need
to overextend yourself. All it takes is realizing that it's all right to say no
when necessary and then focus on your highest priorities.
Habit 4: Think Win-Win "Think win-win or no deal."
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This Habit is really important because when we think win/win we hold a belief that there is a third
way that can be discovered by collaboration.We believe that there is enough for everybody, and that a
creative solution exists when all parties commit to the decision and the action
plan. When we think Win/Win or No Deal we commit to the idea that
if we can’t find a solution that works for everyone involved, we agree to
disagree.You always want a mindset of winning. You never want to lose
because then you're not succeeding in life. Having that mindset of winning will
allow you have an advantage because now you'll have the confidence to win. Many
that do have this mindset are usually the successful people.
Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, then to be Understood"Diagnose before you prescribe."
If you attempt to come up with a solution for a person’s dilemma before you fully understand it do you honestly think they are ever going to fully trust you? You can't expect for someone to understand what you are teaching them if you don't understand what you are learning. Before you do anything you must stop to think about what you want to do. If someone is talking to you, you should listen to what they have to say and then add after any comments or questions you have for them. Don't interrupt them if you don't know what is really going on. Don't assume someone is doing good because they have a smile on their face. Take the time to understand what people are going through in order for them to understand you. All in all what this means is just to listen first.
Habit 6: Synergize"The whole is greater than the sum of its parts (1+1=3)"
Synergize is the habit of creative cooperation. Synergy
means "two heads are better than one." It is teamwork, open-mindedness, and the
adventure of finding new solutions to old problems. It's a process, and through
that process, people bring all their personal experience and expertise to the
table. Together, they can produce far better results that they could
individually. Synergy lets us discover jointly things we are much less likely
to discover by ourselves. It is the idea that the whole is greater than the sum
of the parts. One plus one equals three, or six, or sixty--you name it.The
essence of synergy is to value and respect differences, to build on strengths
and to compensate for weaknesses.It is important to be open-minded because
it show other that you care what they have to say. For example, if your are
group sharing, it is important to listen to everyone for what they have to say
because it shows your interest.
Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw
Four Dimensions of Self-Renewal: Physical, Mental, Spiritual, Social/Emotional
You can
renew yourself through relaxation. Or you can totally burn yourself out by overdoing
everything. You can pamper yourself mentally and spiritually. Or you can go
through life oblivious to your well-being. You can experience vibrant energy.
Or you can procrastinate and miss out on the benefits of good health and
exercise. You can revitalize yourself and face a new day in peace and harmony.
Or you can wake up in the morning full of apathy because your get up and go has
got up and gone. Just remember that every day provides a new opportunity for
renewal a new opportunity to recharge you instead of hitting the wall. All it
takes is the desire, knowledge, and skill.
.Self-improvement takes time just
like working out and getting fit. It is not something that you can just achieve
overnight; you need to give yourself time to do it. Once you do the results
will be highly beneficial to you. I plan to sharpen the saw by undergoing
changes within myself to become a better person.
Reflection: Write an overall final reflection in this post regarding the "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People." Include your deepest thoughts and feelings. Write what you commit to do to apply the seven habits.
The 7
habits have been change the way I think in different perspectives. I have been
using all the 7 habits. If it's, be proactive, begin with an end in mind, put
first things first, think win-win, seek to understand then to be understood,
synergize, or sharpening the saw. I was in the midst of doing my college
application and when I started to do it all I remember was how can apply the 7
habits to my college application. I was being proactive when I was seeking out
for information about colleges. This took a lot of time and effort, but I was
on task and proactive so I finished with time to spare. I began with end mind
because I knew I was doing my college plan, I wanted to apply to college. Right
now I am very nervous because I really want to be accepted and that's thinking
with a win mentally. In doing this I got a lot of advice from teachers and
counselors, so much that I could've help others on their college application,
and that was seek to understand, then to be understood. I was also working with
teachers as a team to finish my applications. The 7 Habits Have been really helpful to me
and I’m glad to run into these.