The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People

Written by Stephen R. Covey, this book had been on my to-read list forever. So I was glad to finally get the time to read it.

It wasn’t what I was expecting. I was expecting habits that were about what to do, whereas the habits were actually quite theoretical.

I really enjoyed the concept around Circle of Influence versus the Circle of Concern. The idea that we should focus on what we can influence. Getting caught up with the Circle of Concern is pointless as we just have to be reactive. Whereas within the Circle of Influence we can be proactive! This is where you can make a difference and make your life better.

A habit I have really tried to put into practice is Habit 3 – Put first things first. Covey suggests that task can be categorised by their importance and urgency. Generally we do the urgent things first (urgent + important and then urgent + not important).

This often means the important but not urgent fall to the bottom of the list. The problem is those are the tasks that usually are to do the long-term success and happiness of yourself.

Overall, it didn’t live up to my expectations but some useful advice.