Stephen Covey
Stephen Covey is one of the best-known and most influential authors in the world of personal development, inspiring scores of people with his penetrating insights on human behavior. Born in 1932 in Salt Lake City, he graduated from the University of Utah with a degree in business administration before embarking on a career in the corporate world. After spending two years in the military, he obtained his MBA from Harvard Business School in the 1960s.
Upon completing his graduate degree, Covey began lecturing at universities and teaching seminars on leadership, public speaking, organizational behavior, and other tools for effective self-improvement. After some success in these areas, he decided to take his teachings to the next level in 1989 by publishing his now famous book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People.
The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People was an instant success, becoming one of the top-selling business books of all time. The book outlines seven habits that, when combined in personal development, can lead to dramatic improvement in one’s life. In a nutshell, the Habits are: be proactive, begin with the end in mind, put first things first, think win-win, seek first to understand then to be understood, synergize, and nourish your soul.
These Habits are established on Covey’s underlying philosophy that an individual can create an “effective” lifestyle by mastering these seven habits. His understanding of human nature is that we are all capable of self-improvement and success, but must first create an inner environment from which we can outwardly strive. He believed that the transformation from striving for success to becoming successful is met by developing the habits and implementing them into our lives.
In the years following the publication of The Seven Habits, Covey published several additional books, including First Things First and Principle-Centered Leadership. These works focused on developing and adhering to principles that lead to success, instead of simply striving for success itself. He also published various articles, delivered lectures, and held seminars as part of his mission to help people create an effective lifestyle.
Covey’s teaching have gone beyond literature, impacting the fields of education, business, and relationships. His success in these areas is credited to his ability to understand the inner workings of human behavior and create powerful and relevant systems and methods to improve it. Covey is known for his positive approach in teaching applicable lessons and profound insights into the power of personal development.
The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People is his best-known work, with over 15 million copies sold as of 2020. It continues to be widely discussed, praised, and popular throughout the world. Covey has become a sort of prophet for personal growth, providing methods for real-world success without compromising one’s core principles. His words are timeless, providing us with the insight and tools to create an effective life and reach our potential.
