Farewell to Steven Covey

Steven Covey died on July 16, 2012 following a bicycle accident. He was 79 years old. I remember fondly meeting him at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel in Bahrain following his workshop with our management team at Zain. I remember shaking his hand and thanking him for his wise counsel. 

 Covey was well-known all over the world for "The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People" which sold more than 20 million copies. He argued successfully that personal character, purpose and self-discipline mattered a great deal. I still carry in my wallet a business card (a gift from his organization) summarizing on one side the 4 Imperatives of Great Leaders: Clarify purpose, Align Systems, Unleash Talent and Inspire Trust, and on the other, the three leadership conversations: Affirm worth and potential, Be a source of help, Clarify expectations and accountabilities. 

 I admired his exemplary life. He was a great scholar, successful entrepreneur, and a respected family patriarch. He walked the talk -- a feat worth celebrating and imitating. He indeed practiced what he preached -- a deed that often escapes most of us. He also helped confirm my notion that the power of any religion rests on its ability to influence and, indeed, become a way of life. There is no doubt that his Mormon religion contributed to his philosophy of life. His seven habits are, more or less, the distillation on Mormon teachings. 

 The seven habits will be his enduring legacy: 

1. Be proactive. 

2. Begin with the end in mind. 

3. Put first things first. 

4. Think win-win. 

5. Seek to understand, to be understood. 

6. Synergize -- learn to work with others for mutual benefit. 

7. Sharpen the saw -- keep yourself physically, mentally and spiritually refreshed. 

Covey adopted these principles to the family later in life by publishing the "Seven Habits of Highly Effective Families". He had 9 children and 52 grandchildren, who revered him and admired his righteous life style. He was disappointed to learn that his belief that highly effective people would result in highly effective businesses did not prove to be true. 

We have learned that it is one thing to be effective as individuals and a completely different thing being successful as a company. His own experience at FranklinCovey proved that. 

I have tried to adopt the seven habits to my own life and I report that, whenever I do, they help me a great deal. But, I have not been successful in applying all of them. Two habits that I have not been able to fully apply are number 5 -- seek to be understood, and number 7 -- keeping myself refreshed physically and spiritually. But I remain committed to keep trying. 

 We mourn his passing, and we celebrate his many contributions to mankind.