Stephen Covey Quotes

The roots of the problems we face in the world, in our national life, and in our family and personal lives are spiritual.

..people are working harder than ever, but because they lack clarity and vision, they aren’t getting very far. They, in essence, are pushing a rope...with all of their might.

I think the most significant work we'll do in our whole life, in our whole world is done within the four walls of our home.

Compliance does not foster innovation, trust does. You can't sustain long-term innovation, for example, in a climate of distrust.

The key to success is dedication to life-long learning.

It's like the more you know the more you know you don't know.

Happiness can be defined, in part at least, as the fruit of the desire and ability to sacrifice what we want now for what we want eventually.

The challenge is not to manage time, but to manage ourselves.

Once you have a clear picture of your priorities - that is values, goals, and high leverage activities - organize around them.

Seek to understand rather than be understood.

If I really want to improve my situation, I can work on the one thing over which I have control - myself.

Fundamentally, we are a product of choice, not nature (genes) or nurture (upbringing, environment).

Remember, technology is a great servant, but a terrible master.

Life is a mission, not a career.

Treat them all the same by treating them differently.

The key to motivation is motive. It's the why. It's the deeper yes! burning inside that makes it easier to say no to the less important.

The ability to subordinate an impulse to a value is the essence of the proactive person.

Doing the right things for the right reason in the right way is the key to Quality of Life!

When air is charged with emotions, an attempt to teach is often perceived as a form of judgment and rejection.

Everyone has values; even criminal gangs have values. Values govern people's behavior but principles govern the consequences of those behaviors.

In the last analysis, what we are communicates far more eloquently than anything we say or do.

To Retain those who are present, be loyal to those who are absent.

Live, love, laugh, leave a legacy.

The best way to develop courage is to set a goal and achieve it, make a promise and keep it.

Involve people in the problem and work out the solution together.

Nothing tastes as good as thin feels.

Reactive people... are often affected by their physical environment. They find external sources to blame for their behavior.

It's easy to say ''no!'' when there's a deeper ''yes!'' burning inside.

To ignore the unexpected (even if it were possible) would be to live without opportunity, spontaneity, and the rich moments of which "life" is made.

Trust is the highest form of human motivation.

You can't have the fruits without the roots.

Effective people are not problem-minded; they're opportunity minded. They feed opportunities and starve problems.

One thing's for sure. If we keep doing what we're doing, we're going to keep getting what we're getting. One definition of insanity is to keep doing the same thing and expect different results.

An empowered organization is one in which individuals have the knowledge, skill, desire, and opportunity to personally succeed in a way that leads to collective organizational success.

Inspire (from the Latin inspirare) means to breathe life into another.

The more people train their counsciousness, the more sensitivie they are to it. It's like you had your own voice coming to you.

People don't listen to understand. They listen to reply. The collective monologue is everyone talking and no one listening.

I can change. I can live out of my imagination instead of my memory. I can tie myself to my limitless potential instead of my limiting past

Begin each day with the blueprint of my deepest values FIRMLY in mind then when challenges come, make decisions BASED on those values.

Live the law of love. We encourage obedience to the laws of life when we live the laws of love.

Each of us tends to think we see things as they are, that we are objective. But this is not the case. We see the world, not as it is, but as we are - or as we are conditioned to see it.

One thing about trust is that everyone's for it.

Peace of counscious is greater than peace of mind. Peace of mind is more externally oriented. Peace of consciousness is when you know you have been honest in all your business dealings.

Sometimes poor behavior is simply bad execution of good intent.

Success in one role can't justify failure in another.

Independent thinking alone is not suited to interdependent reality.

Principles are guidelines for human conduct that are proven to have enduring, permanent value.

My behavior is a product of my own conscious choices based on principles, rather than a product of my conditions, based on feelings.

What you see often depends on what you are looking for.

If we want to make a change in our lives, we should first focus on our personal attitudes and behaviors.