The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People (Stephen R. Covey) / quote 172 of 203
Self-centeredness stagnates like the Dead Sea
SELF-CENTEREDNESS. Perhaps the most common center today is the self. The most obvious form is selfishness, which violates the values of most people. But if we look closely at many of the popular approaches to growth and self-fulfillment, we often find self-centering at their core. There is little security, guidance, wisdom, or power in the limited center of self. Like the Dead Sea in Israel, it accepts but never gives. It becomes stagnant. On the other hand, paying attention to the development of self in the greater perspective of improving one’s ability to serve, to produce, to contribute in meaningful ways, gives context for dramatic increase in the four life-support factors.