Sams Summary on first things first

First Things First, By Stephen Covey

373 pages but it feels like reading about 200. This book teaches that being busy is not the same as doing what really matters. Many people rush all day but still feel unhappy because they spend time on small, urgent things instead of important ones.

The book uses two ideas to explain this:

• A clock shows schedules, homework, chores, and deadlines.

• A compass shows what matters most, family, health, learning, kindness, and doing the right thing.
  

If you follow only the clock, you stay busy. If you follow the compass, you live a better life.

The book says the most important things are -

• Living well (taking care of your body and mind)

• Loving people (family, friends, helping others)

• Learning (getting better and smarter)

• Leaving a good legacy (being someone others remember kindly)
  

It also explains that some things feel urgent, like messages, noise, and problems, but they are not always important. Important things are often quiet, like spending time with family, exercising, learning, and planning for the future.

To live well, you should do important things before fun or easy things. Homework before games. Sleep before screens. Talking to family before doom scrolling.

The book teaches that everyone has different roles, the student, child, friend, teammate, and all roles matter. You shouldn’t win in one area and lose in another.

Another big lesson is making and keeping promises to yourself, I like that one. When you do what you say you will do, you become stronger and more confident.

The main message is simple, that Life works best when you choose what matters most and put it first, even when no one is watching. Much easier to read than the 7 habits and personally. It is also on audio book. From the Author - I have given myself a goal of reading 50 books on business and self-improvement this year or about 1 a week for 2026. I am going back through my library and picking a book at random. Most of my friends don't read so these summaries are a twofer, they will summarise the book based on simple notes I take while reading, and then my readers, mates and colleagues can decide whether or not to buy it or download it on their kindle. I am not going to give the books a score, nor say which books to avoid, I've read books that I love that everyone said was crap, so I am going to stick to my summary, and try to keep my opinion and Bias subtle. Some of the books will be by audio, some in paper, If I start reading one and can't get into it, after 2 chapters, I'm gone, I'll pick up another.