I read it because I heard it quoted at a conference over the summer about time management. The speaker referenced a table he has in the book with four squares and asked us: Which square do you think it is most important to invest your time in? Life-changing, people, life-changing. I immediately bought the book.
My favorite habit is #2, begin with the end in mind. I am still mulling it over and trying to apply it to my life.
I also liked the part about Victor Frankl in Habit 1.
Here are some of my favorite quotes:
"Frankl says that we detect rather than invent our missions in life." pg 128/habit 2
"I see many parents, particularly mothers with small children, often frustrated in their desire to accomplish a lot because all they seem to do is meet the needs of little children all day. Remember, frustration is a function of our expectations, and our expectations are often a reflection of the social mirror rather than our own values and priorities." pg 170/habit 3
"Lose/win is worse than win/lose because it has no standards - no demands, no expectations, no vision. People who think Lose/Win are usually quick to please or appease. They seek strength from popularity or acceptance. They have little courage to express their own feeling and convictions and are easily intimidated by the ego strength of others." pg 209/habit 4
"Maturity is the balance between courage and consideration. If a person can express his feelings and convictions with courage balanced with consideration for the feelings and convictions of another person, he is mature, particularly if the issue is very important to both parties." pg 217/habit 4
"So we changed one system - the compensation system - and the problem was corrected overnight. We set up a system whereby the managers only made money when their salespeople made money. We overlapped the needs and goals of the managers with the needs and goals of the salespeople. And the need for human training suddenly disappeared. The key was developing a true Win/Win reward system." pg 231/habit 4
"We have such a tendency to rush in, to fix things up with good advice. But we often fail to take the time to diagnose, to really, deeply understand the problem first." pg 237/habit 5
"Ecology is a word which basically describes the synergism in nature - everything is related to everything else. It's in the relationship that creative powers are maximized, just as the real power in these Seven Habits is in their relationship to each other, not just in the individual habits themselves." pg 283/habit 6
"You can be synergistic within yourself even in the midst of a very adversarial environment. You don't have to take insults personally. YOu can sidestep negative energy; you can look for the good in others and utilize that good, as different as it may be, to improve your point of view and to enlarge your perspective. You can exercise the courage in interdependente situations to be open, to express your ideas, your feelings, and your experiences in a way that will encourage other peopel to be open also. You can value the difference in other people. When someone disagrees with you, you can say, 'Good" You see it differently.' You don't have to agree with them; you can simply affirm them. And you can seek to understand." pg 284/habit 6
"The Daily Private VIctory - a minimum of one hour a day in renewal of the physical, spiritual, and mental dimensions - is the key to development of the Seven Habit and it's completely within your Circle of Influence. It is the Quadrant II focus time necessary to integrate these habits into your life, to become principle-centered. It is also the Foundation for the Daily Public Victory. It's the source of intrinsic security you need to sharpen the saw in the social/emotional dimension." pg 304/habit 7
"Moving along the upward spiral requires us to learn, commit, and do so on increasingly higher planes." pg 306/habit 7
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