Family life can be complex blend of relationships, personalities, interests and importance. A book by Steven R. Covey aptly called 7 Habits of Highly Effective Families was released in 1998 and outlines with a combination of humour and strategy, the techniques leading to effective families.

Stephen Covey is the author of the highly acclaimed book 7 Habits of Highly Effective People which was written in 1989. Both books operate of the theory that adoption of the seven principals outlined will help achieve the title goal.

One of the first strategies is to develop a family mission statement. This can be done by determining the aspects that family members like about their family and culminating these into a statement about the family and with which the family can use to work together and be an effective family unit.

Covey’s latest book also covers issues such as keeping promises by and to all family members and co-ordinating a balance of family life and space, with individual needs and satisfaction. Other areas include having family meetings effectively and without large scale confrontation, and how to deal with dynamic and developing family construction and progression.

Of particular importance is the concept of understanding apologies. This covers both the issues of why come people find it so hard to apologise and how to create environments where people feel less intimidated and afraid to openly apologise.
He also highlights the external effects of things like technology.

He discusses television and the effect that this standard electronic device can have on the ways families function and interact. It is a very interactive book and is designed to be actively worked through, not read the way one would read a novel.

Overall 7 Habits of Highly Effective Families is a self-help book designed to make a real different not only to families who are experiencing problems but also as a preventative measure. They are basic and fundamental strategies that can be adopted without major stress and disruption to the normal family routine.

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