The 8th Habit Summary
5 min read ⌚
MicroSummary: An upgrade to his 1988 bestseller, “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People”, “The 8th Habit” by Stephen R. Covey reinforces his belief that the oft-promoted personality ethic is obsolete, and that character ethic means progressing from independence to interdependence. And the 8th habit: find your voice and inspire others to find theirs.
From Effectiveness to Greatness
The first 7 Habits will lead you to the 8th Habit: Be authoritative, use your voice; try to help other people.
Plunge into the intensity of progress, with your mind, soul, heart, and body.
Who Should Read “The 8th Habit”? And Why
Covey fights for the power of choice. Every human has four essential elements according to him: body, mind, soul, heart.
The successful people have four extra qualities that cannot be found among ordinary citizens: clear vision, strict discipline, burning passion and moral conscience.
It is not easy being a person with integrity, but that doesn’t have to stop you from becoming one.
The ultimate goal that every individual should pursue is to manage and master all of the eight habits.
Covey never limits its books by targeting particular groups of readers, which are more likely to be interested in reading it.
The 8th habit intrigues people; it helps them to overcome challenges by encouraging them to implement the fundamental right habits in real life situations.
It is not easy to find a transparent, accurate, and easy going book, written at the highest level. “The 8th Habit” book is helpful for every individual capable of taking the next step in pursuance of self-appreciation and freedom.
About Stephen R. Covey
Stephen R. Covey was born In Salt Lake City- Utah on October 24, 1932.
During his career, he has established himself as one of the greatest businessmen, philosophers, theorists, and speakers of the 20th century.
80 years later Covey passed away and left a legacy for future generations.
His whole life was dedicated to science, progress and helping others.
He was the Chairman of Franklin Covey Corporation and the author of several best-selling books including First Thing First; The 8th Habit; The 7 habits of highly effective people.
“The 8th Habit Summary”
We as a society are dealing with serious problems related to management because some organizations are functioning like the companies in the Industrial era.
For example, the physicians in the Medieval period used to practice bloodletting.
Imagine yourself in a hospital severely wounded, and you have doctors who prescribe you abnormal treatments and medications.
It seems barbaric from today’s standpoint, but back then having leeches on the body was a sign of recovery.
Their primary task was to draw blood from debilitated persons who were seriously infected.
In general, the people believed that leeches are capable of purifying the blood, so, the bad blood will be sucked by them.
Fortunately, the medicine progressed, and the paradigm shifted soon after the advent of germ theory, saving many lives.
You have to be aware that a model is compelling. The traditional Industrial era standard wanted to keep people together; the goal was to make them become depended out of raw outputs such as shoes and clothes.
As a consequence of that, people were treated as objects.
Wealthy industrialists somehow managed for a very long time to use the people like inputs for disposable use, disregarding person’s fundamental human rights and their moral responsibilities.
In their eyes, they were just expendable goods, not individuals with heart, mind, and spirit, but rather as animals which needed to be controlled and ruled.
The humanity has come out of this era; however, the circumstances have not changed significantly since then, the basic paradigm continues its work.
Even in the 21st century, the exploration of workers still exists, the companies approach them more carefully to squeeze them out and make them perform more efficiently.
For Stephen R. Covey, approximately 300 pages were enough to explain the first seven habits, on the other hand, 409 pages exactly and a CD on the eighth.
If we put cynicism aside, you’ll see that this book is worth reading – The 8th Habit.
The credit goes to Covey for his dedication and vision.
He didn’t want to rest on his reputation and just write a regular, non-threatening “guidebook” that would lead him to further success.
Covey avoids mediocrity, everything about him is transparent and straight. According to him, the majority of employees today are mistreated.
The society suffers emotionally as a result of a bad-working atmosphere, and unsupportive environment regardless of the size, shape, and orientation of the organization.
Covey insists and advises managers, and employers to treat others as they would like to be treated – as human beings.
“The 8th Habit” invests in the notion that the knowledge worker must incite a change in employer’s behavior.
In pursuance of a better organization system, we must witness a new unspoken, unwritten and informal deal, to satisfy both parties.
It can only be done if the new paradigm basis relies on respect by all sides.
Key Lessons from The 8th Habit
1. Completely transform your life, with the principle-centered living concept
2. The principle is under constant improvement
3. The main thing must always be your priority
Reach your full potential
For a person to find its unique voice, it must be ready to take full advantage of its innate potential.
God has given us the greatest gift; we mustn’t become irresponsible individuals incapable of exploring our inner capacities.
You are granted a choice; you can either act or react; it’s up to you.
Don’t suppress people’s opinion
Eventually, leadership is a difficult term to understand.
Thousands of different views on leadership are available.
However, the best way to explain it would be – the ability to help other people reaching their full potential and actual worth.
The Industrial Age perspective tried to suppress the power of thinking; the goal was to keep the employees stranded in poverty.
Today’s leaders must make an effort to eradicate that form of leadership entirely.
Serving Others is the ultimate goal
After all, the only path to happiness is to help others. “The 8th Habit” book encourages organizations to transform themselves and their orientation.
The conception of genuine service above generates you the authentic morality of being an exceptional leader. You should ask yourself – Am I worth it?
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“The 8th Habit” Quotes
People are working harder than ever, but because they lack clarity and vision, they aren’t getting very far. They, in essence, are pushing a rope...with all of their might. Click To Tweet To touch the soul of another human being is to walk on holy ground. Click To Tweet Nothing fails like success. Click To Tweet Abraham Lincoln: “The dogmas of the quiet past are inadequate to the stormy present. Click To Tweet Think about it. People are put on the P&L statement as an expense; equipment is put on the balance sheet as an investment. Click To Tweet
Our Critical Review
If “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” didn’t leave you stunned and motivated, this one will. In all honesty, we put this book to the list of masterpieces, and we hope you’ll follow our footsteps.
Emir is the Head of Marketing at 12min. In his spare time, he loves to meditate and play soccer.
