Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw

Choices 11

Ms. Y. Vazquez

Arleta High School

What are the 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens?

• Habit 1: Be Proactive.

– Take responsibility for your life.

• Habit 2: Begin with the End in Mind.

– Define your mission and goals in life.

• Habit 3: Put First Things First.

– Prioritize, and do the most important things

first.

• Habit 4: Think Win-Win.

– Have an everyone-can-win attitude.

• Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, Then to Be

Understood.

– Listen to people sincerely.

• Habit 6: Synergize.

– Work together to achieve more.

• Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw.

– Renew yourself regularly.

Saw Away

Imagine that you go for a walk in the forest and you see a guy furiously sawing away at a tree.

“What are you doing?”, you ask.“I’m sawing down a tree,” comes the curt reply.“How long have you been at it?”“Four hours so far, but I am really making

progress.” he says, as sweat drips off of his chin.“Your saw looks really dull.” you say. “Why don’t

you take a break and sharpen it?”“I can’t, you idiot, I am too busy sawing.”

Four Dimensions of Renewal

• Physical - Body

• Mental - Mind

• Social - Heart

• Spiritual - Soul

Sharpen the Saw - Body

• Care for your body– You are what you eat– Use it or lose it– All about how you feel– Quit whenever you

want– The refusal skill

Ruun Forrest Ruuuuun…

• Think of the movie Forrest Gump. It’s the story of a naive young man from Alabama with a good heart who keeps stumbling upon success despite himself. At one point in the movie, Forrest is frustrated and confused about his life. So what does he do? He starts running. After running back and forth from one coast to the other two and a half times, Forrest feels better and is finally able to sort his life out.

Use it or Lose it.

• We all feel confused, depressed or apathetic at times.

• It is at these times where perhaps the best thing we can do for ourselves is do what Forrest did: exercise ourselves better.

It’s About How You Feel,Not How You Look

• Be careful not to get too obsessed with appearances.

• Unfortunately, our society has become one that is hung up on “looks”.

Real Life or Art?

• Many years ago, beauty queen and actress Michelle Pfeiffer was featured on the front of Esquire Magazine with the caption “What Michelle Pfeiffer needs…is absolutely nothing.”

• She actually needed more help than meets they eye, as author Allen Litchfield revealed in Sharing Light in the Wilderness:

But another magazine, Harper’s, offered proof in it’s edition the following month that

even the “beautiful people” need a little help. Harper’s had obtained the photo retoucher’s bill for Pfeiffer’s picture on the Esquire cover. They charged $1,525 to render the following services: “Clean up complexion, soften smile lines, trim chin, soften line under earlobe, add hair, add more forehead to create better line,

and soften neck muscles.”

Drugs and Your Body

• Up with Hope, Down with Dope!!

• “I can quit whenever I want”…then why don’t you?

• Drugs are expensive and they ruin your mind and body and possibly your entire future.

Sharpen the Saw - Mind

• Care for your brain– Sharpen your mind– Find your niche– School in way of

education– Post high school– Mental barriers– You gotta wanna

Socrates…(He’s great with kids)

There was once a young man who came to Socrates, the wise Greek Philosopher, and said “I want to know everything you know.”

“If this is your desire,” Socrates said, “then follow me to the river.” Full of curiosity, the young man followed Socrates to the nearby river. As they sat on the bank, Socrates said, “Take a close look at the river and tell me what you see.”

“I don’t see anything,” said the young man.

“Look closer,” replied Socrates.

As the man peered over the bank and leaned closer to the water, Socrates grabbed the man’s head and shoved it under the water. The man’s arms flailed wildly as he attempted to escape, but Socrates’ strong grip kept him submerged. About the time the man was about to drown, Socrates pulled him out of the river and laid him on the bank.

Socrates…

Coughing, the man gasped, “Are you crazy, old man? What are you trying to do, kill me?”

“When I was holding you under the river, what did you want more than anything else?” asked Socrates.

“I wanted to breathe! I wanted air!” he replied.“Don’t ever make the mistake of thinking wisdom comes so easily, my

young friend,” said Socrates, “When you want to learn as badly as you wanted air just now, come back to me again.”

SO WHAT’S THE MORAL OF THE STORY?Nothing comes in life easy. You have to pay the price!

Write it down, underline it, memorize it.There is no such thing as a free lunch!

Be a Smarty Pants

• Surveys indicate that the television is on in most homes thirty- five to forty hours per week. (But I thought “Are You Smarter Than a Fifth Grader” was educational…)

• Reading good literature on a regular basis is a good way to renew your mind.

• Keeping a journal of our thoughts, experiences, and insights is also beneficial.

Sharpen the Saw – Heart

• Care for your heart– Relationships– Laugh or you’ll cry

Take Care of your “Heart”

• This area of our lives is primarily developed in our relationships with others.

• We can help script others as principle-centered, value-based, independent, worthwhile individuals.

Laughing and Crying (or both)

• Have you ever laughed so hard that you could barely breathe? How did you feel when you finally stopped laughing?

• Have you ever had a really bad day and you go home and just cry for a few minutes? How do you feel when you are done?

• Was there ever a time where you laughed so hard that you started crying?

Sharpen the Saw - Soul

• Care for your soul– Back to nature– Teen’s best friend– Spiritual diet– Disturbing my sleep– Fried frogs– Get real

Your Soul and Spirit

• The spiritual dimension is your core, your center, your commitment to your value system.

• Spiritual renewal is a Quadrant II investment of time that we really can't afford to neglect.

• A personal mission statement enables us to have an understanding of our purpose which we can review frequently.

Balance

• Know your goals for the roles that you play in life (student, daughter, son, employee, boyfriend, girlfriend, best friend, etc.)

• Be sure to take time out for yourself and do something relaxing or that you enjoy.

• You must take time to rejuvenate if you want to be effective in all areas of your life.

Keep Hope Alive

Hope

So be sure when you step

Step with care and great tact

And remember that life’s

A great Balancing Act.

And will you succeed?

(98 and ¾ percent guaranteed)

Kid, you’ll move mountains

~Dr. Seuss

Self-Renewal

• The self-renewal process must include balanced renewal in all four dimensions of our lives.

Synergy in Renewal

• Renewal in any dimension increases our ability to live at least one of the Seven Habits.

• Improvement in one habit synergistically increases our ability to live the rest.

OBSTACLES

• What obstacles do you think that you will face or are facing that may hinder you from “Sharpening Your Saw?”

7 Habits Review…

What are the 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens?

• Habit 1: Be Proactive.

– Take responsibility for your life.

• Habit 2: Begin with the End in Mind.

– Define your mission and goals in life.

• Habit 3: Put First Things First.

– Prioritize, and do the most important things

first.

• Habit 4: Think Win-Win.

– Have an everyone-can-win attitude.

• Habit 5: Seek First to Understand, Then to Be

Understood.

– Listen to people sincerely.

• Habit 6: Synergize.

– Work together to achieve more.

• Habit 7: Sharpen the Saw.

– Renew yourself regularly.

The End

“You can’t make footprints in the sands of time by sitting on your butt, And who wants to leave butt prints in the sands of time?”