By taking time to renew ourselves in these four dimensions, we will be much more effective and successful when engaging in life’s tasks and pursuits—including leading our teams to greater results. Abraham Lincoln illustrated this truth by saying, “If I had only six hours to chop down a tree, I would spend the first hour sharpening my axe.”

Covey described the spiritual dimension as “your core, your center, your commitment to your value system. It’s … a supremely important area of your life. It draws upon the sources that inspire you and uplift you and tie to the timeless truths of all humanity. And people do it very differently”. He added that for him, daily prayerful meditation on the scriptures was important because they represent his value system (I resonate with this too).

I have literally never sharpened a saw in my life but I have flown in an airplane hundreds of times. Growing up in an airline employee family, we would fly numerous times a year. My sister and I would see who could memorize the various announcements the flight attendants were required to make. We also wrote notes to future passengers on the motion sickness relief bags (that’s the official name for barf bags). There is one particular announcement that has a specific order of operations.

My day would involve riding my bike to get shave ice, then meeting up with friends at the park to spin on the merry-go-round. I would take off my shoes and play in the little brook that ran through the park. When it started to get dark, I would ride home to eat a home-cooked dinner made by my mom. Then, it would be off to play night games like “Ghost in the Graveyard” and “Capture the Flag.”

As a family, you can “sharpen the saw” together by creating and observing family traditions. When we work to build family traditions together, we show we are valuing the basic needs of individuals and our families.  Renewing our family is where family bonding, identity, fulfillment, and happiness is found. Many of these renewal times come when we are giving time to the “Big Rocks” we learned in Habit ; regular one on one-time, regular meals together, regular family times and family rituals and traditions. It may be helpful to ask your family members what some of their favorite family traditions are. Is there anything they would like to make a tradition Is there a tradition they would like to discontinue