The Seven Habits- Covey

The Seven Habits- from wikipedia

The chapters are dedicated to each of the habits, which are represented by the following imperatives:

1. Be Proactive. Here, Covey emphasizes the original sense of the term "proactive" as coined by Victor Frankl. You can either be proactive or reactive when it comes to how you respond to certain things. When you are reactive, you blame other people and circumstances for obstacles or problems. Being proactive means taking responsibility for every aspect of your life. Initiative and taking action will then follow. Covey also shows how man is different from other animals in that he has self-consciousness. He has the ability to detach himself and observe his own self; think about his thoughts. He goes on to say how this attribute enables him: It gives him the power not to be affected by his circumstances. Covey talks about stimulus and response. Between stimulus and response, we have the power of free will to choose our response.
2. Begin with the End In Mind. This chapter is about setting long-term goals based on "true north" principles. Covey recommends formulating a "personal vision statement" to document one's perception of one's own vision in life. He sees visualization as an important tool to develop this. He also deals with organizational vision statements, which he claims to be more effective if developed and supported by all members of an organization rather than prescribed.
3. Put First Things First. Here, Covey describes a framework for prioritizing work that is aimed at short-term goals, at the expense of tasks that appear not to be urgent, but are in fact very important. Delegation is presented as an important part of time management. Successful delegation, according to Covey, focuses on results and benchmarks that are to be agreed upon in advance, rather than prescribed as detailed work plans.
4. Think Win/Win describes an attitude whereby mutually beneficial solutions are sought that satisfy the needs of oneself, or, in the case of a conflict, both parties involved.
5. Seek First to Understand, Then to be Understood. Covey warns that giving out advice before having empathetically understood a person and their situation will likely result in rejection of that advice. Thoroughly reading out your own autobiography will decrease the chance of establishing a working communication.
6. Synergize describes a way of working in teams. Apply effective problem solving. Apply collaborative decision making. Value differences. Build on divergent strengths. Leverage creative collaboration. Embrace and leverage innovation. It is put forth that when synergy is pursued as a habit, the result of the teamwork will exceed the sum of what each of the members could have achieved on their own. “The whole is greater than the sum of its parts.”
7. Sharpen the saw focuses on balanced self-satisfaction: Regain what Covey calls "production capability" by engaging in carefully selected recreational activities.

Sad Days

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SAD
The word sad refers to an emotional condition, the antonym of "happy". Sadness is often associated with depression, suffering or grief..
Thursday morning seemed calmer after the Bad Wednesday
MK Eitam to Arab MKs: One day we'll expel you from Israel
until Thursday at 9pm.

Last update - 00:29 07/03/2008

Officials: Terrorist was East Jerusalem resident

Eight killed in terrorist attack at Jerusalem yeshiva

By Jonathan Lis, Yair Ettinger and Amos Harel, Haaretz Correspondents

Eight people were killed and nine others were wounded Thursday evening when terrorists infiltrated the Mercaz Harav yeshiva in the Kiryat Moshe neighborhood in Jerusalem, police said. Three of the injured were listed as being in serious condition and taken to Hadassah Medical Center in Ein Karem, while the other six were lightly hurt and taken to Sha'arei Tzedek Medical Center. One of the injured is 15 years old. MDA declared the incident a "multiple casualty event." Jerusalem District police chief Aharon Franco said the terrorist entered the yeshiva, pulled out an automatic weapon from his bag and began firing in all directions. An Israel Defense Forces paratrooper who had his weapon with him engaged the terrorist in a gun battle, and two police detectives who arrived on the scene also fired at the assailant. The terrorist was killed in the incident. Security officials said the terrorist was a resident of East Jerusalem. An organization calling itself "Galilee Freedom Battalions - the Martyrs of Imad Mughniyeh" took responsiblity for the attack, according to Hezbollah's Al-Manar television. The veracity of the claim was not clear. Hezbollah has vowed to avenge last month's assassination of its terror chief, Imad Mughniyeh, in Damascus. The organization has blamed Israel, which has denied any role in the killing. A large number of security and emergency medical personnel arrived on the scene, with some 50 ambulances summoned. Police and Israel Defense Forces troops searched the complex and the surrounding area for nearly two hours in order to determine whether a second or possibly third terrorist was still holed up inside the yeshiva or had fled. The evacuation of the dead and wounded was delayed due to the searches. MK Eitam to Arab MKs: One day we'll expel you from Israel Tempers flared yesterday in the Knesset when National Union MK Effi Eitam told Arab MKs that "one day we will expel you from this house, and from the national home of the Jewish people." Eitam expressed his anger at Tuesday's rally in Umm al-Fahm, where demonstrators chanted slogans calling Israel "a Zionazi state" and urging "Gaza martyrs" to carry on with their struggle. "No sane democracy can put up with acts of treason during wartime," Eitam said. "We have to drive you out, as well as everyone else who took part in yesterday's unruly, reckless and treacherous anti-Israel diatribe." Balad's leader, MK Jamal Zahalka, heckled him in turn: "You're a madman, a miserable character, a racist," and was ejected from the debate. Ra'am-Ta'al MK Taleb El-Sana said Eitam should be imprisoned and court-martialed for his conduct as a senior officer in the Israel Defense Forces during the first intifada. "He advocates the expulsion of Israeli citizens," he said. "Eitam belongs in the ash heap of history." Eitam said in response that he did not call on an expulsion of the Israeli Arab community entirely, only Arab MKs and those who participated in Tuesday's rally.