Habit 7 is taking the time to sharpen the saw. By renewing the four dimensions of your nature - physical, spiritual, mental and social/emotional, you can work more quickly and effortlessly. To do this, we must be proactive. This is a Quadrant II (important, not urgent) activity that must be acted on. It's at the center of our Circle of Influence, so we must do it for ourselves.

It is futile to put personality ahead of character, to try to improve relationships with others before improving ourselves.

I believe that correct principles are natural laws, and that God, the Creator and Father of us all, is the source of them, and also the source of our conscience. I believe that to the degree people live by this inspired conscience, they will grow to fulfill their natures; to the degree that they do not, they will not rise above the animal plane.

Only after we can learn to forgive ourselves can we accept others as they are because we don't feel threatened by anything about them which is better than us.

When you make a commitment to yourself, do so with the clear understanding that you're pledging your integrity.

Effective people do two things: they strive to do excellent work, and they prioritize.

We exhaust ourselves more from the tension and the consequences of internal disharmony than from hard, unremitting work.