The 7 Habits Challenge

Another Busy Day!

Mary — Wed, 19 Aug 2009 02:21:21 +0000

I really don’t like the word “busy”. It bothers me! The reason I think I don’t like it is because, in my mind, it suggests there is not enough time… for what, you may be asking. My reply would be for all sorts of things. Things which make life more pleasant for my family, friends and for myself. These past few weeks have been very full. With two of our three daughters away at school and our other daughter leaving soon, I am doing my best to prepare for the new school year. There will still be four of our kids at home-two in high school and two in grade school. As my new job begins, I want to make sure that I spend my time wisely, for all concerned. To do this I need to learn better habits of organization and planning (not my strength) as I mentioned! I am hoping Covey’s book will “mentor” me. The problem is that I haven’t read it in the past few days, but I am still thinking… I will not give in to discouragement, but focus on my goal for this year. Right now, though, it has been a long day and I am going to go to sleep! Sweet dreams!!

It’s The Weekend!

Mary — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 00:30:01 +0000

It has been a rather hectic weekend! Our daughter Clare is attending the first semester of her college sophomore year in Rome. She leaves to fly into Dublin for a week’s visit in Ireland before arriving in Rome on the 24th. My husband and I will drive her to Chicago tomorrow afternoon- her flight leaves at 6:45pm. I have been thinking about my priorities as I have whirled around yesterday and today with last minute errands and spending some one on one time with Clare. Having our daughter leave home for 4 months and travel all around Europe, taking care of herself, makes it rather easy to think about what is most important in life. It isn’t cleaning the house or material possessions or the endless list of things that I am not getting to (which usually haunts me), but rather spending time with her, BEING with those I love and appreciating all they bring to my life! May I somehow keep this in focus. I will begin again.. and continue my learning experience!

Not So Easy…

Mary — Fri, 14 Aug 2009 17:43:06 +0000

So after pondering what was most important to me yesterday morning and then starting my day with a clear mindset, before I knew it I found myself scrambling, as usual. Now here is where the frustration begins for me…at the beginning! I have never had a problem coming up with ideas and dreams, nor the passion necessary to get going on them. My roadblock is taking those with me throughout the day, keeping them in mind (I am utterly forgetful) and staying the course. I am not by nature a planner. I am good at being present in the moment, but planning and following a path to achieve a long term goal, not so much. I am determined to use my strong will and stubborn nature, though, to work at this day by day for the next year. The 7 habits Covey talks about are like a trainer showing the path to winning, but if the trainee doesn’t commit to it and keep going when it gets tough then there is no chance of excellence. A great coach helps unlock the inner greatness of the athlete. Stephen Covey is a great coach and I believe each person (including you and me) have something fantastic to offer this world and society. We just need to hang in there! Today I begin…AGAIN!

Is It Still Relevant?

Mary — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 13:16:42 +0000

In case you have never read Covey’s book, the 7 habits he speaks about are NOT a to-do list to make everything in life run smoothly-that would take a magician and we all know that magic is purely PRETEND! The habits, instead, are time tested principles that your life, your thoughts and actions revolve around. In the foreword of his book he asks whether they are still relevant today? I suppose I gave the answer away when I said the principles are time tested! As I think about the bad habits in my life- the things that I know I need to change-I realize there is a disconnect between what I say I believe, value and hope for AND how I live. In other words, my thoughts, words and actions don’t always reflect my deeply held convictions. It seems that I often let short term wants get in the way of my long term goals. I am awfully good at justifying why I should do what I want at any given moment! Do you ever have that struggle? It seems to be a constant one for me. I will not give in to discouragement, though, because I know that the first step in solving a problem is knowing and admitting what the problem is!! So, for today, I am going to think about what is most important to me. Tuesday was the fifth anniversary of my mom”s death. She was a great person and I miss her. One of the things I learned at her bedside as she passed from this world to the next was that at the end of a person’s life what matters most is how they have loved and were loved by others. To love others I must learn to say NO to the unimportant childish wants and desires of my often selfish nature. Today as I think about what is really important, I will try to align myself to those ideals! Today I begin!!

I Don’t Really Get It, Mom!

Mary — Wed, 12 Aug 2009 12:47:01 +0000

A couple of my kids were interested in what I was up to with the blog…after they read it they looked puzzled. The consensus was ” we don’t really get what you are going to do, mom!” Since they haven’t seen Julie/Julia they were a little confused to say the least. Maybe you are too. In a nutshell, I am going to spend the next year rereading Stephen Covey’s book: The 7 Habits of Highly Successful People and blog about it. I got the idea from what Julie Powell did with Julia Child’s book on French cooking. She gave herself a year deadline to cook every recipe in the book. She made the committment and as a result, learned many others things besides cooking. I am looking for a similar outcome. I am a teacher and I love learning new things, especially the unexpected things you learn during the learning process! I hope to not simply read Covey’s book as I have in the past, but this time to really to take his “recipe” for success and make it my own ( as all good cooks do)! I plan to read it and to ponder it, to chew on it, to teach it, to try it and really commit to the material for one year. By the way, it is the 20th anniversary ( I just figured that out) of the book. I am going to persevere through discouragement as I attempt to build new habits into my life- the first of which is not giving up when its tough. I will take it one day at a time…that is all I have anyway!

Inspired by Julie Powell!

Mary — Tue, 11 Aug 2009 14:48:12 +0000

I saw the movie Julie/Julia this past weekend with my husband, isn’t he heroic! Eventhough, the movie was a bit too long and a little slow at times, I loved it anyway!! I am pretty sure that I wasn’t the only person who could identify with Julie. It gave me an idea…what if I tried a similar method of learning? Instead of cooking, (which I love to do) what if I slowly and carefully put into practice what Stephen Covey refers to as The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People? I have read a good deal of his work, but by no means all of it. I have tried to implement it in varying degrees and taught my family parts of it, but I have never REALLY held myself accountable to it. The thought came to me what if I did? Would it make a difference, would I become more dependable, more focussed and more effective in my relationships with family, friends and now I can say with co-workers? One thing I know for sure…it can’t hurt! I love new beginnings and the new school year is about to begin, Fall will soon be here, I will start my new job in 2 weeks AND I have lost 5 of the 25lbs my doctor says I should! Join me if you want to challenge yourself to a year of positive changes-which are never easy. That’s why they are so rewarding ! There will be many hills and valleys, but if we persevere I know that in one year from now, you and I will be better, happier people…and so will those who know us!!