Quotes by Stephen Covey

In relationships, the little things are the big things.

What is common sense isn't common practice.

The biggest communication problem is we do not listen to understand.
We listen to reply.

The key to success is dedication to life-long learning.

Live, love, laugh, leave a legacy.

Make time for planning: Wars are won in the general's tent.

The exercise of true leadership is inversely proportional to the exercise of power.

The most important ingredient we put into any relationship is not what we say or what we do, but what we are.

Beginners are many; finishers are few.

Live your life by a compass, not a clock.

Motivation is a fire from within. If someone else tries to light that fire under you, chances are it will burn very briefly.

Effective leadership is putting first things first. Effective management is discipline, carrying it out.

Seek first to understand and then to be understood.

The call and need of a new era is for Greatness. Tapping into the higher reaches of human genius and motivation requires leaders to have a new mind-set, skill-set, and tool-set.

You have to decide what your highest priorities are and have the courage?pleasantly, smilingly, nonapologetically, to say ?no? to other things.

Make small commitments and keep them. Be a light, not a judge. Be a model, not a critic. Be part of the solution, not part of the problem.

Interdependence is a higher value than independence.

Effective interdependence can only be built on a foundation of true independence.

Interdependence is a choice only independent people can make.

We may be very busy, we may be very efficient, but we will also be truly effective only when we begin with the end in mind.

But until a person can say deeply and honestly, œI am what I am today because of the choices I made yesterday,  that person cannot say, œI choose otherwise.

When mutual understanding and respect are present, the spirit of synergy inevitable starts to develop.

We accomplish all that we do through delegation -- either to time or to other people.

To judge individuals before understanding them is a form of human rejection and feeds upon itself.

Without exception, empathy is always appropriate.

Through real-life stories, Kristin Kaufman illustrates the core idea of being present in the moment and opening oneself up to new ideas in order to become an authentic leader in life.

To learn and not to do is really not to learn. To know and not to do is really not to know.

I am what I am today because of the choices I made yesterday,.

The significant problems we face cannot be solved at the same level of
thinking we were at when we created them. -- Albert Einstein.

People simply feel better about themselves when they're good at something.

Churchgoing is not synonymous with personal spirituality. There are some people who get so busy in church worship and projects that they become insensitive to the pressing human needs that sourround them, contradicting the very precepts they profess to believe deeply.

It's not what happens to us, but our response to what happens to us that hurts us.

The key is to not to prioritize what's on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.

Two people can see the same thing, disagree, and yet both be right. It's not logical; it's psychological.

People can't live with change if there's not a changeless core inside them.

Being is seeing in the human dimension.

We are product of neither nature nor nurture; we are a product of choice, because there is always a space between stimulus and response. As we wisely exercise our power to choose based on principles, the space will become larger.
(p. 62).

The PC principle is to always treat your employees exactly as you want them to treat your best customers.

If you want to have a more pleasant,cooperative teenager, be a more understanding, emphatic, consistent, loving parent.

People can't live with change if there's not a changeless core inside them. The key to the ability to change is a changeless sense of who you are, what you are about and what you value.

The reflection of the current social paradigm tells us we are largely determined by conditioning and conditions.

Our behavior is a function of our decisions, not our conditions.

Is it logical that two people can disagree and that both can be right? It's not logical: it's psychological. And it's very real.

I believe that there are parts to human nature that cannot be reached by either legislation or education, but require the power of God to deal with.

What lies behind us is nothing compared to what lies within us and ahead of us.

It's incredibly easy to get caught up in the thick of thin things.

Admission of ignorance is often the first step in our education.

The core of any family is what is changeless, what is going to be there──shared vision and values.

People who end up with the good jobs are the proactive ones who are solutions to problems, not problems themselves, who seize the initiative to do whatever is necessary, consistent with correct principles, to get the job done.

Do what is important rather than what is urgent.

Perhaps a sense of possessing needs to come to come before a sense of genuine sharing.

Attending church does not necessarily mean living the principles taught in those meeting. You can be active in a church but inactive in its gospel.

Treat your employees exactly as you want them to treat your best customers.

When the trust account is high, communication is easy, instant, and effective.

The undisciplined are slaves to moods, appetites and passions.

To change ourselves effectively, we first had to change our perceptions.

Treat a man as he is and he will remain as he is. Treat a man as he can and should be and he will become as he can and should be.

What you do has far greater impact than what you say.

Habit is the intersection of knowledge (what to do), skill (how to do), and desire (want to do).

Most people do not listen with the intent to understand. Most people listen with the intent to reply.

You have to water the flowers you want to grow.

Each of us tends to think we see things as they are, that we are objective. But this is not the case. We see the world, not as it is, but as we are -- or, as we are conditioned to see it.

Whatever is at the center of our life will be the source of our security, guidance, wisdom, and power.

Be patient with yourself. Self-growth is tender, it's holy ground. There's no greater investment.

Most leaders would agree that they'd be better off having an average strategy with superb execution than a superb strategy with poor execution. Those who execute always have the upper hand.

You have to decide what your highest priorities are and have the courage -- pleasantly, smilingly, nonapologetically -- to say 'no' to other things. And the way to do that is by having a bigger 'yes' burning inside.

We are not a product of what has happened to us in our past. We have the power of choice.

If the ladder is not leaning against the right wall, every step we take just gets us to the wrong place faster.

Time management is a misnomer, the challenge is to manage ourselves.

Let's talk about vision and mission, roles, and goals. I want to make a meaningful contribution.

Nothing is as fast as the speed of trust.

Deep disappointment and disillusionment repressed by the Lose Win mentality. Disproportionate rage or anger, overreaction to minor provocation, and cynicism are other embodiment's of suppressed emotion.

As you live your values, your sense of identity, integrity, control, and inner-directedness will infuse you with both exhilaration and peace.

Love is a verb. Love -- the feeling -- is a fruit of love, the verb.

Just as we develop our physical muscles through overcoming opposition -- such as lifting weights -- we develop our character muscles by overcoming challenges and adversity.

Self awareness is our capacity to stand apart from ourselves and examine our thinking, our motives, our history, our scripts, our actions, and our habits and tendencies.

I believe in this concept that you learn by teaching.

Every time I see high-trust cultures, I see a lessening of adversarialism.

What air is to the body, to feel understood is to the heart.

The key to growth is to learn to make promises and to keep them.

It is unpleasant and disturbing to be rejected. It is deeply satisfying to be accepted.

Don't cheat people of their growth. Empower them to solve problems and generate ideas. Watch them grow!

Be governed by your internal compass, not by some clock on the wall.

We value the clock for its speed and efficiency. The clock has its place, efficiency has its place, after effectiveness. The symbol of effectiveness is the compass a sense of direction, purpose, vision, perspective, and balance. But the empowerment process itself is not efficient.

We may be very busy, we may be very 'efficient', but we will also be truly 'effective' only when we begin with the end in mind.

You think effectiveness with people and efficiency with things.

Patience is emotional diligence.

Compliance does not foster innovation, trust does. You can't sustain long-term innovation, for example, in a climate of distrust.

It takes humility to seek feedback. It takes wisdom to understand it, analyze it and appropriately act on it.

Where there's no gardener, there's no garden.

Trust is the glue that holds everything together.

It is extremely ironic that the more we care about what people think about us the less we care about people, and the less we care about what people think about us the more we begin to care for others.

Both times I was in India, I could not get people to listen to each other. I had to literally tell people to listen to each other and tell them that they can't get creative and find alternate solutions if they don't listen to each other. There's a lot of arguing and justifying.

We do make a difference -- one way or the other. We are responsible for the impact of our lives. Whatever we do with whatever we have, we leave behind us a legacy for those who follow.

The key to motivation is motive.

Above all, success in business requires two things: a winning competitive strategy, and superb organizational execution. Distrust is the enemy of both. I submit that while high trust won't necessarily rescue a poor strategy, low trust will almost always derail a good one.

Live the law of love. We encourage obedience to the laws of life when we live the laws of love.

The essence of the best thinking in the area of time management (practice planning) can be captured in a single phrase: Organize and execute around priorities.

The proactive approach to a mistake is to acknowledge it instantly, correct and learn from it. This literally turns a failure into a success.

Highly proactive people don't blame circumstances, conditions, or conditioning for their behavior. Their behavior is a product of their own conscious choice.

Proactive people carry their own weather with them.

If you're proactive, you don't have to wait for circumstances or other people to create perspective expanding experiences. You can consciously create your own.

Everyone must be proactive and do all they can to help themselves to stay employed.

Through it all I have learned that parenting is basically a life of self sacrifice.

Creating a warm, caring, supportive, encouraging environment is probably the most important thing you can do for your family.

In the long run, you can never accomplish a worthy end with an unworthy means.

Most people are basically a victim of the circumstances of their life. They have things like 9 11, they have terrorism threats, they have new war threats, they have economy problems, and they think, 'What can I do? I'm basically a victim.'

Technology and tools are useful and powerful when they are your servant and not your master.

Ineffective people live day after day with unused potential.

Difference is the beginning of synergy.

When our honor becomes greater than our moods, that is where transformation happens.

The real beginning of influence comes as others sense you are being influenced by them -- when they feel understood by you -- that you have listened deeply and sincerely, and that you are open.

Seek to understand rather than be understood.

To be successful we must live from our imaginations, not from our memories.

The great apparent dichotomy is that the more we give, the more we get.

Want balance in your life? Then sure, get your own act together, but don't forget four powerful disciplines of execution in your team and organization.

Family home evening is more for the purpose of teaching values and gospel principles, displaying talents and enjoying different kinds of family fun and activities.

People have character strength but they lack communication skills, and that undoubtedly affects the quality of relationships as well.

What we are communicates far more eloquently than anything we say or do. There are people we trust because we know their character. Whether they're eloquent or not, whether they have human-relations techniques or not, we trust them and work with them.

Keeping a personal journal a daily in-depth analysis and evaluation of your experiences is a high-leverage activity that increases self-awareness and enhances all the endowments and the synergy among them.

When I started teaching I realized that I had never had such a level of satisfaction and such a feeling of fulfillment and sense of contribution. Just like that. But, usually it's more cumulative, slow, evolutionary and less revolutionary.

The only thing that endures over time is the 'Law of the Farm.' You must prepare the ground, plant the seed, cultivate, and water if you expect to reap the harvest.

An abundance mentality springs from internal security, not from external rankings, comparisons, opinions, possessions, or associations.

Response-ability is the ABILITY to choose our response to any circumstance or condition.

People who exercise their embryonic freedom day after day, little by little, expand that freedom. People who do not will find that it withers until they are literally 'being lived.' They are acting out scripts written by parents, associates, and society.

I see myself living by correct principles and accomplishing worthy purposes. One of my favorite quotes is, The greatest battles of life are fought out every day in the silent chambers of one's own soul. (David O. McKay).

Highly effective people tend to be proactive. They decide to find a better job or to have better health, rather than of responding to whatever curves life throws at them.

All broken relationships can be traced back to broken agreements.

If you want to be trusted, be trustworthy.

If you want to get something done, give it to a busy man.

It's easy to say ''no!'' when there's a deeper ''yes!'' burning inside.

We immediately become more effective when we decide to change ourselves rather than asking things to change for us.

An empowered organization is one in which individuals have the knowledge, skill, desire, and opportunity to personally succeed in a way that leads to collective organizational success.

There is so much we can do to render service, to make a difference in the world -- no matter how large or small our circle of influence.

If two people have the same opinion, one is unnecessary. ... I don't want to talk, to communicate, with someone who agrees with me; I want to communicate with you because you see it differently. I value that difference.

Give no answer to contentious arguments or irresponsible accusations. Let such things fly out open windows until they spend themselves.

Trust is clearly a key competency. A competency or skill that can be learned, taught, and improved and one that talent can be screened for.

Trust is a competency. It's something you can get good at. It's a strength you personally, and your team and your company can master. Being good at it will elevate every other strength you have.

The ability to establish, grow, extend, and restore trust is the key professional and personal competency of our time.

The need to leave a legacy is our spiritual need to have a sense of meaning, purpose, personal congruence, and contribution.

If you don't choose to do it in leadership time up front, you do it in crisis management time down the road.

We can actually live out the trials and temptations of the day before they come. We can in prayer deal with all our unrighteous aspirations, selfishness, perverse inclinations, impatience, anger, procrastination. This is a form of spiritual creation.

In many situations involving service recovery -- the problem itself became the catalyst for the creation of even greater trust as the companies took the issues head-on and worked through the difficult problem in a way that restored confidence.

While you can think in terms of efficiency in dealing with time, a principle-centered person thinks in terms of effectiveness in dealing with people.

Effective people do two things: they strive to do excellent work, and they prioritize.

Principles are deep fundamental truths... lightly interwoven threads running with exactness, consistency, beauty and strength through the fabric of life.

Principles are the simplicity on the far side of complexity.

The fire inside people is like a match; the way to ignite that flame is initially through friction, then other matches are lit through warmth.

Putting first things first means organizing and executing around your most important priorities. It is living and being driven by the principles you value most, not by the agendas and forces surrounding you.

I think the most significant work we'll do in our whole life, in our whole world is done within the four walls of our home.

True effectiveness is a function of two things: what is produced (the golden eggs) and the producing asset (the goose).

There's no better way to inform and expand you mind on a regular basis than to get into the habit of reading good literature.

In the last analysis, what we are communicates far more eloquently than anything we say or do.

Prepare your mind and heart before you prepare your speech . What we say may be less important than how we say it.

Perhaps the greatest role of parenting, more than directing and telling children what to do, is helping children connect with their own gifts, particularly conscience.

Once you've found your own voice, the choice to expand your influence, to increase your contribution, is the choice to inspire others to find their voice.

Writing is another powerful way to sharpen the mental saw. Keeping a journal of our thoughts, experiences, insights, and learnings promotes mental clarity, exactness, and context.

When air is charged with emotions, an attempt to teach is often perceived as a form of judgment and rejection.

I teach people how to treat me by what I will allow.

To receive gratitude with grace is a form of gratitude by itself, and not always an easy art to master.

You can't talk your way out of a problem you behaved your way into!

How you treat the one reveals how you regard the many, because everyone is ultimately a one.

I am convinced that if we as a society work diligently in every other area of life and neglect the family, it would be analogous to straightening deck chairs on the Titanic.

Only after we can learn to forgive ourselves can we accept others as they are because we don't feel threatened by anything about them which is better than us.

In this knowledge-worker age, it's now increasingly tied to doing well in school so you can get into better grad schools so you can get better jobs -- so the pressure to do well is really high.

I can change. I can live out of my imagination instead of my memory. I can tie myself to my limitless potential instead of my limiting past.

In the end, life teaches us what is important, and that is family.

Free your heart from hatred -- forgive. Free your mind from worries -- most never happen. Live simply and appreciate what you have. Give more. Expect less.

Live simply and appreciate what you have. Give more. Expect less.

A long, healthy, and happy life is the result of making contributions, of having meaningful projects that are personally exciting and contribute to and bless the lives of others.

Don't argue for other people's weaknesses. Don't argue for your own. When you make a mistake, admit it, correct it, and learn from it immediately.

Human beings are not things needing to be motivated and controlled; they are four dimensional -- body, mind, heart, and spirit.

You basically get what you reward. If you want to achieve the goals and reflect the values in your mission statement, then you need to align the reward system with these goals and values.

If you don't set your goals based upon your Mission Statement, you may be climbing the ladder of success only to realize, when you get to the top, you're on the WRONG building.

So also in a marriage or in helping a teenager through a difficult identity crisis--there is no quick fix, where you can just move in and make everything right with a positive mental attitude and a bunch of success formulas.

A moment of choice is a moment of truth.

Principles are natural laws that are external to us and that ultimately control the consequences of our actions. Values are internal and subjective and represent that which we feel strongest about in guiding our behavior.

Link yourself to your potential, not to your past.

We develop our character muscles by overcoming challenges and obstacles.

By centering our lives on correct principles and creating a balanced focus between doing and increasing our ability to do, we become empowered to the task of creating effective useful and peaceful lives.

Real excellence does not come cheaply. A certain price must be paid in terms of practice, patience, and persistence -- natural ability notwithstanding.

You will never be able to truly step inside another person, to see the world as he sees it, until you develop the pure desire, the strength of personal character, and the positive Emotional Bank Account, as well as the empathetic listening skills to do it.

We are limited but we can push back the borders of our limitations.

The only person I know, is the person I want to be.

But borrowing strength builds weakness.

To focus on technique is like cramming your way through school. You sometimes get by, perhaps even get good grades, but if you don't pay the price day in and day out, you'll never achieve true mastery of the subjects you study or develop an educated mind.

Personal leadership is the process of keeping your vision and values before you and aligning your life to be congruent with them.

Creating and integrating an empowering personal mission statement is one of the most important investments we can make.

A personal mission statement becomes the DNA for every other decision we make.

The personal power that comes from principle-centered living is the power of a self-aware, knowledgeable, proactive individual, unrestricted by the attitudes, behaviors, and actions of others or by many of the circumstances and environmental influences that limit other people.

We simply assume that the way we see things is the way they really are or the way they should be. And our attitudes and behaviors grow out of these assumptions.

Doing more things faster is no substitute for doing the right things.