Franklin Covey training goes beyond The 7 Habits by advocating that these practices can be tailored to the needs of a company; Week 1 Seven habits
Most people who walk through the doors of Right Management, the Hong Kong representative for the Franklin Covey training programme that brought The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People to the world, question whether the well-known pillars can really be applied to the corporate workplace.
'They think that they are too personal, and are solely for personal development. But the seven habits are not only about self-development, but also self-mastery,' said Winnie Chiu, Right Management's senior consultant and lead trainer.
'If you want to be a leader in the corporate world, you must first be able to lead yourself.'
And she should know. Ms Chiu said she had spent long enough in the corporate world to have rubbed shoulders with many corporate power brokers in Hong Kong. Two years ago, she left a well-paid, influential management position at the Hong Kong Jockey Club as human resources director to strike out into what was for her the brave new world of external corporate consultancy.
That decision itself was influenced by Dr Covey's principles, she said. The wake-up call literally came one busy day at the office, when the phone rang. In her capacity as corporate director at the Jockey Club, she was already certified to train in-house for the 7 Habits, once a month. But the voice on the other end of the line offered her the opportunity to spread Dr Covey's gospel to an even wider audience in Hong Kong.