The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens

So, not to long after my parents' divorce and my dad's remarriage, my stepsister, sister and me were in the throws of teenager-hood. When I look back, I am really surprised my dad and stepmom lived to tell the tale and be sane people. However, I distinctly remember one Christmas (I was maybe 14) when we all received The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens. A hint, perhaps?

Being an avid reader, I did read the book. The habits made sense: be proactive; begin with the end in mind; put first things first; think win-win; seek first to understand, then to be understood; synergize; and sharpen the saw. When I look back at them today, they still make sense. At work, if I am not constantly being proactive I am not doing my job to the best of my abilities. Actually, all of them can be applied to work and are generally good lessons.

But to my personal life, I am starting to see limitations. For example: begin with the end in mind. Now, let's play that out in a relationship. Say a girl wants to get married. Well, that end is going to scare off 99.9% of her potential suitors. Just to be clear, that's not me, but I've seen girls come at relationships from this approach. Think win-win? Yes. But sometimes in our efforts to think positively, we neglect to acknowledge to ourselves the things that we have lost and the disappointments suffered. Sometimes that needs to be acknowledged before you can step forward. So my point today is balance the cookie-cutter advice with an ability to live in the moment and be fully present. That is something I need to do a better job reminding myself of. An 8th habit, perhaps?