Page 46 - stephen covey The seven habits of highly effective people

THE SEVEN HABITS OF HIGHLY EFFECTIVE PEOPLE Brought to you by FlyHeart

application of "Begin with the End in Mind" is to begin today with the image, picture, or paradigm of
the end of your life as your frame of reference or the criterion by which everything else is examined.
Each part of your life -- today's behavior, tomorrow's behavior, next week's behavior, next month's
behavior -- can be examined in the context of the whole, of what really matters most to you. By
keeping that end clearly in mind, you can make certain that whatever you do on any particular day
does not violate the criteria you have defined as supremely important, and that each day of your life
contributes in a meaningful way to the vision you have of your life as a whole.
To Begin with the End in Mind means to start with a clear understanding of your destination. It
means to know where you're going so that you better understand where you are now and so that the
steps you take are always in the right direction.
It's incredibly easy to get caught up in an activity trap, in the busy-ness of life, to work harder and
harder at climbing the ladder of success only to discover it's leaning against the wrong wall. It is
possible to be busy -- very busy -- without being very effective.
People often find themselves achieving victories that are empty, successes that have come at the
expense of things they suddenly realize were far more valuable to them. People from every walk of
life -- doctors, academicians, actors, politicians, business professionals, athletes, and plumbers -- often
struggle to achieve a higher income, more recognition or a certain degree of professional competence,
only to find that their drive to achieve their goal blinded them to the things that really mattered most
and now are gone.
How different our lives are when we really know what is deeply important to us, and, keeping that
picture in mind, we manage ourselves each day to be and to do what really matters most. If the ladder
is not leaning against the right wall, every step we take just gets us to the wrong place faster. We may
be very busy, we may be very efficient, but we will also be truly effective only when we Begin with the
End in Mind.
If you carefully consider what you wanted to be said of you in the funeral experience, you will find
your definition of success. It may be very different from the definition you thought you had in mind.
Perhaps fame, achievement, money, or some of the other things we strive for are not even part of the
right wall.
When you Begin with the End in Mind, you gain a different perspective. One man asked another
on the death of a mutual friend, "How much did he leave?" His friend responded, "He left it all."

All Things Are Created Twice

"Begin with the End in Mind" is based on the principle that all things are created twice. There's a
mental or first creation, and a physical or second creation to all things
Take the construction of a home, for example. You create it in every detail before you ever hammer
the first nail into place. You try to get a very clear sense of what kind of house you want. If you want
a family-centered home, you plan a family room where it would be a natural gathering place. You
plan sliding doors and a patio for children to play outside. You work with ideas. You work with
your mind until you get a clear image of what you want to build.
Then you reduce it to blueprint and develop construction plans. All of this is done before the earth
is touched. If not, then in the second creation, the physical creation, you will have to make expensive
changes that may double the cost of your home.
The carpenter's rule is "measure twice, cut once." You have to make sure that the blueprint, the first
creation, is really what you want, that you've thought everything through. Then you put it into bricks
and mortar. Each day you go to the construction shed and pull out the blueprint to get marching
orders for the day. You Begin with the End in Mind.
For another example, look at a business. If you want to have a successful enterprise, you clearly