Leadership Development: 7 Habits of Highly Effective People

This post is part of a series on leadership development.

I am currently participating in a Leadership Development Program (LDP) as part of my work at Franklin University. As part of this program, I attended a presentation by Dr. Karen Miner-Romanoff, the Dean of the College of Health and Public Administration at Franklin.

Karen Miner-Romanoff teaching 7 Habits of Highly Effective People at Franklin's Leadership Development Program.

Dr. Miner-Romanoff's presentation was focused on Stephen Covey's 7 Habits of highly effective people, a set of principles for achieving balance and success in life. One thing I thought was particularly cool about her approach was that she reviewed the essays written by people in the LDP Leadership attributes from our essays - she used our quotes throughout the presentation.

I have read the book and listened to many presentations of these habits over the years and have been very impressed with their depth and quality. I've found that nearly every quality self-help or success work eventually emphasizes one or more of these habits. I usually think of these as simply tools for personal success, but when they are analyzed they truly are tools for leadership. 

I'll flesh out my notes taken during the presentation and will give some reflective thoughts as I go. My own thoughts and ideas will likely intermingle with those presented in the meeting.

Habit 1: Be Proactive

To be proactive is to take responsibility for your actions, to choose to respond to situations positively. 

You have a great deal of control in your life, and you are proactive when you focus your energy on the things you can control. As you develop awareness of where to focus your energy, you increase your personal power to achieve success and happiness in life. You have the capacity to choose happiness, courage, joy, and success. You have the capacity to choose life, health, and contentment.

Habit 2: Begin With the End in Mind

To begin with the end in mind means to look forward to the end of your life and identify exactly what you would like to accomplish in your life. Ask yourself the following questions: What do I want to be? Where do I want to go? What do I want my relationship to look like with my family? With my church and community? With my employer and coworkers? When I die, what do I want people to say about me at my funeral? 

As Karen presented, I wrote that I would like people to believe the following about me when the describe who I am at the end of my life: "He loved everyone. He was kind and gave everything he had to others. He worked to make people's lives better. He was a good daddy, a kind husband, an honest worker. He loved God and served Him with all his heart."

Habit 3: Put First Things First

When you put first things first, you spend your time and energy on the things that will help you reach the outcomes you desire in life. You actively choose to engage in productive tasks, and you choose not to engage in tasks that do not achieve your goals. You must prioritize and focus on one task at a time, the most important task for the day and the moment.

For me, I use the following method for prioritizing my time at work:

1. At my work desk, I post my performance goals for as agreed upon by me and my supervisor. I refer to these as I plan my day, my week, and my month.
2. I open a Word document and create a list of the priority actions to accomplish that day. I do my best to ensure these actions will help me accomplish the goals I committed to. 
3. I prioritize this list and have the most important priority on the top of the list, and I do everything I can to focus all my attention on the top task until it is finished. This can be very difficult, but I have found that it keeps me focused on accomplishment.

I also put first things first by setting aside time for each of my areas of responsibility on my calendar. In a typical workday, I have about 30 minutes set aside for exercise, 30 for reading, 9 hours for work, 1 hour for commuting, and 4 hours for family. I also set aside Saturdays for family and housework and Sundays for service in my church.

Habits 1-3 can be seen as personal habits, those which deal directly with the individual and how he or she lives life. Habits 4-6 can be seen as interpersonal habits, which focus on how we interact with and relate to the people around us.

Habit 4: Think Win/Win

When you think win/win, you enter your discussions with others assuming that all parties involved can achieve success. This approach can be difficult for some people - some have an "I must win" attitude, and others have a "I always lose" attitude. Which are you? Do you go for the win? Do you assume you will lose? Or do you think that having everyone come out winning is an option?

The win/win approach enables collaboration and creativity between parties. If everyone assumes the same goal and receives benefit from working toward the goal together, it is more likely to be achieved.

Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, Then to be Understood

When you seek to first understand another's perspective and needs, you do your best to find out what it is that that person would like to happen in a given situation. This requires active listening, asking good questions and verifying that you fully understand the other individual. It requires that you actually care about the person and want to understand them and their needs. It requires a lot of empathy and takes a great deal of energy to accomplish. However, the long-term success of your work will be much more powerful if you take this approach.

You also need to be able to communicate your ideas clearly and effectively so that the other individual can easily understand your position. This requires clarity of thought and patience in explaining your position.

Habit 6: Synergize 

When you synergize, you are using the strengths of all parties to create the most powerful, effective strategy possible. Synergy implies that working together effectively actually produces more than could be produced separately. Part of this is recognition of  the foundations built by others which provide you with the opportunities and blessings you enjoy.  

Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw

When you sharpen the saw, you are renewing and improving yourself. This can be done through exercise, sleep, good nutrition, prayer, meditation, scripture study, and professional development. You are, essentially, making yourself the most useful instrument possible so that you can accomplish your purposes more effectively. This requires a commitment to development, personal growth, and self-improvement. The great quote from one of the student essays is "When you are through changing, you're through!" You must become a lifelong learner.

If you want to achieve your personal goals, you've got to do what it takes to prepare yourself to succeed. You are the resource through which you engage in your life.

Self-Evaluation
I've evaluated myself on each of these habits below.

Habit	Self-rating   (1 is poor, 5 is excellent)	Notes and Commitments
Habit 1: Be Proactive	4	I have worked hard to develop my ability to take responsibility for my life. I still struggle in some areas, and I will continue to improve by eliminating blaming from my thought pattern.
Habit 2: Begin With the End in Mind	5	I am extremely goal-oriented and am constantly thinking about the future and the outcomes I desire. I will review some of my life goals again and will revisit my personal mission statement to see how I am doing on meeting my goals
Habit 3: Put First Things First	3	I do alright with this habit. I do very well in my work to accomplish my goals, but I could spend more time thinking about and doing things for my family. I will make a goal to do something more for my wife every week.
Habit 4: Think Win/Win	4	I feel like this comes naturally to me. I have a continuous desire to help other people succeed in their goals. I am constantly looking for a way to help them succeed. When I facilitate meetings, I do my best to capture the perspectives of others and synthesize them into a way to move forward. I believe I could do better at this habit in my communications with my family members and commit to thinking in this manner more at home.
Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, Then to be Understood	3	I try hard to listen to the perspective of others and I think I have gotten pretty good at it. Still, I find myself becoming impatient, at times. I will increase my focus on understanding by using active questions more effectively.
Habit 6: Synergize	3	I do what I can do synergize, but I worry that I sometimes miss opportunities because I am too focused on my own work and on accomplishing my goals. I will improve by spending time with others more at work and will go out to lunch with a coworker at least 1x a week.
Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw	4	I spend a lot of my time developing myself through reading, exercise, and prayer. However, I tend to neglect the importance of simply relaxing and having down time. I will improve by relaxing more and by spending more down time with my family. I will also spend time in nature at least 1x a month.

Thanks to Dr. Karen Miner-Romanoff for her thought-provoking presentation. I appreciate the refresher on these habits and hope to apply them more fully in my own life.

The Importance of Humility

If you were to ask the most people today what characteristics make most successful people succeed, you might hear a description of someone with vision, drive, calculated risk-taking, and a solid work ethic. And while these and other characteristics are important, I believe that there is one characteristic that is often overlooked and undervalued: humility.

What is Humility?
Humility is a fascinating concept, but sometimes it can be interpreted improperly to mean a low view of oneself. However, I prefer to see humility as a realistic view of oneself, one's strengths and weaknesses, and one's potential for success in life. In my experience, this realistic view is in fact extremely empowering. It helps us see how we can maximize our strengths and improve our weaknesses so that we can move forward toward our goals.

Humility and Confidence
But do humble people also have a lack of confidence? Does humility equal weakness? I answer emphatically that you can be both humble and confident at the same time. For example, I have set a goal to run a marathon this summer. However, I humbly recognize that I do not currently have the skills, strength, or endurance to reach that goal. (Remember, humility is a realistic view of oneself, not a low view of oneself). Despite this recognition that I do not currently have everything I need, I am confident that if I am willing to rely on the trainers books and blogs I am reading and humbly comply with the training schedule ahead of me, I will be able to complete the marathon.

So, you can simultaneously have both confidence and humility. In fact, I assert that the habits of humility are actually required for success. These habits, which I describe below, are the means through which success is actually accomplished.

What are the Habits of Humility? 

The most successful people in the world have used the habits of humility to drive them toward success in life.But what are the habits of humility? I will list here what I believe to be these habits:

• Openness and respect - Successful people are aware that there are many views and ways of life, and they are respectful to others' view. 
• Don't get distracted - Successful people are focused on worthwhile goals and have a sense of purpose. But they do not allow petty distractions such as pride or anger to keep them from their goals. They humbly see past those problems to the important goals at hand.
• Gather data for decision-making -  Successful people are willing to admit that they don't have all the answers and that they need to gather knowledge so that they can make good decisions. This requires a sense of humility and willingness to seek more information to make sound decisions.
• Listening to others - Successful people are willing to gather and rely on expertise from their peers and associates. They constantly learn from others so that they can make the best decisions and take the most appropriate actions.
• Continuous learning - Successful people are aware of their own limited knowledge and are always learning and increasing their expertise. They recognize that there is infinite knowledge in the world, and that continuous learning is a habit of success.

Humility in Teaching and Instructional Design
I have found that the best teachers I have worked with in my life have been humble. They were willing to listen to me and my ideas. They listened to the students in the class and responded to their needs. And they were always learning and growing. I believe that the best teachers always adhere tot these habits of humility.

What do You Think?
Well, what do you think? Do you agree that these "habits of humility" are required for success? Are you willing to cultivate and live these habits?

The Power of Habit (a book review with reflections)

I recently finished listening to a book entitled "The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do In Life and In Business," written by Charles Duhigg. This book attempts to link a large number of research studies, practical experiences, and corporate research into a readable summary of how habits are formed and how we can change them.

The book is very readable and uses clear language and powerful examples. Below I will highlight some of the key concepts presented in the book. My intent is to highlight some of the key principles with a focus on knowledge that is useful to people who want to create change in their lives.

The Habit Loop
Duhigg describes what he calls "The Habit Loop." I've adapted his image below. The habit loop is a process that shows how habits take place. Habits are basically a sequence of events that include a few components: Craving, a Cue, a Routine, and a Reward. The loop starts with a cue, which can be seen as some kind of a stimulus that the individual responds to by executing or doing some kind of a routine. The routine usually results in a reward. If this loop happens enough times, then craving occurs and the individual expects the reward based for completing the routine. Without the craving, the habit does not necessarily fully form. But if the loop is reinforced enough, and the craving becomes engrained, it becomes a habit. 

A simple example: whenever I arrive home after a hard day of work, my lovely wife creates a delicious meal for me. I am in the habit of coming home (the cue) having the lovely dinner (routine) and feeling satisfied by the meal and my enjoyable conversation with my family (reward). After doing this hundreds of times, it has really become a habit. Even if I have already eaten dinner, when I come home and park the truck in the garage, I find myself craving something delicious to eat.

One might notice that this is a nice way of rewording the basic principles of behaviorism - stimulus, response, reward. The addition of craving is somewhat new to me, but it is still fits with the assumptions behind behaviorism.

The Keystone Habit
One very powerful concept within the book is what the author calls the Keystone Habit. Duhigg asserts that when an individual can make a change to one key habit, change seems to cascade into many other habits and other areas of life. He shares an example of one woman who decides to eliminate her habit of smoking, and how making that one change also facilitated her own improved weight management, her relationships, her health, and her finances. One outstanding habit can disrupt a pattern of living and have a lasting positive influence on an individual.


My Own Recent Keystone Habit
I recently had an experience in which I adopted one habit that cascaded into change in other areas of my life. For me, the keystone habit was teaching a seminary bible study class for youth in my church at 6:30 in the morning. This new habit invited several changes:

• It encouraged (forced) me to go to bed on time. (I used to stay up ultra-late wasting my time watching TV or surfing the internet).
• This allowed me to sleep enough to be healthy.
• I had more time in the mornnig, so I began to exercise each morning directly after the seminary class. 
• Along with that, I decided to begin watching my caloric consumption and begin to eat healthier foods. 

Since starting to teach seminary in the morning, I have lost 45 pounds and have exercised nearly every day for the last 4 months. Just like the woman who stopped smoking and subsequently changed many other habits, my keystone habit of going to bed early and teaching seminary has provided me with the ability to incorporate many other healthy, empowering habits in my life.

The keystone habit change is what I would call a macro-level change strategy. It is something that alters and disrupts the overall patterns of a person's life so that new patterns can be formed. There are micro-level change strategies described below that can be used to alter specific habits.

Short-circuit the Habit Loop
In addition to incorporating a keystone habit, we can also short-circuit and change our current habits. In describing the habit loop, Duhigg writes that eliminating the cues that stimulate craving and that prompt a routine might not be possible, so we need to figure out how to use these cues in meaningful ways. Undesirable habits can be reformed into desirable habits. He notes that the routine that a person goes through can be changed, as long as some kind of a reward is received. Let's look at some examples.

Example of short-circuiting the habit loop: I have noticed that when I see a delicious piece of food - a lovely cookie, for example - it acts as a cue. This cue prompts my craving for the yummy feeling that comes from eating the cookie, and my mind immediately (and without my permission!) imagines me eating the cookie (the routine) and enjoying the delicious rush of sugar (the reward).

I have found that I have little control over this cue - it is always there. However, I have recently experimented with short-circuiting this habit loop. Whenever I see a tempting cookie or treat, I replace the routine by imagining myself pushing the plate away and then smiling to myself and engendering a sense of pride that I am taking care of my body. I have found over time that the cue becomes weaker and the new routine is becoming stronger.

I must admit that I have not fully replaced the habit, yet. I am still working on revising this habit loop, and I have faltered a few times over the past several months. But I can see that my patterns are slowly and surely changing. I have to constantly apply self-control, but the new habit is slowly emerging.

A few additional notes on habit change:

•  Belief and Habit Change- Research seems to indicate that to have lasting change, you must  believe that you can change your habits. You have to believe in yourself and believe that you have the capacity to accomplish. Duhigg shares the example of Alcoholics Anonymous and shows how this self-belief often stems directly from a belief in a higher power. I have found that a great deal of my own personal power to create positive changes in my life stems directly from my faith in God.
• Willpower and Habit Change - I have found that we can increase our ability (willpower) to overcome the impulses that we have developed in our minds and bodies. An increase in self-mastery and willpower in one area enables an increase in another area.Change does not come without effort, but an understanding of the fundamentals of habit change can help us leverage our natural tendencies so that we can most effectively make change in our lives.
• Social Aspects of Habit Change - The people you spend time with influence the kind of person you become. Religious organizations, classes in school, volunteer organizations, workout partners, mentors, and coaches are all examples of this. I find that surrounding myself people that can help me succeed is one of the most crucial factors for success.

Summary
I would highly recommend Duhigg's "The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do In Life and In Business." It is a clear, well-written guide to understanding habits and provides a good foundational knowledge of the fundamental principles of habit change. I would not necessarily call it a how-to book for changing habits. But it provides knowledge that is meaningful and insightful and provides some powerful examples of change and success that can be built upon. Great work, Duhigg.

My New Areas of Study: Motivation, Habits, and Success

I have been in teaching, training, or designing instruction in various capacities for roughly the past 13 years. For the past 6 years, I have studied in the field of educational technology and instructional design and have earned 2 graduate degrees and published several articles in the field. I have found a home in this field, and it has been a great joy to learn what I have about instructional effectiveness.

The Purpose of Education
At the broadest level, one could state that the purpose of education (and by extension instructional design) is to enable an individual to live a successful, meaningful, contributing life. I believe that I have a basic grasp of how to help students gain knowledge and skills, but I believe I have an opportunity to understand more about how I can positive influence students to adopt outstanding habits, build their motivation, and help them move forward with success in their lives.

A Shift in My Research Interests
I am now beginning to feel a shift in my personal research interests. I have realized that some of the most important aspects of a student's success learning do not occur outside of an individual (e.g. the instruction we present to a learner). In the field of educational technology and instructional design we tend to focus on doing something to students to influence there learning and behavior. I know from research and experience that using effective strategies to provide students with learning experiences is vital to helping a student succeed. However, I also believe that the internal motivation, habits, and characteristics of a student are perhaps even more important than the external strategies we use to help instruct them.

Learning About the Internal
All of my own research has focused on what the instructor or instruction (external to the student) does to engender learning. I have asked fundamental questions about what good instructors do, what strategies more effectively help students learn, and what steps designers can take to create effective instruction. I will never stop seeking the answers to these questions; however, there are other fundamental questions about learning that I plan to start to investigate.

My Emerging Interests
Among other things, here are the general topics that I am interested in learning more about. These are areas that I have some knowledge of, though my knowledge is more peripheral and perhaps biased.


Motivation

• What are the psychological and neurological features of motivation?
• What creates the motivation to act in an individual?
• What strategies can be used used to influence and create motivation in an individual?
• What are the most effective strategies for influencing motivation in an individual?

Habits

• What are the psychological and neurological features of habits?
• How are habits formed?
• How can undesirable habits be eliminated or modified?
• How can positive habits be created and automated in a person's life?
• What strategies can be used to help others eliminate undesirable habits?
• What strategies can be used to engender positive, automated habits in another individual?

Success

• What are the psychological and neurological features of success?
• What makes an individual successful in achieving meaningful, difficult goals?
• What strategies can be used to help an individual be successful in his or her own life?