I just got through reading "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens" by Sean Covey. It is where Sean takes the incredibly successful concepts that his Father, Stephen Covey, made popular in "7 Habits of Highly Effective People" and makes them readable for teenagers.
He does this by using examples the teens can relate too, along with actual letters and stories written by teens. It is excellent, just like the original !!! And would make an enjoyable and informative read for all kids from 13 to 99+.
The challenge I am facing is how to convince my almost 16 yr old daughter to actual want to read and learn from a book that is recommended by her Dad. Especially when it is one of those "Self Improvement" books he obsesses over...
The good news is that I have something that she really wants !!! So being a good Capitalist, I have actually offered to pay her for reading the book and completing the end of chapter exercises. I have told her that the amount of pay will depend on how well she understands the material, and the thought she puts into the homework. The choice to read or not read will ultimately be hers, I am just providing some positive incentive.
Self Improvement / Self Awareness books definitely work best if you are reading them because you want help with something, and are motivated to challenge your long held paradigms. Because it can be scary to think that you or your parents could be wrong after all these years... Doing it for cash may not be as effective, but I am hoping that it leaves little seeds of ideas that will grow with time and life experiences. Then she can always read it again when she is self motivated.
My first attempt with 7 Habits of Highly Effective People was an absolute failure. I did not take it seriously and paid for that oversight later. After that payment and with more humility, I read it again... The book somehow got better and more useful...
If this goes well, there are 3 other books I will repeat this exercise for. They are "How to Win Friends and Influence People", "Leadership and Self Deception" and "The Anatomy of Peace". You can find them on the G2A booklist.
Imagine how valuable they are if I am willing to spend my cash to ensure my children are exposed to the concepts... They may be worth checking out...
General Thoughts? or What other books should be on an adolescents must read booklist?
IUSD 7 Habits
Sean Covey
TeenInk 7 Habits
Alex Loya 7 Habits
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5 comments:
One of my great regrets in life is the limited amount of time I have for reading (except for this blog, of course). I have found, however, that most books have a few pages of "gems of wisdom" tucked away in what is otherwise 200 pages of repetitive elaboration. For example, I expect the 7 habits could be stated in no more than 7 sentences, and one could be done with that book and on to the next. It's not true of Shakespeare, of course, and certainly not of a Tom Clancy novel, in which the story is the message.
Thanks for exposing your kids to what you think are important things for them to know and for an unimaginative but effective means of involving them in it. But don't expect them to thank you for it. Kids already know everything. :-)
J. Ewing
I am not expecting any immediate praise, however I am hoping this brilliant quote comes to pass.
"When I was a boy of 14, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be 21, I was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years." Mark Twain
Another advantage, since I am not trying to teach a specific ideology or bias. It is unlikely I will be disappointed with where she ends up. My goal is she develops the ability to be self aware, and an understanding of beliefs, actions & relationships and their consequences.
Where that leads her will be an interesting adventure. (ie religious or not, liberal or conservative, giving or not, spend thrift vs saver, etc, etc, etc) And I'll strive to love and accept her through it all...(even when she is driving me nuts at times...) The joys of parenthood !!!
As for book length, I agree that many books could be shortened if the Author knew exactly what the Reader needed to read/see to have the book/belief resonate with them. It is a pointless read if the gems, beliefs and behaviors don't stick.
Since all readers come with different learning styles and starting points, the Author needs to include a variety of lecture, stories, pictures, graphs, etc in order to help them embrace the concepts on their own unique terms. Also, since humans need to read the same concept ~7 times before it starts to stick, the Author often needs to repeat themselves in subtley different ways.
Of course the downside is that "bullet readers" end up thinking there is too much fluff. Then again, would these analytical folks be open to the message in the first place? Maybe not since they often like black and white, or quantifiable concepts.
By the way, "Leadership and Self Deception" and "The Anatomy of Peace" are written in the form of fictional stories. They are light and fun reads, unless you find the concepts personally challenging.
You are correct. I often forget that having a near-photographic (though short-term) memory and an intuitive information-processing style is not true of everyone. We not only learn differently, but do different things, differently, with that information we do learn.
By the way, I would recommend:
1984
Brave New World
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance
Schrodinger's Cat
Atlas Shrugged
Some of these have some "adult" themes. Parental discretion advised.
J. Ewing
Thanks J !!!
I read one called "Zen and the Martial Arts" Joe Hyams that was pretty good... However since I love my cycle I'll have to try the Motorcycle Maintenance version... My baby looks like this...Link
For the reader's and my convenience:
1984-Orwell
Brave New World-Huxley
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance - Pirsig
Schrodinger's Cat-Wilson
Atlas Shrugged-Rand
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