First Things First Every Day: Because Where You're Headed Is More Important Than How Fast You're Going

by Stephen R. Covey, A. Roger Merrill (Introduction), Rebecca R. Merrill

I'm getting more done in less time, but where are the rich relationships, the inner peace, the balance, the confidence that I'm doing what matters most and doing it well?

Does this nagging question haunt you, even when you feel you are being your most efficient? If so, First Things First can help you understand why we so often prioritize things that are unimportant to both our larger goals and our inner happiness. From the author that brought you the New York Times bestseller The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People comes a guide to building your work on the principles of effectiveness so that your life can spent cultivating genuine relationships, investing in pursuits you enjoy, and achieving balance in both your personal and professional lives.

In First Things First , Stephen M. R. Covey advocates categorizing tasks by urgency and importance so that you can focus on what actually needs to be done in the limited amount of time that you have. Using personal examples and insight from years of business experience, he argues for a new way of looking at your “to-do” list. Rather than offering you another clock, First Things First provides you with a compass, because where you're headed is more important than how fast you're going.

Genres: Self Help, Personal Development, Nonfiction, Inspirational, Audiobook, Business, Spirituality

Audio CD

First published January 1, 1990

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads database.

Stephen Richards Covey was an American educator, author, businessman, and speaker. His most popular book is The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People. His other books include First Things First, Principle-Centered Leadership, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Families, The 8th Habit, and The Leader In Me: How Schools and Parents Around the World Are Inspiring Greatness, One Child at a Time. In 1996, Time magazine named him one of the 25 most influential people. He was a professor at the Jon M. Huntsman School of Business at Utah State University (USU) at the time of his death.

Reviews

[Karl · Rating 3 out of 5]

This won’t be a very lengthy review because, quite frankly, I did not discover a great deal in this book.

Don’t get me wrong, I think Stephen Covey has written some popular and powerful books, and I like the idea of having daily, empowering thoughts, but many of the thoughts in this book seem fragmented and incomplete. Perhaps the intention was to provide a simple sentence and have the reader refer to “First Things First” while reading the daily thought (each thought is accompanied by a page number from “First Things First”); however, I think it defeats the purpose of having a pocket-sized inspirational book if you have to schlep the bigger book at the same time.

On a positive note, I do appreciate some of the wisdom contained in this book, including:
1) “Frustration is largely a degree of expectation.”
2) “If we know how to listen to our own heart, we can listen to the hearts of others.”
3) “There is so much we can do to render service, to make a difference in the world—no matter how big or small our Circle of Influence.”

If you are familiar with “First Things First” and you want to supplement that information with this book, it might be worthwhile. For those readers who are not familiar with the full-sized book from which these daily thoughts are derived, I think you will find this book lacking in substance.

[Sanggojae · Rating 3 out of 5]

I borrowed this book from my local library so I didn't have the luxury of reading a thought a day for an entire year. Although this book has valuable advice I would suggest reading his previous books
( something I haven't done as yet) Principle-Centered Leadership and First Things First before getting this book in order to get the full value out of it.

[Rebekka Istrail · Rating 4 out of 5]

A brief reflection each day. Covey has a message worth mulling over.

For example: "The power of transcendent vision is greater than the power of the scripting deep inside the human personality, and it subordinates it, submerges it, until the whole personality is reorganized in accomplishment of that vision."

[Sophie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Glorified page-a-day calendar. And yes, I know I complained that First Things First: To Live, to Love, to Learn, to Leave a Legacy needed a strong editor... but in my opinion this was too condensed. An excerpt a day does not a book make.

[Sara · Rating 3 out of 5]

Here's another daily reader, this time from First Things First. It serves its purpose, to remind you of concepts that you've already read in the book.

[The Docta · Rating 4 out of 5]

Probably serve better as at daily calendar but there were definitely a few gold nuggets in it that were not in the First Things First book or at least much more powerfully stated so they stood out.

[Norhasanin]

Bought this as a 2nd hand book.. 50 cents... will read it...

[Sharron · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one gets re-read, a page a day, nearly every year.

[Saeed Khan]

XGDGTR