Character ethics matter - Integrity, Humility, Fidelity, Temperance, Courage, Justice, Patience, Industry, Simplicity, Modesty, and the Golden Rule.
Values are what people remember – “what you are shouts so loudly in my ears that I cannot hear what you say.”
“For every thousand hacking at the leaves of evil, there is one striking at the root.” Prefer subtance over style.
We have the ability to think about ourselves through the lens of another being. We have to think about how our eprceptions interact with how we see ourselves, and align them with a healthy perception of ourself.
Frankl, even as he was captured by the Nazis, realized that he was in control of his self-awareness, even as he had no control of everything else.
The first habit is to be proactive: to take responsibility. Reactive people react to their environment. Proactive epople are driven by their internal values and nothing else.
Envision what you want in the future, so you can work and plan towards it. Remember your values as you make decisions, since you want to fulfill your values while making decisions.
Follow this table Ruthlessly:
| Urgent | Not Urgent | |
|---|---|---|
| Important | Do | Plan |
| Not Important | Delegate | Eliminate |
Genuine feelings for mutually beneficial solutions should be prioritized over solutions where one party wins a lot and one party wins nothing.
It’s important to resolve conflict by allowing both parties to win a little bit at a time.
Listen first and understand before seeking to be understood. The Greeks characterized this in these values:
Follow this order of understanding ruthlessly.
Set goals that combine the strengths of people. Positive teamwork allows teams to accomplish more than if they were a separate group. The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.
Always continuously improve – find ways to judge less, and care more – to improve in both technical and interpersonal ways, and learn something new, to avoid stagnation.