{"id":81,"date":"2020-10-30T11:12:01","date_gmt":"2020-10-30T11:12:01","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/34.125.46.169\/?page_id=81"},"modified":"2026-09-27T19:19:39","modified_gmt":"2026-09-27T19:19:39","slug":"habit-3","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/courses\/the-7-habits\/habit-3\/","title":{"rendered":"habit-3"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\n\t
\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tCourses<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tThe 7 Habits of Highly Effective People®<\/sup><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t

Habit 3: Put First Things First®<\/span><\/h1>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/span> Habit 2<\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tHabit 4 <\/span><\/a>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t
\n\t\t\t\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t<\/div>\n\t<\/span>\n<\/section>\n\n\n
\n
\n \n
\n
\n
\n

Free Guide<\/p>\n

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
<\/div><\/div>\n
\n

A Brief Guide to Principles From the Bestselling Book<\/p>\n <\/div>\n

\n Download Now <\/span><\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n
\n
\n
\n

Free Guide<\/p>\n

Private Victories: Inside Out Professional Growth
<\/div><\/div>\n
\n

Unlock Potential, Unleash Performance<\/p>\n <\/div>\n

\n Download Now <\/span><\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n
\n
\n
\n

Insight Report<\/p>\n

The Leadership Imperative
<\/div><\/div>\n
\n

A Guidebook for Creating Leadership Capability<\/p>\n <\/div>\n

\n Download Now <\/span><\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n \n
\n
\n
\n

Free Guide<\/p>\n

Manage Your Time Like a Pro
<\/div><\/div>\n
\n

7 Tips for Doing What Matters Most<\/p>\n <\/div>\n

\n Download Now <\/span><\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/span>\n<\/section>\n\n\n
\n
\n
\n

The Principle of Focus\n<\/h2>\n <\/div>\n
\n

Habit 3: Put First Things First is about protecting time for what\u2019s most important to us. Habit 1 focuses our effort on what we can influence. Habit 2 aims us in the right direction. Habit 3 is the day in, day out, moment-by-moment work that takes us to that vision.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s common to think that managing our time is about managing the clock, but it\u2019s really about managing the compass. Our personal mission is true north. Every decision we make about how to spend our time should be oriented toward what\u2019s most important. That means carefully assessing our roles and goals and protecting time for the Big Rocks every week so they don\u2019t get overwhelmed by all the other things fighting for our attention.<\/p>\n \n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/span>\n<\/section>\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n
\n
\n
\n

The Four Quadrants of Time Management<\/h2>

We spend our time in one of four quadrants depending on the urgency and importance of what we\u2019re doing.<\/p>\n

Whether or not something is urgent depends on how soon it needs to be done. A ringing phone is urgent because it won\u2019t ring for long.<\/p>\n

Important things, on the other hand, contribute to our mission, values, and high-priority goals.<\/p>\n

The best return we can get on our time is to spend it on things which aren\u2019t urgent but are important. For example, planning, creative thinking, and learning and renewal.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s easy for our top priorities to get crowded out by things that feel urgent but aren\u2019t very important\u2014or by things that waste our time and potential.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n

\n \"\"\n\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/span>\n<\/section>\n\n\n
\n \"Quote\n
\n

\u201cPutting first things first means organizing and executing around your most important priorities. It is living and being driven by the principles you value most, not by the agendas and forces surrounding you.\u201d<\/h2>\n

— Stephen R. Covey<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/span>\n<\/section>\n\n\n

\n
\n
\n
\n
\n
Habit 1<\/div>\n
Be Proactive\u00ae<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n \"\"\n
\n

Assume responsibility and focus on the things that can be influenced rather than what can\u2019t.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n

\n Learn More<\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n
\n
Habit 2<\/div>\n
Begin With the End in Mind\u00ae<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n \"\"\n
\n

Define clear measures for success and create a plan to achieve them\u2014in the next few hours, over the next few months, or across a lifetime.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n

\n Learn More<\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n
\n
Habit 3<\/div>\n
Put First Things First\u00ae<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n \"\"\n
\n

Prioritize and spend time on achieving the most important goals.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n

\n
\n
\n
Habit 4<\/div>\n
Think Win-Win\u00ae<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n \"\"\n
\n

Approach each situation looking for ways everyone can win.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n

\n Learn More<\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n
\n
Habit 5<\/div>\n
Seek First to Understand, Then to Be Understood\u00ae<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n \"\"\n
\n

Listen, understand, and honor others\u2019 perspectives, and have the courage to express thoughts and feelings respectfully.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n

\n Learn More<\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n
\n
Habit 6<\/div>\n
Synergize\u00ae<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n \"\"\n
\n

Leverage different perspectives to solve problems, innovate, and achieve more than any one individual alone.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n

\n Learn More<\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n
\n
Habit 7<\/div>\n
Sharpen the Saw\u00ae<\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n \"\"\n
\n

Increase motivation, energy, and vitality by making time for renewal activities.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n

\n Learn More<\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/span>\n<\/section>\n\n\n
\n
\n

Resources<\/h2>\n
\n
\n
\n
\n The 7 Habits Book<\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n Mission Statement Builder<\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n
\n
\n Your 7 Habits Strengths<\/a>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/span>\n<\/section>\n\n
\n
\n
\n
Build essential human skills. Drive growth at every level. <\/div>\n

Connect with a FranklinCovey expert today to empower your leaders and teams to unlock potential and unleash performance for your organization.<\/p>\n <\/div>\n

\n
\n \n \"Loading\"\/\n <\/f24-form>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/div>\n <\/span>\n<\/section>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":0,"parent":9215,"menu_order":2,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"footnotes":""},"tags":[],"wf_page_folders":[13],"class_list":["post-81","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nThe 7 Habits of Highly Effective People\u00ae: Habit 3 - FC DE<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People\u00ae, Habit 3: Put First Things First is the exercise of independent will to become principle-centered.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/courses\/the-7-habits\/habit-3\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_GB\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People\u00ae: Habit 3 - FC DE\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People\u00ae, Habit 3: Put First Things First is the exercise of independent will to become principle-centered.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/courses\/the-7-habits\/habit-3\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"FC DE\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2026-09-27T19:19:39+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.franklincovey.de\\\/en\\\/courses\\\/the-7-habits\\\/habit-3\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.franklincovey.de\\\/en\\\/courses\\\/the-7-habits\\\/habit-3\\\/\",\"name\":\"The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People\u00ae: Habit 3 - FC DE\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.franklincovey.de\\\/de\\\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2020-10-30T11:12:01+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2026-09-27T19:19:39+00:00\",\"description\":\"The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People\u00ae, Habit 3: Put First Things First is the exercise of independent will to become principle-centered.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.franklincovey.de\\\/en\\\/courses\\\/the-7-habits\\\/habit-3\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.franklincovey.de\\\/en\\\/courses\\\/the-7-habits\\\/habit-3\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.franklincovey.de\\\/en\\\/courses\\\/the-7-habits\\\/habit-3\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Courses\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.franklincovey.de\\\/en\\\/courses\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"the-7-habits\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.franklincovey.de\\\/en\\\/courses\\\/the-7-habits\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":3,\"name\":\"habit-3\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.franklincovey.de\\\/de\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.franklincovey.de\\\/de\\\/\",\"name\":\"FranklinCovey\",\"description\":\"\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.franklincovey.de\\\/de\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.franklincovey.de\\\/de\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.franklincovey.de\\\/de\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"FranklinCovey\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.franklincovey.de\\\/de\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-GB\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.franklincovey.de\\\/de\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.franklincovey.de\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/7\\\/2022\\\/02\\\/FC_logo.svg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.franklincovey.de\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/7\\\/2022\\\/02\\\/FC_logo.svg\",\"width\":\"1024\",\"height\":\"1024\",\"caption\":\"FranklinCovey\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.franklincovey.de\\\/de\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/dev.linkedin.com\\\/company\\\/franklincovey-europe\\\/\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People\u00ae: Habit 3 - FC DE","description":"The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People\u00ae, Habit 3: Put First Things First is the exercise of independent will to become principle-centered.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/courses\/the-7-habits\/habit-3\/","og_locale":"en_GB","og_type":"article","og_title":"The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People\u00ae: Habit 3 - FC DE","og_description":"The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People\u00ae, Habit 3: Put First Things First is the exercise of independent will to become principle-centered.","og_url":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/courses\/the-7-habits\/habit-3\/","og_site_name":"FC DE","article_modified_time":"2026-09-27T19:19:39+00:00","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/courses\/the-7-habits\/habit-3\/","url":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/courses\/the-7-habits\/habit-3\/","name":"The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People\u00ae: Habit 3 - FC DE","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/de\/#website"},"datePublished":"2020-10-30T11:12:01+00:00","dateModified":"2026-09-27T19:19:39+00:00","description":"The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People\u00ae, Habit 3: Put First Things First is the exercise of independent will to become principle-centered.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/courses\/the-7-habits\/habit-3\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-GB","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/courses\/the-7-habits\/habit-3\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/courses\/the-7-habits\/habit-3\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Courses","item":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/courses\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"the-7-habits","item":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/courses\/the-7-habits\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"name":"habit-3"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/de\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/de\/","name":"FranklinCovey","description":"","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/de\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/de\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-GB"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/de\/#organization","name":"FranklinCovey","url":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/de\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-GB","@id":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/de\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2022\/02\/FC_logo.svg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/7\/2022\/02\/FC_logo.svg","width":"1024","height":"1024","caption":"FranklinCovey"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/de\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/dev.linkedin.com\/company\/franklincovey-europe\/"]}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/81","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=81"}],"version-history":[{"count":20,"href":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/81\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":36754,"href":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/81\/revisions\/36754"}],"up":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/9215"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=81"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=81"},{"taxonomy":"wf_page_folders","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.franklincovey.de\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/wf_page_folders?post=81"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}