#5) Changer Book: 7 Habits

Hi, and welcome back to "Always Be Better" with Mel Windham.

This week I'm going to introduce you to The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey. This book has changed my life, and you'll hear plenty from it throughout this series. I should probably mention, first, that this is not a paid promotion. Rather, this is a book I want to share, because I've learned that it works. I owe a lot of my success to following its precepts, and I believe it can help you, too. 

But before I dive into introductions, I'd first like to pause and ask: do you notice anything different this week? It may be too subtle, but I've learned that videos with more contrast get more likes and views. Evidently high contrast triggers the "ease" factors in our brain. So, I'm trying out a high-contrast filter. You'll have to let me know if you like it.

So, okay -- 7 Habits. You've heard of it, and you've probably seen different flavors of these books available. Some geared toward leadership, some towards teenagers, but the 7 Habits are always the same. They are meant to help us take control of our lives, and to help us work effectively with others.

The first three habits are all about Private Victory. It's all about setting goals, keeping a schedule, prioritizing things, understanding what's under our control and what's not, and so on. These three habits are:

#1) Be Proactive.

#2) Begin with the End in Mind.

#3) Put First Things First.

The next three habits are all about the Public Victory. Once you have mastered yourself, you can move on to working well with others. This involves understanding others, respecting others, looking for solutions with the most benefit, and so on. These three habits are:

#4) Think Win/Win.

#5) Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood.

#6) Synergize.

The seventh and last habit is all about Renewal. As you're busy taking over the world, it's always good to stop every once in a while to smell the roses. And make sure that you're taking care of yourself, whether it's getting some rest, or taking time to fix something for more efficiency. This seventh habit is:

#7) Sharpen the Saw.

In other words, if you stop to sharpen your saw, you can then cut things faster.

We'll go into much more detail in later installments, but for now, I'll give a small taste. My favorite habit, by far, is #6 -- because I've seen synergy happen before. When two people work together with full trust and in good faith, they can succeed beyond their wildest dreams. I've truly witnessed cases where 1 + 1 is not only 3, but 5, or even 100. There is just so much power in working together, and you'll hear me say this plenty of times. If you don't know yet how to accomplish this, stick around and we'll get there.

In the near future, I will be introducing you to several other "changer" books -- that's what I like to call them. While the later books may be optional reading and more specific to me, I believe that the 7 Habits book has very large application value in practically all walks of life. If you're a human being, this book can help you to be a better person. I'd like to declare this book as the one required reading for this series. In other words, I'd like you to consider grabbing a copy, and go ahead and start reading. There are evidently some free audible versions as well.

Of course, even if you choose not to read the book, stick around, because I'll make sure you understand these concepts along the way.

That's it for today. Thanks for watching, and remember, we can "Always Be Better."