Habit 1: Be Proactive

The first, and arguabley the most important habit, is being proactive. It is outlined simply as taking responsibility for your life. Sean Covey goes on to say that this habit must be grasped in order to move on to tackle the other sucessful habits.

This chapter goes on to discuss and explore several key traits to being proactive. The first of which is we have the choice to be proactive or Reactive. he says, "proactive people make choices based on values. They think before they act. They recognize they can't control everything that happens to them, but thye can control what they do about it"(pg 49).

Covey goes on to describe several possible scenarios in which people were either proactive or reactive. I am not totally sure whether or not these scenarios were made up, but he claims that these were true stories from real teens. They are very applicable to my teenage life, and I would wager to say they would also be applicable to others. It goes back to the friendly style in which the book was written. It doesent feel like a high and mighty adult talking down to you, but more of older and wiser friend.

One factor that Covey says is an indicator for whether or not people are reactive or proactive is their everyday language. Reactive language includes phrases such as, "I'll try, Thats just the way I am, There's nothing I can do, I have to, I can't, You Ruined my day". In contrast, proactive language is "Ill do it, I can do better than that, Lets look at all our options, I choose to, Theres gotta be a way, and Im not going to let you bad mood rub off on me" (Pg 51).

Covey makes analogies that are also very helpful. He says that a reactive person is like a soda can. He says that reactive people make decisions on impulse. Just like a soda can, when they are shaken up, they explode. Proactive people are like water, shake them up and they are fine. They are cool and collected, and in control of their actions.

More points he makes are how reactive people tend to see themselves as "victims", meaning it is always someone elses fault. He says that traits of reactive people include "are easily offended, blame others, get angry and say things they later regret, whine and complain, wait for things to happen to them, and change only when they have to" (pg 53)

The key to this book is applying what you read to yourslef. When I read this part of the book, I realized that I have alot of these reactive traits. I am not a mass murderer or rapist or anything like that, but i certainly fit the bill for many of these attributes. With this in mind, I will try to apply some of these traits to myself:

Proactive people: Are not easily offended, take responsibility for their choices, think before they actm bounce back when something bad happens, always find a way to make it happen, and focus on things they can do something about, and dont worry about things they cant" (pg 53)

If their is one thing that i will do with this book, it is certainly apply the issues and things that most apply to me. The funny thing that i am noticing is that , the more i read this, the more and more of this stuff actually applies to me. Covey really knew what he was getting into when he wrote this.

The most important thing to remember, I think, when trying to be proactive, is the Choice is yours

7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens, By Sean Covey

This book, the 7 habits of highly effective teens, is very useful. It is written with a style that allows me to be able to relate to what it is saying, and it is easy to apply to your own life. It seperates, obviously, the 7 habits of effective teens. These habits are all outlined and discussed within the pages of this book. They must be understood and completed in this order. They are
1. Be proactive
2. Begin with end in Mind
3. Put First things first
4. Think win-win
5. Seek first to Understand, Then to Be understood
6. Synergize
7. Sharpen the saw

some of these do not make sense just reading them. The contents of this book will explore these 7 topics and how when these habits are applied lead to sucess and happier life for a teenager. This book will ideally begin to outline a possible format for leadership camp this summer, which is my final application. I am looking forward to embarking on this reading journey!