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This sweeping text opens with the author recounting how human civilization and its economies have progressed through a series of ages:
- The Hunting and Gathering Age
- The Agricultural Age
- The Industrial Age
- The Information and Knowledge Age
The author argues that as our global economy becomes increasingly reliant on the knowledge worker, civilization will enter a fifth age:
Since the author's most notable bestseller, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, saw its initial publication in 1990, the world has become increasingly global in commerce and culture. The Internet and other technological marvels have accelerated the need for quick adaptability, independent thinking and smoothly transacted plans across cultures.
Unfortunately, many of today's management methods rely on outmoded paradigms remaining from the Industrial Age such as the treatment of people as things, heavy-handed top-down directives, and other techniques that fail in the Information and Knowledge Age. Such elitist methods may have worked in the Industrial Age, but they limit human potential in the Information and Knowledge Age and diametrically oppose the needs of economies in the emerging Age of Wisdom. Leaders who learn deeper principles of human being can unleash the full potential of themselves and all those around them. This book seeks to articulate those principles in a fashion that the reader can readily grasp and employ.
What is the Eighth Habit? According to the author, this new habit empowers those who have mastered the seven habits he articulated in 1990 to move "from effectiveness to greatness":
- Find your voice and inspire others to find theirs.
Virtues of This Book
The author packs this book with much inductive evidence to support his assertions, not just about the Eighth Habit, but about his supplemental leadership and management principles as well. He effectively employs both well-researched studies and illustrative anecdotes to convey his ideas to the reader. He shows a profound respect for the individual and for independent reasoning, initiative and action. He suggests that the "Age of Wisdom" we find ourselves entering will demand much more personal liberty of thought and action in the workplace, and he shows how organizations of all sizes can implement those freedom-oriented principles now. He contends that the most productive actions integrate across all four components of human being: mind, emotions, body and spirit. Objectivists will find little with which to disagree regarding the overall gist of this text.
Vices of This Book
Unfortunately, as with so many books, this one uses terms like sacrifice where Objectivists would use the term investiture. The author contends that sacrifice "really means giving up something good for something better." Objectivists would no doubt disagree.
More to the point, what exactly constitutes an option as "good" or "better"? While the book makes little mention of religion, opting instead to identify its core principles as "natural laws," the reader should understand that the meanings of these key terms depend entirely upon the reader's own philosophy. Hence, a devout Christian will consider forfeiting sexual pleasure for the sake of eternal salvation as a "non-sacrifice" by the author's own definition, while a consistent Objectivist would most assuredly label this choice as a profound "sacrifice."
In other words, while a fully secular interpretation of the text will largely though not entirely coincide with Objectivism, religionists can also interpret it in ways that make them more effective at actualizing their harmful ideas on Earth. The author's favorable quotations of mystics like C.S. Lewis, even when those quotations have merit, only further this risk of abuse. Fortunately, the author's focus remains on worldly benefits of his principles, thus keeping the overall theme secular.
Other possible objections include the author's downright faithful belief that Habit 4, Think Win-Win, will consistently allow people with apparent conflicts of interest to reach successful third alternative resolutions. Given the history of strife associated with Objectivism, along with its unyielding dedication to core principles, this proposition will likely raise hackles of skepticism among Objectivist readers. However, a careful reading will show that the author admits that sometimes only a "no deal" option can arise from certain irreconcilable differences.
Conclusion
Organizations that want to progress with the full potential of all participants actualized will benefit from applying the ideas in this book. With grounding in Objectivist principles, a leader can empower himself and his troops to employ these ideas to great efficacy. As SOLO and other Objectivist associations originate, they will need proven leadership and management principles and strategies for growth, survival and flourishing. This book will serve that worthy mission honorably. |
The Eighth Habit: From Effectiveness to Greatness by Steven R. Covey
