25 Lessons Learned From Stephen R.Covey

25
Lessons Learned from
Stephen Covey

Stephen R. Covey is the author of the best-selling book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. Other books he has written include First Things First, Principle-Centered Leadership, and The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Families. In 2004, Covey released The 8th Habit. In 2008, Covey released The Leader In Me—How Schools and Parents Around the World Are Inspiring Greatness, One Child at a Time. He is currently a professor at the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University. Here are 25 Lessons Learned From Stephen R. Covey.

Lesson 1 : The Light House Principle
There are lighthouse principles. You don’t break them. You only break yourself against them. Don’t break yourself against lighthouse principles.
Covey opened with a story of Captain Horatio Hornblower. As the story goes, one night at sea, Horatio awakens to find that a ship is in his sea-lane about 20 miles away and refuses to move. Horatio commands the other ship to move starboard, 20 degrees at once. The other ship refuses and tells Horatio that he should move his ship starboard, 20 degrees at once. Next, Horatio tries to pull rank and size on the other ship, stating that he’s a captain and that he’s on a large battle ship. The other ship replies, and it turns out it’s not actually a ship, but a lighthouse.

Lesson 2 : Values and Principles
If you take the short cuts in life, you pay the price of confidence and trust. Build your personal value system on principles.
“Values drive behavior. Principles drive
the consequences of behavior.”

Lesson 3 : Personal & Family Mission Statement
Covey asked us whether we had personal mission statements? Some folks raised their hands. He then asked us how many have them written down. A lot less kept their hands raised. Covey then challenged the audience whether we had mission statements for our families? Nobody raised the hands. He challenged us to go home and ask, “What’s the purpose of our family?”

Lesson 4 : You Should Write And Visualize Your Mission Statements.
The power of a mission statement is that it governs every other decision. Covey reminded us that writing down your mission imprints it in the subconscious mind. He added that visualizing also imprints on the sub-conscious mind. A good mission statement is: Memorizable, Short, Follows the natural laws of principles.

Lesson 5 : Point to True North
Covey had us close our eyes and point to true North. When we opened our eyes, it was obvious there was little consistency. He said he gets similar results when he asks any department, group, or team – “what’s your purpose?”

Lesson 6 : Urgent But Not Important
Covey asked us how many struggle with work/life balance. Many hands went up. He said people often report they feel they spend 50% of their time on urgent, but not important tasks. Why is that? Covey stated it’s because everybody defines purpose differently.

Lesson 7 : Office Politics and Dysfunctional Activities
By office politics, he meant, reading the tea leaves, dealing with hidden agendas, fighting cross-group conflict, … etc. The data says that 75% of people claim they spend 25% of their time on these things. 25% say that 50% of their time is spent in dysfunctional activities. Urgency replaces important activities.

Lesson 8 : Are You Utilized to Your Full Potential?
Covey asked us whether we can use our full talent and capacity in our organization. He then asked us whether we feel the pressure to produce more for less. The point here was to emphasize how there’s a demand for greater results, but that we’re not necessarily utilized to our full potential.

Lesson 9 : It’s Not Behavior, It’s Not Attitude … It’s a Bad Map
Trying harder isn’t the answer. If you double your speed, now you’re lost twice as fast. Thinking negatively isn’t the problem. Covey said some people might try to use a PMA (Positive Mental Attitude.) Well, that doesn’t help either. Now you’re all psyched up, but really you are just happy and contented in a lost state.
Covey gave us a scenario where somebody gets a map of Seattle. The problem is, the map maker made a mistake. It’s not really a map of Seattle. It’s a map of Oregon. With this map, you can’t even make it out of the airport. There isn’t one corresponding point.

Lesson 10 : Self-Educating
Covey told us that we need to be self-educating.
School taught us how to learn, but we need to continue to learn. He said we need to be willing to pay the price to be self-educating, which includes being systematic and disciplined.

Lesson 11 : Finding Your Voice
Covey asked how do you help people find their voice? You ask them what are they good at? What do they love doing? What is your greatest unique contribution? The key is finding a voice that meets a human need.

Lesson 12 : Inspiration Over Jackass Theory
The Jackass Theory refers to the carrot and the stick. Covey asked us what kind of supervisor do you need when you have a job that you are passionate about and is using your talents and you feel you are appreciated. People are volunteers. You want them to contribute their greatest, unique contribution.

Lesson 13 : Keys to Effective Large Team
Covey outlined the keys for effective large teams: 1) Psychologically committed, 2) Accountable to the team / everybody. 3) Culture of results. One person may represent the group, but accountability is to the team versus the boss. Accountability to the team versus an individual is a knowledge worker concept.

Lesson 14 : Information is the Knowledge Worker’s Disinfectant
Covey mentioned that light
is the greatest disinfectant in nature. For the knowledge worker, it’s information. For
a knowledge worker to be effective in a team, they need information, they need the criteria for success and they need to be accountable to the group.

Lesson 15 : Control-Paradigm to a Whole Person Paradigm
Covey reminded us that today’s workforce is about directed autonomy. You manage (things) that can’t choose. You lead people. People have the ability to choose.
“ Today’s world is about breaking away from a control paradigm and shifting to one of directed autonomy. Help people find their voice. You can’t buy the mind, body, heart, and spirit – they are volunteered. Use all four parts of your nature. If you take one away, then you’re treating a person as a “thing” that you control and manage.”

Lesson 16 : Keeping Top Talent
Covey told us about how Admirals in the Pacific were losing people to better paying jobs.
There was an exception. Covey got to meet the group that kept their top talent. The keys to a committed group included: 1) The culture was committed in hearts and minds. 2) The job was fulfilling and meaningful.

Lesson 17 : Indian Talking Stick Communication
Covey shared a technique for improving empathic listening. It’s the Indian Talking Stick:
1) You give the stick to the other person first. 2) You don’t get the stick back until the other person feels they are understood. 3) The purpose is not to agree, or disagree, but only to understand the speaker.

Lesson 18 : Our Experience is the Lens We Use to Interpret Life
Covey stated that communication is the number one skill in life. He went on to say that empathic listening is the number one communication skill. Covey explained that empathic listening is listening within the other person’s frame of skills. Listening empathically is listening with the other person’s frame of reference. The key is to listen until the other person feels heard and understood.

Lesson 19 : Empathic Listening is the No. 1 Communication Skill
What you saw was influenced by your experience and that rather that impose your view, first understand the other person’s perspective – there’s a good chance, you’re both right! (This is a good case where the Indian Talking Stick could come in handy.)

Lesson 20 : Resolving Conflict By Finding the Third Alternative
Covey shared a technique for resolving conflict that works for him in 95% of the cases he runs into around the world. Here’s the key steps: Put up the two points. Ask the question, “would you be willing to search for a solution that would be better than what either of us has proposed?”

Lesson 21 : 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
Covey shared a slide that framed out the seven habits of highly effective people in terms of private victory, public victory, dependence, independence, and interdependence.
1) Be proactive. 2) Begin with the end in mind. 3) Put first things first. 4) Think win-win.
5) Seek first to understand, then to be understood. 6) Synergize. 7) Sharpen the saw.

Lesson 22 : Peace of Conscience Over Peace of Mind
Covey made a distinction between peace of mind and peace of conscience. He explained that integrity is more than honesty. Integrity means that if you make a promise, you keep it. If you’re honest, you might have peace of mind, but if you don’t have integrity, then you won’t have peace of conscience. You have peace of conscience by avoiding duplicity.

Lesson 23 : Genuine Happiness
Covey said the key to genuine happiness is to develop integrity. The key to developing integrity is the first three habits (your Private Victories): Be proactive, Begin with the end in mind, Put first things first.

Lesson 24 : You Are the Creative Force of Your Life
Covey challenged us to be a creative force: 1. Get out of victimism – You’re not a victim of your circumstances. 2. You are the creative force of your life. Empathize first. Grow your circle of influence. Make tremendous impact.

Lesson 25 : The Most Important Thing You’ll Ever Do
Covey closed with a powerful message we could take away: The most important thing you’ll ever do is in the four walls of your own home.

“Effective people are not problem-minded; they are opportunity-minded. They feed Opportunities and starve problems.”
Thank You Very Much
SompongYusoontorn

http://learningisgrowing.wordpress.com	1691
http://feeds.feedburner.com	15
http://translate.googleusercontent.com	4
http://www.linkedin.com	1
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com	1

25 Lessons Learned From Stephen R.Covey

by Sompong Yusoontorn on Dec 28, 2010

Accessibility

Categories

Upload Details

Usage Rights

5 Embeds 1,712

Statistics

25 Lessons Learned From Stephen R.Covey Presentation Transcript