Stephen Covey : The 7 Habits Of Highly Effective People

This following will outline my personal leadership practices and potential future leadership. To analyze my leadership qualities I will use the Seven Habits Profile and a leadership theory to determine my strengths, weaknesses, and areas of opportunity for improvement. In conclusion, I will determine the best recommendations for long-term improvement as well as SMART goals, or short-term courses of action, for leadership improvement.

Effective leaders exhibit what Kouzes and Posner describe as “The Five Practices of Exemplary Leadership.” These practices include

Covey, Stephen R, (1989), The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People: Restoring the Character. Ethic. Simon and Schuster,

I have always thought of myself as a strong, motivated leader, and based on the results of my seven habits profile I can confirm that there will always be room to grow. There are areas of the seven habits profile in which I thought I excelled, but in reality those are the areas that I need to develop the most. I have always seemed to complete whatever task I may have had in mind, and was always successful in the path that I had taken to get there. When I take time to reflect on the results of my seven habits profile, I notice that I don’t tend to begin with the end in mind. I usually jump in headfirst and worry about the end when I get close to the finish. I feel like I am able to accomplish the most when I am working in total crisis mode, and fail to utilize any time to plan my week with a clear idea of what I desire to accomplish. Failing to have a plan seems to cause me to overthink things, and I stress on minor details that could have been avoided with even the simplest of plans. Even though I am able to complete the tasks in which I need to accomplish, I am more thankful that I have finished and to exhausted to feel accomplished. As a leader, I tent to neglect the feelings of others around me, and instead focus on what it is I think is best for the organization in which I am leading. It is hard for me to sympathize as a leader with those who allow their emotions to cloud their judgment. Everyone has

Covey, S. R. (1989). The 7 habits of highly effective people. New York, NY: Simon & Schuster.

In today’s society, a person can make a single decision, which can positively and negatively affect their family, employer, co-workers and/or even the entire world. That said, the life we as individuals lead reflects the strength of a single trait and that is our personal character. Though personal ethics vary from person to person; people want to be known as a good person, someone who can be trusted and who is concerned about his or her relationships and personal reputations. However, ethics has a major issue in leadership positions. In order to create a strong ethical based environment, it is critical to have an appropriate leader and leadership integrity. According to Johnson (2013), ethical leadership can be perceived as both a moral person and a moral manager. In this essay, I will evaluate the importance of ethical leadership and the role it plays in daily lives. Lastly, I will apply my personal leadership perspective. My perspective will include the path goal theory and the ethical practices that I find to important to leadership.

An ethical leader must be courageous enough to stand against adversity while heralding and defending the right course of action with the intent of not bringing detriment to others or a situation. A leader cannot lead his or her organization through change without courage and must transmit the vision well enough to prompt employees into taking calculated risks (Collins et al., 1998). The duty to overcome moral and ethical dilemmas requires recognition of pitfalls and hazards and anticipation of unforeseen ones (Morrison, 2001). Failing to safeguard the leadership burden erodes the very fabric upon which our values are based. Moral and ethical guides handed down across centuries serve as the foundation of human kind’s religious, spiritual, and philosophical base.

Covey displayed ethical leadership through his decisions and actions. One example of this was his decision to concentrate on academics instead of sports after “he developed a hip disorder known as slipped capital femoral epiphysis in his adolescence,” (Stephen, 2012). Events happen in all of our lives that can change the course of our destiny. What we might think is our life’s purpose may be skewed; life-events help us realize that and bring us to a crossroad where we have to make a decision to either accept a new challenge, or deny it. Dr. Covey chose to accept his new path through learning and sharing what he’s learned to help others be successful in their journeys. Dr. Covey showed “resiliency” (LM09, 2012) and “high motivation” (CF03, 2012), because he took a situation that others may have seen as a setback, and used it as motivation to learn all he could about leadership principles and how to successfully apply them. As a result, he passed his knowledge on and inspired others to achieve a life of success through his work. He did not use his situation as an excuse to give up on his dreams of success and become a burden to society; instead, he made an ethical decision, despite the “uncertainty” ( LM01, 2012) to work within his abilities to create as path of happiness and

Hussain, A. (2017, February 28). 7 Habits of highly effective people [Book summary]. Retrieved March 15, 2017, from https://blog.hubspot.com/sales/habits-of-highly-effective-people-summary#sm.000114lve719cccqqzznqloly5g80

Leadership styles play an important role in the effectiveness of an organization with meeting their goals. The path to becoming an effective leader requires the observation of others within the role. For this task an interview was complete with Scott Light of Transportation Insurance Advisors out of Sanford Florida. The questions provided through the interview gave perspective on the personality traits, business standards and how ethics is utilized within the organization that he runs.

Leaders need to have the courage to stand up for what they believe in. Leaders are not afraid to say what should be said or afraid to stand up for others. People follow

For this task, I completed Seven Habits Profile. Stephen Covey first published the Seven Habits of Highly Effective People in 1989. The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People is by now one of the best-selling books of all time. (Smith, Hadjian) The profile measures across nine categories. The scores ranged from one, very poor, to eighteen, outstanding. The Seven Habits Profile is an excellent tool to help understand where you can improve your leadership skills.

Though there are not many people who strive to be followers based on the importance placed on the role of leaders, and the stigma of followership, great leaders cannot adequately perform their roles in the absences great followers. Therefore, the role of followership is not only necessary but vital to the ability of

The results of my Seven Habits® (Covey 2015) self-scoring profile confirmed areas of strengths and weaknesses within my leadership style. The two foundational habits of Emotional Bank Account (Category 1) and Life Balance (Category 2) both had scores of 12 out of 18. These two categories assess personal values and strengths, such as integrity, work ethic, thoughtfulness, and life-work balance. My strengths in these areas provide a firm foundation to build leadership skills upon. There is one foundational area in which I scored a 3 out of 6. This area for improvement involves speaking disapprovingly of others when they are not present, which often creates division and does not resolve issues. Improvement in this area will create cohesion

Much of  how we view the world depends solely on how we perceive it. To improve a situation in our lives, we need to improve ourselves, and to improve ourselves, changing our perceptions is a must. How do I deal with this situation? How do I get from point A to my goal at point B? What do I value most? Questions we should be asking when trying to improve ourselves. Attitude sets the mood for everyday life. As the admirable author and educator, Dr. Stephen Covey at one time said, “Values drive behavior,” which stands true especially in the professional world, where most find themselves unhappy with their line of work. In his influential book, “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,” Dr. Covey provides the tools one could apply to their work life. According to “the 7 Habits,” one must: be proactive; instead of sitting around, contemplating on what you are unable to do, take accountability and resolve how you intend to improve your life. Keep the End in Mind is being knowledgeable of what you want to become and how you plan to achieve your goal. First thing`s first involves organization, what do you deem valuable? Think win-win is a way of good sportsmanship, and showing support for others. Someone doesn’t have to lose in order for someone else to win. Understand first, then be understood teaches one to listen and communicate with others effectively; it is imperative to reach a level of understanding with others to get a job done. Synergize, means taking the opportunity to