This is the first of four posts on the book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. It is the second book in my current series where I are breaking down the 12 books that have most impacted my leadership journey into simple, actionable principles. If you missed the first post on Start With Why, you can read it here.
Taking control of your habits is an extremely popular idea right now for growth and has been for some time. This concept has been supercharged by Charles Duhigg’s The Power of Habit & James Clear’s Atomic Habits that both highlighted how impactful the things you do on a regular basis can be on your life. And while these books are amazing, neither is included in this first round of books I am breaking down. Not because they aren’t great, but because there is a different book on habits I always come back to, and the one that I will be breaking down for you over the next four posts. It’s one that has been around much longer and contains ideas and concepts that have made their way into most leadership books out there today; The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey.
For many, this is a book that you might have read in high school or maybe college and probably hasn’t been thought of since. Nowadays, the only time that I really see it mentioned is in a stray nod to one of the seven habits. And while I do plan to talk about one or two of these habits (they are all great and extremely useful by the way), I am going to dig into the principle that Covey lays out in the first chapter of this book, even before the the habits are introduced. And it is a principle that I believe is absolutely essential to being a great leader.
THE PRINCIPLE
The foundation of a great leader is their CHARACTER.
Covey describes his 7 habits as “a principle-centered, character-based, inside-out approach to personal and interpersonal effectiveness.” Let’s break that amazingly complex sentence down:
Principle-Centered: starts from a set of values
Character-Based: that is the basis of who you are
Inside-Out Approach: who you are on the inside, drives your actions
Personal Effectiveness: shaping how you lead yourself
Interpersonal Effectiveness: and how you lead/interact with others.
It’s so similar to what Sinek is arguing in his book Start With Why and the golden circle. What Covey presents that other books on habits don’t, is that too often we focus primarily on the external. We get laser focused on our action, and neglect what is going on inside of us. Our values. Our motivations. Our Character. But both Covey and Sinek agree that if you don’t have and inside-out approach, even if you do the right actions, you won’t have the results you are hoping for. Said simply, a good character will drive your actions in the right direction. But how do you know if you have a good character?
Well, Covey shares a way to know. He states: ‘your character is basically a composite of your habits.’ What does that mean? It simply means, the things you DO on a regular basis are your habits. And if you looked at all those together in aggregate, you would get a decent idea of your character. Or said another way, what is truly important to you. I honestly believe Covey wrote this book to help people examine their character by having them shine a light on their habits. Like being able to determine if the root system of a tree is good by observing the leaves and the fruit is produced. And he doesn’t just say to do the habits, he helps you understand why you should and how each habit can help shape and refine your character. Because your character is on display for your team more often than you think. Any time you are under pressure, in crisis or experiencing difficult circumstances, what you value most becomes extremely clear to everyone around you.
But is character really that important to being a good leader? In a study done by Kouzes & Posner as they were researching their book The Leadership Challenge, they asked the question of what qualities respondents admire most in leaders. The #1 response was honesty. And when they dug deeper they found that people admire, and want to follow, leaders that live by their values. It trumped ‘inspirational’ and ‘forward thinking.’ Let me state that again. Your character is what makes people want to follow you. So, do you have a character worth following?
Over the next 3 posts we will dig more into this idea of character as the foundation of a great leader. In the meantime, it is important for every leader to examine their motivations and their character to see if they are a leader people will want to follow. Below are a couple of questions to help you do just that. Take some time with them over this next week. And read Covey’s book, even if you have read it before. If nothing else, read the first chapter, Inside-Out and then journal through these questions.
JOURNALING PROMPTS:
What are my personal values that I bring to work? (list as many as you can think of)
Do I use these values to make decisions or just go with what is best for me in the moment?
Five years from now, someone who used to work for you is asked what it was like. What do you hope they would say?
More to come.
Kacy @ Drawn to Lead
Thank you for reading. This is a passion project of mine and I hope that you got something out of it. There are two ways you can help support me in this mission: become a paid subscriber or share this with a friend!
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