Seven Habits: #7 Sharpen the Saw
“We must never become too busy sawing to take time to sharpen the saw.”
Dr. Stephen Covey
To continuous improvement means to sharpen the saw and this means preserving and enhancing the greatest asset you have–you.
To sharpen the saw keeps you fresh so you can continue to practice the other six habits. You increase your capacity to produce and handle the challenges around you. Without this renewal, your body becomes weak, your mind mechanical, your emotions raw, and your spirit insensitive. You may become selfish. If you are in this state then it is not a pretty picture, is it?
There are 4 dimensions of renewal. All are important.
The Physical Dimension involves caring effectively for your physical body. Part of this means creating and maintaining a clean environment. If your rugs are dirty, your air is too dusty or too smoky, or perhaps you don’t have enough sunlight then your physical dimension will suffer.
According to Covey, a good exercise program is one we can do in our own home and one that builds our body in three areas: endurance (aerobic exercise), flexibility (stretching), and strength (i.e. weights or sit-ups). Be proactive and set up where you live and work so that it is clean and organized so that you have time to exercise and also to have time and a place to relax.
The greatest benefit we experience from taking care of our physical dimension is being proactive (Habit 1). Be proactive about defining the environment you live in both at work and at home. Keep it clean and organized. This will help your self-esteem, your self-confidence, and your integrity.
The Spiritual Dimension is your core, your center, your commitment to your value system. This dimension is related to a very private area of your life and draws upon the sources that inspire and uplift you. What uplifts us is different for everyone. However, we will argue that a clean and organized environment is very uplifting and that the opposite is also true.
The Mental Dimension is about feeling good about who you are. Good thoughts lead to improved performance. To have good thoughts about your home and office is fundamental. What could you do to improve your home environment? Could it be more organized or cleaner? Your environment has a big impact on how you feel. Do what you can to create a clean and organized place to relax and work.
The Social/Emotional Dimension is highly related to our sense of our performance. We first have to establish our principles and have integrity. Don’t allow yourself to be driven by what others think of you. Establish what is important to you and then live your life with integrity in which your daily habits reflect your values.
If you do need some help with cleaning your home or office, give us a call at 802-295-6065. We can relieve the stress of cleaning, save you some time and help to make your home or office a more pleasant place to be.
