How to describe the sense I felt hearing Stephen Covey's opening message on the cd of his 2004 book, The 8th Habit? The eighth habit builds on the original seven, so I was expecting something that deeply connected. Hadn't a clue what it was. Where would he go? Intentionally, I didn't read any reviews or even author's blurbs - just bought it (full price!).
It's turning out to be a recap of the original seven, but taking them another step to something left out of the first - using them to find your voice, to help others find theirs. Moving deeper into it, I will be surprised if it goes far beyond being a recap of the earlier work, with a tip of the hat to some of the messages developed by others inspired by Dr. Covey - one last shot at getting his message across, with the added kick in the pants to pull it all together then get out & LIVE it.
Dr. Covey's died in 2012, after transforming countless lives, including mine. I listened to him read The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People as I drove from Philadelphia to my first women's retreat, outside Woodstock, NY. Remember buying it at the Willow Grove Barnes & Noble, picking it up as something to listen to on the long ride. No idea what it was all about - looked promising.
Sweet serendipity, listening to the cassette tape - heard the last line as I turned into my destination's driveway - before experiencing the weekend. I didn't expect to see my sister there & she certainly didn't expect to see me. There was a moment when Mim went up to bed early, around 10:00 p.m., and my automatic response was to think, "Oh, she's leaving because of me," my typical assumption. But then a voice kicked in with, "Or not." What a surprise! Even more amazing, I accepted what it said as true!
Confession - after listening to the book last night, getting ready to write this posting, I slipped over to Amazon to read some of the many reviews. Glad I did. Not because of any great insight any of them gave, pro or con, but because of an unexpected insight they provided. Most of the reviews were written when the book first came out, over ten years ago. A common thread of criticism was how it's more ponderous than previous Covey books,a bit of a slog to get through, not as sprightly & highly readable.
Glad I read that before hearing more, because it will help me appreciate that this is an inspirational teacher's last great lesson. How many of us experienced magical teachers in the last years of their career, when they still touched & changed their students' lives, but without some of the verve of earlier years. The change didn't make them less - in most cases, it made their lessons deeper, richer.
Dr. Covey clearly wanted to help his readers find something contained in the earlier books, but not spelled out - the importance of finding our individual voice & helping others find theirs. The cd might turn out to be a bit ponderous, long & repetitious, but bring it on. The book was Dr. Covey's last great opportunity to share an important message.
Here I am, committed to doing the very thing he opens with - finding my voice, helping others of all ages find or reclaim theirs. As I listen, will be appreciative of an exceptional teacher delivering his last lesson.
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