7.1 The 7 Habits

Julie Asato

CST 300 Writing Lab

October 16, 2018

7 Habits of Highly Effective People

Book Report

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People is a book that focuses on the seven habits that can make a person highly effective: be proactive, begin with the end in mind, putting first things first, think win/win, seek first to understand then to be understood, synergize and sharpening the saw (Covey, 2003). The main focus today, will be on the skills and ideas that can be learned and cultivated to make a more effective computer science student who then becomes a more effective computer science professional. The author starts with the idea of Character Ethic and how it relates to Personality Ethic. He then writes about the inside-out approach contrasted to the outside-in approach. He discusses the Maturity Continuum and how it relates to us and others. He coins the P/PC balance in management and how it relates to us utilizing our assets responsibly.   He introduces the idea of solution selling and how it can be used to become a useful person. He touches the idea of proactivity and how it relates to our behavior.

The author introduces the older idea of the Character Ethic as the foundation of success which included "integrity, humility, fidelity, temperance, courage, justice..." (Covey, 2003).The book focuses on working on these qualities rather than the newer Personality Ethic: "public image, attitudes and behaviors, skills and techniques" (Covey, 2003). He then introduces the idea of a paradigm which is a model or frame of reference by which we view the world (Covey, 2003). If we can change the paradigm or model of how we view the world, we can create change in our lives.

The inside-out approach focuses on making and keeping promises to ourselves a priority before promises to others (Covey, 2003). The author states that this leads to more independence and more effective interdependence (Covey, 2003).  If someone wants others to recognize their talent, they should focus on having a very good character. This contrasts with the outside-in approach which focuses on the weaknesses of other people and the circumstances that lead to their failure (Covey, 2003). The main belief of the outside-in approach is that they are not the problem and if the outside force is fixed, then the problem will not be there anymore (Covey, 2003).  To illustrate the outside-in approach, if a student was going to learn algorithms doing the bare minimum,  they might blame the teacher for not teaching them anything. In the inside-out approach, if the same student does extra readings outside of class, practices algorithms on whiteboards, and finds outside resources to practice algorithms they would succeed in learning algorithms.

The Maturity Continuum incorporates the paradigms: dependence, independence, and interdependence. The dependence paradigm focuses on other people, when there is a failure it is another person's fault (Covey, 2003). The independence paradigm centers on the self to get work done (Covey, 2003). The paradigm of interdependence is of us; you and I to work together to achieve the most success (Covey, 2003).  The worst paradigm to be in is dependence and the best is interdependence. When we are interdependent, we combine our efforts and skills into one grand project. An independent paradigm is good but the author purports that they will not be able to be good leaders or team players because that is interdependence (Covey, 2003). A dependent person can work on the first 3 habits to become independent, then the next 3 habits to become interdependent. The last habit is constantly happening to ensure the process keeps progressing. In an online computer science group, all team members should work together in the interdependent fashion so everyone's talent can shine through rather than one independent person doing all of the work not letting others learn or contribute to the team.

Production/Production Capability Balance is finding a balance between the results and the asset that produces those results (Covey, 2003). To understand this, he introduces the idea of assets: physical, financial and human. These assets are part of the production capability; the assets that produce those results. For instance, if a computer science group all had terrible computers and had to work at the library during library hours (physical), they may not see much production or results. Likewise, if the team leader wanted everyone to put 200% into every assignment, they are sacrificing their human asset for production.  The team would slowly put gradually put less effort into the assignment eventually burning themselves out.

Covey introduces the idea of solution selling; studying an industries specific problems and showing how your abilities can solve their problem (2003).  In his example, the author told the story about the very independent boss and the interdependent worker.  The very independent boss would just tell people how to enact his plans which were generally good but did not ask for input from others (Covey, 2003). The interdependent worker focused on working with the bosses strengths and counterbalancing for his weaknesses by finding his concerns and presenting his analysis and recommendations. The worker was able to study specific problems and using his abilities to solve them. A computer science student could live this idea by finding the strengths and weaknesses of each team member and having everyone contribute with their strengths.

Proactivity is taking action and choosing a response for your life no matter the conditions (Covey, 2003).  A computer science who is proactive will be able to take initiative for projects and work no matter what is going on in their personal lives. Their behavior is based on the values they choose to have and not what was instilled in them as a kid. People who say "that's just how I was raised" are not being responsible and are choosing to behave in the way they are.

In conclusion, the author gives useful tools in the 7 habits of highly effective people. He rejects the idea of Personality Ethic as the foundation of success and supports the idea of Character Ethic as the foundation of success. The author believes the outside-in approach is the source of many conflicts and people should step away from blaming others for their failure. The Maturity Continuum is a model of dependence, independence and interdependence where the 7 habits can create interdependent workers out of dependant workers. P/PC Balance needs to be upheld or the assets will deteriorate. When working on a team, members should work interdependently compensating for the weaknesses of others and utilizing their strengths. When living, people can choose to be proactive and choose their responses based on their values.

Critique

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change is written by Stephen R. Covey, a writer and professor who specializes in organizational effectiveness. This book was tied for #1 Most Influential Business Book of the Twentieth Century by Chief Executive Magazine's readers as of 2003. The purpose of the book is to use principles to solve personal and professional problems (Covey, 2003).  The seven habits of highly effective people is a book that focuses on the seven habits that can make a person highly effective: be proactive, begin with the end in mind, putting first things first, think win/win, seek first to understand then to be understood, synergize and sharpening the saw (Covey, 2003).I enjoyed this book and I have seen these principles in people in my life. I can see where certain people I know fall in the Maturity Continuum. It is difficult to see where I personally fall in it, probably somewhere between dependant and independent.

The author gives useful tools in the 7 habits of highly effective people. He rejects the modern idea of Personality Ethic as the foundation of success and supports the older idea of Character Ethic as the foundation of success which the 7 habits are based on. The Maturity Continuum is a model of dependence, independence and interdependence where the 7 habits can create interdependent workers out of dependant workers if they work to change. When working on a team, members should be understanding of the weaknesses of others and utilizing their strengths. P/PC Balance, like the work/life balance needs to be upheld or the workers will burn out. The author believes the inside-out approach is the solution to the outside-in approach, where people should improve themselves to avoid failure. When failure does happen, people can choose to be proactive and choose their responses based on their values.

References

Covey, S. R. (2003). 7 habits of highly effective people:restoring the character ethic. New York: FREE PRESS.