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105 of 108 found the following review helpful:
 Teen Angst ? Mar 13, 2000
By Waidz
At the ripe age of 23, I borrowed my 18 year old brother's copy of this book and was enthralled.I cant help but wonder what a difference this book would have made in my life if I had read it at age 14 and not ten years later. The layout of the book is fun and appeals to readers of any age. This makes it easier to read. One thing I have to say, is that this book is one of the most powerful positive thinking books on the market. Although it's aimed at teens, the values and tips can apply to anyone. I loved the little excercises which are still applicable. Sean's frankness on matters really inspired me. My favourite part of the book though is the real life stories he relates on how teenagers have overcome difficulties and still succeed in the end. A great read, highly recommended !
90 of 97 found the following review helpful:
Highly Recommended Feb 14, 2002
By Janet M Hanson
I keep having to buy copies of this book because I give them away to people I want to share the book with.I found this book (at the age of 40-something) a little more reader friendly than Stephen Covey's book. I tell the teens I work with that Covey, Sr's book is a little more executive oriented and I had trouble connecting with it. This is easier to connect with and I don't find it preachy because Sean Covey so often tells stories on himself. It's easy to peruse over and over again and to integrate little by little into your life. At least when my time management fails, I can name what I could have done better (put the big rocks in first). When I've spent the day dithering time away at some no-where project, I know I'm spending too much time in Q4. Little by little, it helps improve your life. I guess I want to comment on the reviewer who thought Sean was trying to encourage reader to always be thinking of something nice to say (ie always kissing up to people). I don't feel Sean was trying to tell you not to be yourself, but well-placed, positive comments can sew wonderful seeds of cooperation and friendship. Externalize your positive thoughts by sharing them with people; it makes a difference. Great book for teens, young adults and adults.
143 of 158 found the following review helpful:
Great Book For Adults Too--Forget His Father's Book Oct 02, 2000
By wlmcmullen
What Sean has done here hopefully has taught his father a lesson or two about simplicity. I don't think "how to" books have to be so complicated and Sean Covey proves it with this wonderful book. It has the exact same message as Stephen Covey's book but is a lot more fun and relaxing to read. I recommend that all adults buy it instead of Stephen Covey's book, "7 Habits of Highly Effective People". Stephen Covey's wordy,proud and know it all writing style really got on my nerves. Sean's book on the other hand is humble, straight forward, simple, easy and fast to read. You get the point without having to read through a bunch of mental masturbation. I bought it for my teenage daughter and then ended up reading the whole book and buying another copy for another teenager. They both really liked it. My husband is a crisis counselor who works with teens. He has been using the ideas in Sean Covey's book for his "Rites of Passage" work with teens and has really gotten some great insights and practical tools for his workshops. I wish there were more books like this on the market. If your teen is resistent to reading the book then read it yourself. You'll find that it will still be helpful when guiding them or talking to them about the immense stress and issues facing them in today's highly chaotic society.
29 of 29 found the following review helpful:
Love it or hate it... the choice is yours Oct 16, 2005
By shewolfrh
After reading through the reviews on this website and others on different websites I've come to this conclusion- either people think that it was (1)a fantastic book which distilled sound advice and changed their lives for the better [5 stars] or, (2)a bunch of cliched, useless material exhorting teens to be mama's boy/ teacher's pet/ goody-two-shoes/ (name your case)[1 star]. If there are people out there who haven't read the book and are getting confused by all the conflicting, contradictory messages up on the web, I honestly don't blame them. Who wouldn't be?
I've read the book and all I can say is that the book does not deliver miracles from heaven that can brilliantly transform your life and make it oh-so-fabulous. It didn't promise that either, by the way.
What it does is to offer tried-and-tested, reliable advice, the kind that your mother or teacher would have given you. Call it rehashed common sense, but the cartoons and quotes make it easier to digest and not-so-painful to internalise. Yes it's naggy, yes it's authoritarian, yes it's condescending at some parts... I don't doubt that. The thing is that in the end, it's still well-intentioned, useful advice. It's perfectly okay to just pick out one chapter, or one quote etc. that means something to you and ditch the rest. Really. Or if you really think that none of it can help you in your life, then take it as a few hours of harmless entertainment, forget about the book and get on with your life. Case closed.
As for those who haven't read the book yet, give it a chance. You might just be able to pick up one or two things here and there which, when put into practice, may just make your life that little bit more sane and less messed-up. Best of luck to you.
46 of 49 found the following review helpful:
 7 Habits of Highly Effective Pre-Teens Jan 09, 2006
By S. Sun
"sunny17152"
I read this book in 7th grade at the age of 12, and I loved it. I thought it was very well-written and witty.
Now, as a 19 year old, I recently finished rereading this book just because I found it as I was cleaning out my bookshelf, and I have to say...it's not bad, but it's not that good. I think, perhaps, as the author was aiming for a lower age bracket, he accidentally aimed a little too low.
Here's my breakdown:
Pros:
- Book is much shorter than the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People yet still conveys the same ideas.
- The writing style is pretty straightforward.
- It offers a lot of examples from teens and a lot of illustrations.
Cons:
- Book becomes more and more condescending as it goes on.
- At some points, there are just too many examples, and many are rather impersonal--they don't offer the kind of detail that would make a reader actually care. Some of the examples even contradict the Habits.
- A lot of the illustrations are kind of lame (I remember thinking this back at the age of 12, as well). The charts are fine, but most of the cartoons on the side just aren't funny.
- The information in the book is all very intuitive.
I think I will read the 7 Habits of Highly Effective People to see how I feel about it. As for the 7 Habits of Highly Effective Teens, I have to say...
1) Do not force a teen to read a self-help book. I've seen that in most of the negative comments, people were forced to read this book for a class in school. I think doing so even goes against the Habits. If you genuinely care about someone's problems, maybe read through the Habits yourself and practice them. Then, you might be able to get your little friend to play along. This book is not that inspiring, and anyone who is forced to read it will easily find a thousand things ridiculous about it.
2) Although the book's subject matter is intuitive, I agree that it is nice to be reminded of the right way to live your life and how to reach an "effective" life.
3) However...because of the book's pseudo-spunky and somewhat condescending style, I see it gaining more acceptance among people right on the brink of teenagedom than actual teens. Pre-teens will probably get more of a kick out of reading a book for teens, and they may not notice the condescending writing since society has yet to tell them that they deserve to be treated as adults. There are points where Covey talks about eating disorders and suicide, but, as far as I can remember, middle schoolers have already been well introduced to these topics.
Conclusion:
This is not a good book for the people it was meant to help, but it would be a very good book for a slightly younger age group. That way, you have a better chance of getting through to them before the pressures start to pile on.
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