The final habit in The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People is Sharpening the Saw. This habit reminds us that who and where we are today can’t be who or where we are tomorrow. This habit is a prescription for balanced self-renewal. The balance is based on a four-category model that integrates into the previous six habits. The four categories are:
- Physical: This category reflects the need to care for the” machine”; the body, with exercise and diet. Our bodies provide endurance, flexibility, and strength, which enable us to grow. It is easy to see that struggles with health will make it difficult to concentrate on intellectual growth.
- Spiritual: Covey states,, “If your motives are wrong, nothing can be right.” The spiritual category reflects our commitment to our value system. Our values provide leadership to our lives. Grounding our values in the habits of proactivity, beginning with the end in mind, and putting first things first helps us focus on providing service to our community.
- Mental: Continuous education and renewal of skills are critical for personal growth. This category includes exploring new topics, debating, and writing critically. Development includes hands-on training rather than standard corporate lectures. This broad approach should challenge those involved to examine and question underlying assumptions. Kanban is a way to implement this idea. In Kanban, policies are made explicit so they can be challenged. Mental renewal provides the tools to rise to a challenge. Remember, it is too late to re-tool when we encounter a challenge.
- Social/emotional: The final category of a balanced renewal is social/emotional. We are deeply influenced by our relationships, which help write the scripts for how we interact and relate to the world. Integrity to our values contributes to how others view us and is the most important attribute of how we view ourselves (assuming some level of introversion). This category also speaks to providing service to others, which we see as central to servant leadership..
Renewal requires us to pay attention to all four categories. Ignoring any one category will negatively impact progress on others. For example, without your health, everything else becomes difficult. In the final habit, Stephen Covey advises his readers “to continually improve.” Covey caps this habit with a model of growth as an upward spiral of learning, committing, and doing. This model is reminiscent of the Shewart Cycle (also known as the Deming Wheel) of plan, do, check, and act. Regardless of the model, continuous improvement requires a cycle that is repeated forever and ever.
Support the Software Process and Measurement Cast. Buy a copy of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R. Covey and read along!
Previous Installments:
Week 1: Introduction and Be Proactive
Week 2: Begin With The End In Mind
Week 3: Put First Things First
Week 4: Think Win/Win
Week 5: Seek First To Understand, Then To Be Understood
Week 6: Synergize, Then To Be Understood
Also, consider purchasing a copy of Mastering Work Intake to unlock seamless project management. “Mastering Work Intake” is your guide to efficient request handling. Reviews highlight its user-friendly approach and tangible benefits. Ditch the chaos, embrace clarity. Take the first step towards a more organized workflow. Get your book now!
Links:
JRoss Publishing: https://bit.ly/474ul6G
Amazon: https://amzn.to/4236013
Leave a Comment