What is constant in your life? What are things you know will always be a part of your life?

Dr. Stephen Covey states life has three constants: Change, Principles, and Choices.

Change - Change is a given. Nothing lasts forever. If things aren't changing, they grow stagnant, and stagnant things eventually die. While most people don't like change, we know the only way to improve and get better is to step outside our comfort zones and do things that make us uncomfortable. Regardless of the outcome of engaging in those new experiences, we can't help but be changed. 

From the time we are born until we die, our minds, bodies, and the world are constantly in flux. Growth and progress are the by-products of change.

Principles - Principles are the fundamental truths and values that are foundational in our lives. Many young people today believe that their lives, especially their education in high school and college, should be "safe." 

However, that isn't what learning is about. Education should be an opportunity for you to challenge your truths and values. It should allow you to be exposed to different beliefs and ideas so you can contemplate what those mean in your life. To grow and develop, you must expand your knowledge and possibly even lose your innocence.

Choices - You are the product of your choices. Every choice, good or bad, has brought you to where you are today. When you were little, many of your choices were made for you. Some of those choices may not have been good for you. Many of those choices were not your fault, but they are your responsibility. They are your responsibility to learn from and improve upon.

Choices empower us to improve and shape our lives. Depending on your choices, you can have more control over your life and how you spend your time. While choices allow us to control our lives, we know that change will always put us in a situation where we must make new choices. 

Life can be chaotic and complex. It comes packed with twists and turns we never expected or wanted. But by embracing the change, making decisions based on our principles, and engaging in thoughtful choices, we can live the purposes we were born to accomplish.

Please leave me a comment about your thoughts on the three constants in life: change, principles, and choices. Your opinions and perspectives are valuable, and I’d appreciate hearing from you. 

What habits do you have that make you highly effective in your job, in your relationships, and life?

Seven years after I graduated from college, Dr. Stephen R. Covey published his acclaimed self-help book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. (Covey, Stephen R. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons In Personal Change. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1989.) 

In the book, Covey describes seven habits we should all possess to achieve results based on character ethics when determining our value system.  

The habits Covey details are:

1. Be Proactive - Take personal responsibility for the good and bad experiences that happen in your life and how you choose to react to them. 

2. Begin With The End In Mind - Develop a personal mission statement based on your principles and values to guide you to your purpose.

3. Put First Things First - Understand and focus your efforts on what is most urgent and vital based on your principles and values.

4. Think Win-Win - Value the people in your life by seeking agreements and arrangements where everyone benefits.

5. Seek First To Understand, Then To Be Understood - Use empathy to help understand (not necessarily agree) other people's values and where they are coming from.

6. Synergize - Combine the skills, values, and efforts of others to accomplish more than you could have done alone.

7. Sharpen The Saw - A person should constantly look to improve the mind, body, and spirit by engaging in activities that help the person grow and develop as a whole.  

Covey intends the first three habits as a means of achieving independence, the next three as a means of attaining interdependence, and the seventh habit as a way to maintain the other habits.

Leave me a comment about your thoughts on how these seven habits could benefit your life. Your opinions and perspective are important, and I'd enjoy hearing from you.