2. You’re Going to be
“Off Track” 90% of
the Time. So What?

3. Good families – even great families – are off track 90% of the time.
The key is that they have a sense of destination. They know what the
“track” looks like. And they keep coming back to it time and time
again.

4. The key is in having a
destination, a flight plan, and a
compass.
Invest the next few minutes in this presentation, and you
will be given the most valuable tools ever to find your
destination for your family.

5. Have the end in mind:
A Beautiful Family Culture

6. HABIT 1
BE PROACTIVE

8. We do not
have to love.
We choose
to love.

9. To do carefully and constantly and kindly
many little things is not a little thing.

10. The way you treat any
relationship in the family
will eventually affect
every relationship in the
family.

11. HABIT 2
BEGIN WITH THE
END IN MIND

12. Create a
clear,
compelling
vision of
what you
and your
family are all
about.

13. A family mission statement is a
combined, unified expression
from all family members of what
your family is all about and the
principles you choose to govern
your family life.

14. For the most part, families don’t
have the kind of mission statement
so critical to organizational success.
Yet the family is the
most important,
fundamental
organization in
the world.

15. Through a family
mission statement you
can let your children
know that you
are totally
committed
to them, and
that you have
been from the very
moment of their
birth or adoption.

16. HABIT 3
PUT FIRST THINGS
FIRST

17. Making Family a Priority in a
Turbulent World

18. “Okay, now, I know what you’re going
to hear from people is “We don’t have the time. But
if you don’t have the time for one night or at least
one hour during the week where everybody can
come together as a family, then the family is not
the priority.”
~ Oprah Winfrey ~

19. Things which matter the most must
never be at the mercy of things
which matter least.

20. The place to start is not with
the assumption that work is
non-negotiable; it’s with the
assumption that family is non-
negotiable. That one shift of
mind-set opens the
door to all kinds of
creative possibilities.

21. The role of
parents is a
unique one, a
sacred
stewardship in
life. Is there really
anything that
would outweigh
the importance of
fulfilling that
stewardship well?

22. HABIT 4
THINK “WIN~WIN”

23. Moving
from
“Me”
to
“We”

24. The question is
this: “Would you
be willing to
search for a
solution that is
better than what
either of us is
now proposing?”

25. The commitment is this:
“Let me listen to you
first” or “Help me
understand.”

26. The principle is
this: What is
important to
another person
must be as
important to you
as the other
person is to you.

27. Parenting is not about being popular and giving
in to every child’s whim and desire. It’s about
making decisions that truly are win-win
– however they may appear to the child
at the time.

28. HABIT 5
SEEK FIRST TO
UNDERSTAND…THEN
TO BE UNDERSTOOD

29. Solving family problems
through emphatic
communication

31. There’s no way to have rich, rewarding
family relationships without real
understanding

32. Most mistakes with family
members are not the result
of bad intent. It’s just that
we really don’t
understand. We
don’t see clearly
into one
another’s hearts.

33. When you understand…
You don’t judge.

34. Each person
needs to be loved
in his or her own
special way. They
key to making
deposits,
therefore, is to
understand – and
to speak – that
person’s language
of love

35. The technique of emphatic listening is just the
tip of the iceberg. The great mass of the iceberg
is a deep and sincere desire to truly understand.

36. HABIT 6
SYNERGIZE

37. Building family unity through
celebrating differences

38. You must be able to say sincerely, “The
fact that we see things differently is a
strength – not a weakness – in our
relationship.

39. Once you
realize that each
problem is
asking for a
response instead
of just
triggering a
reaction, you
start to learn.
You become a
learning family.

40. HABIT 7
SHARPEN THE SAW

41. Renewing
the family
spirit
through
traditions

42. Every family must take time to renew itself
in the four key areas of life: physical,
social, mental, and spiritual.

43. If you organize
your family life to
spend ten or
fifteen minutes a
morning reading
something that
connects you to timeless principles, you
will make better choices during the day
– in the family, on the job, in every
dimension of life.

44. Sharpening the saw is the highest leverage activity in
life because it affects everything else so powerfully

45. From Survival…To stability…To Success…To Significance
I don’t know what your destiny will be, but one thing I know:
The only ones among you who will really be happy are those
who have sought and found how to serve. ~ Albert Schweitzer ~

46. ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
& CREDITS
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Families
by
Stephen R. Covey
1998
Simon & Schuster UK Ltd. (London)