So, about 26 years after being handed the book, I've finally read the first chapter of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. I'm hoping that this exercise will bring me closer to my goal of being a better human being to all concerned and for the world, and vaguely (honestly, just vaguely, for now), for God.
So one of the exercises I'll need to do for the first chapter is to summarise what I've learnt. Without looking at the book again, here goes.
(1) Proactivity is the active choice over how to respond to a given stimuli in accordance with one's value system or principles. It is the opposite of Reactivity and the product of being "response-able" (responsible) for one's own decisions and actions.
(2) The tool of Proactivity that we have is our attitude. We control our attitudes to events and thus avoid having those events control us and are able to rise above circumstance.
(3) Thus Proactivity renders us free agents, not "determined" by our environments, circumstances or by the actions and views of others.
(4) A product of exercising Proactivity is becoming influential over more areas in our lives. We all have areas of concern (everything you think about and wanna be able to control or be involved with) and areas of influence (areas you could actually control even if only somewhat). The former are self-explanatory; the latter comprise only things we believe we can change by being a certain way and having that way of being guide our actions.
NOTE: This entry was probably writte much earlier than it was published. I believe it could've happened while I was waiting for my daughter Sasha to be born, or shortly after she was born, on 14 January 2018. It seems strange that she wasn't mentioned as one of my most immediate concerns. She is now, on the 2 of April 2020, a bouncing beautiful dynamite girl.
So one of the exercises I'll need to do for the first chapter is to summarise what I've learnt. Without looking at the book again, here goes.
(1) Proactivity is the active choice over how to respond to a given stimuli in accordance with one's value system or principles. It is the opposite of Reactivity and the product of being "response-able" (responsible) for one's own decisions and actions.
(2) The tool of Proactivity that we have is our attitude. We control our attitudes to events and thus avoid having those events control us and are able to rise above circumstance.
(3) Thus Proactivity renders us free agents, not "determined" by our environments, circumstances or by the actions and views of others.
(4) A product of exercising Proactivity is becoming influential over more areas in our lives. We all have areas of concern (everything you think about and wanna be able to control or be involved with) and areas of influence (areas you could actually control even if only somewhat). The former are self-explanatory; the latter comprise only things we believe we can change by being a certain way and having that way of being guide our actions.
So what goes into LMN's Circle of Concern?
Solomon's everyday wellbeing and future
Quality of relationship with SBR
Quality of treatment and relationship with parents (fillial piety and genuine emotional need)
My body
My health
SBR's health
My parents' health
My household including staff
My image/ reputation
The treatment of animals in food production
My own learning and self-improvement (must examine why this is a concern. Is it a true concern?)
My career (job/business/vocation)
SG politics
Righting myself with God
Helping out girls/babies in trouble
Single mothers' treatment by law
How technology is changing us and the way we view the world and learn
The environment in general
Sustainable consumption or how humans are ruining the earth
[ NOTE: Should do a side exercise and write down how my time is actually allocated among the different activities I already engage in today and see where my preferences may lie.]
It appears that determining my Circle of Influence may be fairly simple and require few words.
The answer is all of the above.
Let's prioritize then shall we?
Top Prios
Solomon's everyday wellbeing and future
Quality of relationship with SBR
Quality of treatment and relationship with parents (fillial piety and genuine emotional need)
My career
My image/ reputation
My body
Secondary Prios
My health
SBR's health
My parents' health
My household including staff
My own learning and self-improvement (must examine why this is a concern. Is it a true concern?)
Secondary 2 Prios
The treatment of animals in food production
Righting myself with God
Helping out girls/babies in trouble
The environment in general
Sustainable consumption or how humans are ruining the earth
Last Prios
SG politics
How technology is changing us and the way we view the world and learn
Single mothers' treatment by law
What do we do now?
