So one of my teachers that teaches family relations for a college course wants groups of students to read certian books and then do a class presentation on the book they read. My group got stephen covey's 7 habits of highly effective families. Stephen covey has a doctorates in religious studies from BYU and mba and ba in business. I want to hear from people who have read his books for ideas about which fallacies to name to my to my teacher.

I haven't read the book but I had Steven Covey in the BYU MBA program or kind of. I saw him 2 times during the semester. He was always gone making money and his TA's ran the course. I was very disappointed with his lack of involvement

I don't know about particular fallacies, however, since this is a college class, I would start with the utter lack of support for any of his 7 "habits." This book sounds like another spin-off of his 7 habits series. Like the chicken soup for the this soul and that soul, etc. A college class on family relations should not be teaching out of self-help, motivational speech books. Each "habit" should be clinically documented as being a "habit" that's relevent to some identifiable issue of family relation. I doubt any of it is defined will enough to withstand scrutiny. Just the suggestion that there are exactly 7 "habits"--how convenient for Covey's franchise!--tells you this isn't real. Check the bibliography first.

I read that book on a long flight several years ago.
When I got to the other end of my flight I dropped it in the nearest garbage can.

It's a torturous, joyless way to live imo. I don't remember the details, but I do remember feeling hopeless and depressed after I read it. I remember thinking that I would despise being around anyone that was living the way he suggested. Your schedule is your God, human feelings and other people be damned!

The guy sitting next to me on the plane made a comment. I don't recall exactly word for word, but it was something like, Oh you're reading up on how to make your life miserable and anxiety ridden.

EXACTLY!

SHAM- Self Help Actualization Movement

Stephen Covey is no longer with the living. He made a lot of money selling a gimmick. Died in secrecy in Idaho Falls after an apparent ski accident? (But he had also been diagnosed with cancer.) His son even got in on the act of writing books. I never met jr., however, some acquintances of mine had a run in with him and his "lovely" wife at a SLC restaurant some years ago. By his behavior, the book was probably ghost written.

He bumped his head after falling off of a bicycle.

That is correct. It was an outdoor's accident on a bike. I live in ski country, I incorrectly remembered it being on the slopes.

I meant quarterback Covey at the restaurant. I lived in Provo during the quarterback Covey years. The stories of him, and his wife, and their public behavior are stuff of legends.

He did write it himself - but it wasn't exactly good writing.
Majority of his ideas came from years of reading what others had to say on "self help" - so many not original

But that said, he knew how to glean from the literature and put it into some of his own words

His Editor tried to clean up the language before the book got republished a second time, but it was difficult to do because I understand Covey himself would not allow many changes and this became an exercise in frustration, so I was told.

I think it's interesting how both Covey and Huntsman Sr. did well in business due to both belonging to "worldly" fraternities - when everything I was taught while growing up Mormon screamed stay away from any org that wasn't Mormon. Just goes to show that following Mormonism 100% does not reap great financial/career benefits

I had an employer that embraced the "Habits" as the management style du jour. He had all managers and senior employees read it. I am a cynic and read it that way. Here's a thing or two I took away.

He placed "#5: Seek First to Understand" after "#4: Seek Win / Win". If you do not yet have an understanding of the other person's perspective how can you find a win/win solution? To me it was just another "we will determine what's best for you" management style. And I took away the opinion that his definition of win is solely money, and Covey was a winner in that regard.

Thanks helped alot with my thoughts and idea s

I haven't read the book, but I read the summary of each habit on his website and it seems pretty spot-on to me. Is it a poor representation of the book?