[phylofx]

Thanks for summarizing the 7 principles here. I am familiar with the book as well. However, I am not sure if I should envy or pity the people who feel their lives so incredibly enriched by them, by the majority of accounts almost bordering on the religious. For myself, they are too obvious, shallow and trivial to really have that positive effect that apparently so many are experiencing.

[mmsmatt]

I'll try to provide a secular account here ;)

The principles are obvious, and Covey states this in his appendix of the Kindle edition. He claims credit only for packaging them in an accessible way.

7 Habits was effective for me because I answered the questions it posed throughout the text. The book presented a self-evident principle, such as "Put First Things First", then forced me to consider a dozen ways I could implement it. Then, all the positive effects those implementations would bring. I would try to put one of these ideas into practice each day I read. Repeat for 6 more principles.

I put in a good deal of effort and got out a framework that slowly increased my output at work, my understanding at home, and my patience under stress.

No road to Damascus here, just compounding interest over the months since I finished the book. I recommend it based on that.

[impendia]

When I was 25 or so, I realized that just because someone told me to do something in a loud, assertive voice, didn't mean I had to do it. I didn't even have to explain myself! I could just not do as I was told.

By the time most people get to 25, this is mind-blowingly obvious. Yet for me it was profound...

[jasonshen]

Most "profound truths" are fairly simple. But it's living those truths in your daily life that make them powerful. It's also about what you first encounter. I read 7 Habits when I was 13. I suspect if I had read it when I was 23, I would have had a different opinion of the book's insightfulness.