7 habits of highly effective people

habit 1: be proactive
"Habit 1 is the key to unlocking all other habits and thats why it comes first. it says,'I am the captain of my life. I can choose my attitude. I'm responsible for my own happiness or unhappiness. I am in the driver's seat of my destiny, not just a passenger.'"

"Recast your current problems into proactive goals." Suze Orman

being proactive means you advance and make good from bad. you don't react to your problem you find a way to make the problem good. a proactive person is responsible and strong. they are people that don't make excuses. they rather solve a problem than stay stuck on it contemplating how it happened. they take their own course. they don't follow any crowd. they are focused and mind their own business. success is what a proactive person aims for. being proactive means you're building your success without relying on anyone else.

habit 2: begin with the end in mind

"control your own destiny or someone else will."-Jack Welch

"The bird is powered by its own life and by its motivation."-A. P. J. Abdul Kalam

this habit is good to have because you stay focused on what your ultimate goal is. when you don't know what you want you just go day by day making decisions that you don't know what they will lead up to. it may not be what you were aiming for or it could happen that you never find out what you were aiming for. so living with a goal, sticking to it, and keeping your vision for what you want in the end is a good habit. keeping the end in mind is like being given a marshmallow, told that if you wait a while without eating the first marshmallow you will be given a second one. this is anticipated happiness. which in the end tastes so much better.

habit 3: put first things first

"organize and execute around priorities."

“A year from now you may wish you had started today.” - karen lamb

this habit is about not procrastinating and setting priorities. if someone puts you second. you arent important. and by yourself putting someone second, they dont matter to you. the same principle applies to friendships and hobbies. also, homework and school, job and all of those should be your number one's. after youre done with the most important you cuold enjoy free time for having fun or yourself.  although priorities are first, this shouldnt stop you from caring about yourself. getting caught up in the craziness of your schedule sucks. 
habit 4: Think-Win-Win
"Think win-win or no deal"
“It's the perfect definition of a settlement. Both parties didn't get what they wanted”-David Greffen

This habit means that you're going to think about the situation and make an even deal or make the situation so that no one looses. this takes a lot of compromise. the quote means that both parties got even halves and since one didn't win the other one didn't. it doesn't mean necessarily that you will win every time it means you will find a middle ground to what you want. compromising with the other person.
habit 5: Seek first to understand, then to be understood
"diagnose before you prescribe"

"Be a good listener. Your ears will never get you in trouble."— Frank Tyger

this means that you need to understand what they're telling you before responding to it. i quoted frank tyger because talking to much always gets you in trouble. whether you're simply talking to much, not enough, or about something youre not supposed to talk about. on the other hand like he states, listening never gets you in trouble. it could only make you a wiser smarter person. Listening is always good. don't respond before you know what they are asking.

habit 6: Synergize
"The whole is greater than the sum of its parts (1+1=3)"

"Alone we are smart. together we are brilliant"- Steven Anderson
synergizing means working together makes a better outcome. so instead of 1+1 making 2 it makes 3. meaning more effort and cooperation . like the big dog helping the small dog reach the sink. it is all about team work to reach the main goal.the quote by Steven Anderson explains this explicitly by saying that two smart people working together makes them both brilliant.
habit 7: Sharpen the saw
four dimensions of self-renewal: physical, mental, spiritual, social / emotional
 "Give me six hours to chop down a tree and I will spend the first four sharpening the axe"
I think that you should always be yourself and dont let anyone control you. The best you is being able to understand and accept yourself on how you look and act. Don't feel sad because you're not like the others but instead embrace that you're different.  Be grateful of what you have and dont let judgment get to you.
reflection: i think the seven habits are helpful to become effective and productive person. you will be more attentive and on task. i wish they were study tips. i commit myself to being a person that synergizes. one thing i need to work on is prioritizing. i need to put first things first. things that dont matter so much should not even be done. i should use all my time and energy on things i need to do that will help me further along in my future. instead of thinking of the now which ends as soon as next and future comes along. theres consequences for everything good or positive and i need to be mindful of it.

three fundamental techniques for handling people

technique 1: don't criticize, condemn or complain
"If you want to gather honey, don't kick over the beehive."
once someone feels like they are being criticized they will stop looking for advice from you. making someone feel welcomed with you will make them want to talk to you. the keyword is embrace. make someone feel embraced even with all their flaws and extra baggage. in the quote we could see that together we could help each other fly.

We are each of us angels with only one wing, and we can only fly by embracing one another.

Luciano De Crescenzo

technique 2: give honest and sincere appreciation
"The big secret in dealing with people"

"One of the most sincere forms of respect is actually listening to what another has to say."-Bryant H. McGill
giving people honest opinions make them want to respect you. they respect honesty and want acceptance from you. like in the quote, people want to be heard and be given back honesty. being untruthful to someone is disrespectful because you're letting them look dumb in front of others. like letting your best friend wear an outfit that is ridiculous instead of telling her the truth. when she finally realizes how dumb she looked she will blame you for letting her look like that and not being truthful.








technique 3: Arouse in the other person an eager want
"He who can do this has the whole world to him. He who cannot, walks a lonely way."
"The more you adapt, the more interesting you are." -Martha Stewart
when youre an interesting person people want to talk to you. they want to hear what you have to say and what you have done. being interesting and keeping people eager is essential because they are going to want to keep talking to you. they are going to find you more complex and want to maintain a friendship with you. when youre getting a job and your interviewer is fascinated with what you have to say and offer, you will get the job. you want someone to look at you like sponge bob. ready for the day.  

reflection:
i believe that these techniques will work with difficult people. i think that not only difficult people but also with new people that you meet. how to get new coworkers to like you or at least get along with them. applying these techniques can help your social life. these will really work. applying this will work any environment.

school break
During my Christmas break i didn't do much. i woke up early everyday to go to practice. i went out with my cousins to the movies. we saw a 007 movie. it was pretty boring and i fell asleep. i also went to LA live with my boyfriend. we went on the metro. it was fun because it was my first time going there. i also had a job interview at chipotle. it went okay but another girl did even better and she got the job. for Christmas i was at my godmothers house and i was hanging out with my god sisters and her cousins. we had fun talking about girl things. we ate tamales, birria, ponche, and other Hispanic deliquesces. we had alot of fun together catching up on the things we have missed in each others lives.