53 Best Stephen Covey Quotes On Personal Growth
Stephen Covey was a renowned author, speaker, and leadership consultant who left an indelible mark on the world with his wisdom and insights on personal and organizational effectiveness. He authored many books, including the highly acclaimed “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,” which has sold over 30 million copies worldwide.
Stephen Covey’s quotes have been a source of inspiration and motivation for individuals and organizations worldwide. In this blog post, we’ll explore some of his best quotes and the timeless lessons they offer.

Whether seeking guidance on personal development or looking to enhance your leadership skills, Stephen R. Covey’s words will surely provide valuable insights that will serve you well. Many quotes are from his most successful book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.
The 8 Best Stephen Covey Quotes:
I’ve extracted the eight best quotes from this vast post and put them at the beginning. Included with images for a better visual experience. I hope you enjoy these leadership quotes by Stephen Covey:

“Between stimulus and response, there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.”
Stephen R Covey

“The key to growth is to learn to make promises and to keep them.”
Stephen R Covey

“Make small commitments and keep them. Be a light, not a judge. Be a model, not a critic. Be a part of the solution, not the problem.”
Stephen R Covey

“Trust is the highest form of human motivation. It brings out the very best in people. But it takes time and patience.”
Stephen R Covey

“The best way to develop courage is to set a goal and achieve it, make a promise and keep it.”
Stephen R Covey

“I am what I am today because of the choices I made yesterday.”
Stephen R Covey

“When we talk about time management, it seems ridiculous to worry about speed before direction, about saving minutes when we may be wasting years.”
Stephen R Covey

“The person who doesn’t read is no better off than the person who can’t read.”
Stephen R Covey

“Make time for planning: Wars are won in the general’s tent.”
Stephen R Covey
The Best Stephen Covey Leadership Quotes
Stephen R. Covey wrote many books that are full of knowledge and wisdom. Here are some more of the best quotes from this renowned author:
“I am not a product of my circumstances. I am a product of my decisions.”
Stephen R Covey
“You have to decide what your highest priorities are and have the courage—pleasantly, smilingly, nonapologetically, to say “no” to other things. And the way you do that is by having a bigger “yes” burning inside. The enemy of the “best” is often the “good.”
Stephen R Covey
“A moment of choice is a moment of truth. It’s the testing point of our character and competence.”
Stephen R Covey
“Leaders are not born or made – they are self made.”
Stephen R Covey
“It is possible to be busy-very busy-without being very effective.”
Stephen R Covey
“Always treat your employees exactly as you want them to treat your best customers.”
Stephen R Covey
“If I really want to improve my situation, I can work on the one thing over which I have control – myself.”
Stephen R Covey
“Most people do not listen with the intent to understand; they listen with the intent to reply.”
Stephen R Covey
“Happiness, like unhappiness, is a proactive choice.”
Stephen R Covey
“Trust is the glue of life. It’s the most essential ingredient in effective communication. It’s the foundational principle that holds all relationships.”
Stephen R Covey

“Be patient with yourself. Self-growth is tender; it’s holy ground. There’s no greater investment.”
Stephen R Covey
“Seek first to understand, then to be understood.”
Stephen R Covey
“You can learn great things from your mistakes when you aren’t busy denying them.”
Stephen R Covey
“Always surround yourself with people who are even more talented and competent than you.”
Stephen R Covey
“All things are created twice; first mentally; then physically. The key to creativity is to begin with the end in mind, with a vision and a blue print of the desired result.”
Stephen R Covey
“To listen with empathy is the most important human skill.”
Stephen R Covey
“We immediately become more effective when we decide to change ourselves rather than asking things to change for us.”
Stephen R Covey
“Two people can see the same thing, disagree, and yet both be right. It’s not logical; it’s psychological.”
Stephen R Covey
“What we believe about ourselves and our purpose has a powerful impact on how we live, how we love, and what we learn.”
Stephen R Covey
“To achieve goals you’ve never achieved before, you need to start doing things you’ve never done before.”
Stephen R Covey
“If the ladder is not leaning against the right wall, every step we take just gets us to the wrong place faster.”
Stephen R Covey
“The key is not to prioritize what’s on your schedule, but to schedule your priorities.”
Stephen R Covey
“While we cannot always choose what happens to us, we can choose our responses.”
Stephen R Covey
“The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.”
Stephen R Covey
“Our character is basically a composite of our habits.”
Stephen R Covey
“Unless there are good feelings between people, reasoning intelligently is almost impossible.”
Stephen R Covey

“As long as you think the problem is out there, that very thought is the problem.”
Stephen R Covey
“Things which matter most must never be at the mercy of things which matter least.”
Stephen R Covey
“We judge ourselves by our intentions and others by their actions.”
Stephen R Covey
“It’s not enough to dream. It’s not enough to try. It’s not enough to set goals or climb ladders. It’s not enough to value. The effort has to be based on practical realities that produce the result. Only then can we dream, set goals, and work to achieve them with confidence.”
Stephen R Covey
“Principles are deep fundamental truths… lightly interwoven threads running with exactness, consistency, beauty and strength through the fabric of life.”
Stephen R Covey
“Many people seem to think that success in one area can compensate for failure in other areas. But can it really?…True effectiveness requires balance.”
Stephen R Covey
“Independent will is our capacity to act. It gives us the power to transcend our paradigms, to swim upstream, to rewrite our scripts, to act based on principle rather than reacting based on emotion or circumstance.”
Stephen R Covey
“Being humble does not mean being weak, reticent, or self-effacing. It means recognizing principle and putting it ahead of self. It means standing firmly for principle, even in the fact of opposition.”
Stephen R Covey
“Effective leadership is putting first things first. Effective management is discipline, carrying it out.”
Stephen R Covey
“Courage isn’t absenct of fear, it is the awareness that something else is important.”
Stephen R Covey
“Suddenly I saw things differently, and because I saw differently, I thought differently, I felt differently, I behaved differently.”
Stephen R Covey
“People often find themselves achieving victories that are empty, successes that have come at the expense of things they suddenly realize were far more valuable to them.”
Stephen R Covey
“Nothing is more exciting and bonding in relationships than creating together.”
Stephen R Covey
“As you care less about what people think of you, you will care more about what others think of themselves.”
Stephen R Covey
“We can’t live without eating, but we don’t live to eat.”
Stephen R Covey
“There’s no better way to inform and expand you mind on a regular basis than to get into the habit of reading good literature.”
Stephen R Covey
“You think effectiveness with people and efficiency with things.”
Stephen R Covey
“No one can persuade another to change. Each of us guards a gate of change that can only be opened from the inside. We cannot open the gate of another, either by argument or by emotional appeal.”
Stephen R Covey
Stephen Covey Quotes Conclusion
Stephen Covey’s quotes have left a lasting impact on readers and listeners alike, providing valuable insights and inspiration on how to lead a successful and fulfilling life. From cultivating personal effectiveness to building strong relationships, his wisdom transcends time and remains relevant today.
Read inspiring quotes: 51 Quotes From The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
By reflecting on his words, we can better understand ourselves and our place in the world and use this knowledge to create a more meaningful life. Covey’s legacy reminds us that success is about achieving our goals and the person we become along the way.
[amazon box=”1471195201″]So, let us carry forward his teachings and strive to become the best versions of ourselves, one step at a time.
Best, Fabian