Stephen Covey
Stephen R. Covey is a world renowned author and expert in organization behavior. He is a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, sometimes casually called the Mormon or LDS Church. Covey and his wife, Sandra, are the parents of nine children and grandparents of forty-nine grandchildren. They live in Provo, Utah, near Brigham Young University, where he was once a professor, and where he still serves on the President’s Leadership Council. Covey served a two-year mission in England for the LDS Church. Covey also served as the president of the Irish Mission of the Church starting in July 1962. When Covey studied business at Harvard he would on occasion go and preach to crowds on Boston Common.
Covey was born on October 24, 1932, in Salt Lake City, Utah. He wrote the best-selling book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People (which has sold over 15 million copies worldwide). Other books he has written include First Things First, Principle-Centered Leadership, and The Seven Habits of Highly Effective Families. In 2004, Covey released, The 8th Habit. In 2008, Covey released The Leader In Me -- How Schools and Parents Around the World Are Inspiring Greatness, One Child at a Time (Wikipedia.org). Covey established the "Covey Leadership Center" which, in 1997, merged with Franklin Quest to form FranklinCovey, a global professional-services firm and specialty-retailer selling both training and productivity-tools to individuals and to organizations. Their mission statement reads: "We enable greatness in people and organizations everywhere". Covey has advised businesses and governments around the world.
Covey holds a BSc degree in Business Administration from University of Utah in Salt Lake City, an MBA from Harvard University, and a Doctor of Religious Education (DRE) in LDS (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) Church History and Doctrine from Brigham Young University. He also holds membership of the Pi Kappa Alpha International Fraternity.
Covey was named one of the top 25 most influential Americans by Time Magazine in 1996. In November, 2010, he was awarded the Pioneer in Leadership Award by Brigham Young University Management Society's Utah Valley Chapter.
As a practicing member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Stephen Covey has authored several devotional works for Latter-day Saint or Mormon readers, including:
- Spiritual Roots of Human Relations (1970)
- The Divine Center (1982)
- 6 Events: The Restoration Model for Solving Life's Problems (2004).
In additional to the Fatherhood Award from the National Fatherhood Initiative in 2003, Covey has won many other prestigious recognitions. These include the Thomas More College Medallion for continuing service to humanity; the National Entrepreneur of the Year Lifetime Achievement Award for Entrepreneurial Leadership; the 1994 International Entrepreneur of the Year Award; one of Time Magazine's 25 most influential Americans of 1996; the Sikh's 1998 International Man of Peace Award; and the 2004 Golden Gavel award from Toastmasters International.
In 2009, at age 76, Covey is still thoroughly engaged in business as well as family pursuits. With all of his children living within 30 miles of home, he attends as many of their milestone events as possible. He is currently working on a book called Living Life In Crescendo.
- "My life is consumed with a sense of mission, and that gives me energy. When you have a sense of purpose, life is different and you are able to live life in crescendo. Most men are focused on their career, and when that’s over they are over. But if you have a significant purpose and meaning to your life, it strengthens your immune system and gives you an extra 20 years of life" (Utah Valley Magazine, April 30, 2009).
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People has sold over 15 million copies worldwide, and the book hit No.1 on the New York Times bestseller list for Advice, How-to, and Miscellaneous.
