Day #2 PhilosophersNotes- The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Steven Covey

Wow, with over 15 million copies sold, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People was ranked the #1 most influential business book of the 20th century- but don't be fooled- it is not just for the business world! A key point that sums up the summary (ha!) is that PRIVATE victory comes before PUBLIC victory. Meaning if you are to be a success OUTWARDLY, you must first master yourself and your INNER world. Makes perfect sense! These 7 habits will help you master your time and your inner world:

Habit #1-Be Proactive
Habit #2-Begin with the end in mind (example- How do you imagine your funeral? how will folks remember you and the way you lived? Is what you imagine today what you want? Then be the change TODAY!)
Habit #3-Put First Things First (he breaks every event into quadrants based on whether they are urgent or important...probably spending WAY too much time on things that are not urgent and not important!)
Habit #4-Think Win/Win
Habit #5-Think First to understand...then to be understood!
Habit #6-Synergy- like the TEAM acronym- Together wE Achieve More!
Habit #7-Sharpen the Saw- play, renew, replenish your soul. Don't work feverishly without reflecting on where you are going, why you are going there, and how you are gonna get there! Work effectively- not just feverishly!

The biggest take-away for me was to HONOR my commitments!
I love the SYNERGY between yesterday's note and today's: The commitments we make- are you being PROACTIVE- towards your MISSION in life or REACTIVE- saying yes, overcommitting, to please, to be nice...whatever...Personally, being PROACTIVE (for me), was only defined by my APPROACH, but not necessarily my FOLLOW THROUGH. This is a really important distinction. Basically, Covey said that if you don't honor small commitments you make to yourself- whether it is waking up on time, cheating on your diet, failing to do things for yourself you intended to do, etc...that if these mini-commitments you make to yourself are broken many times a day, day after day, that it subconsciously that undermines your integrity. WoW. Never looked at it that way. 
Other sticky points for me were:
1. SAYING NO, because you are saying YES to something BIGGER...your mission! Loved that visual...say NO to things that aren't perfectly aligned with your highest and best mission.
2. Hang out in Quadrant #2! Focus on things that are important but not urgent- relationships, happiness, exercise, growth... Try to shut down Quad#4- time vampires! Things such as mindless TV, too much hypnotic twitter reading or Facebooking, celebrity tabloids, etc.
3. To find our specific mission in life is WORK- but so worthwhile, and a PROCESS! It does not happen in a flash, and our mission is constantly evolving! We all have different ROLES in life- so make GOALS for each of your ROLES! (Parenting goals, business goals, fitness goals, etc.)
Cheers to DAY #2 and honoring my commitment to this challenge (even if this is posted late due to internet problems beyond my control!)