It's often said: "life is unfair" or "the system got rigged for only a few people to achieve greatness in life." However, in life there are exceptions to every rule. Even so, these beliefs are the mainstream thoughts of most in society.

When speakers say quotes about inequality, you feel seen. You wonder if the person is looking over your shoulder, and into your life. These sentences only offer comfort. But why is this? It's because everyone has some amount of privilege, and most times you choose to ignore your natural advantage.

Everyone Has Privilege

According to Stephen Covey, the writer of 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, you have two privileges as follows.

1. Short-run: You can learn how to manipulate human-made rules with your charm.
2. Long-run: You have access to social recognition for your talents and skills.

It would be great if everyone had access to the best education, opportunities and money. But sometimes, all you have are your learned behaviors and inherent skill. Covey understands life is unfair, and that you have to cultivate personal success for yourself. He suggests that you lean on what you already own.

He says people who have charm might not have natural talent, and persons with skills may not have good social skills. But you can learn both your skills and ability to socialize. If you dedicate 30 days to learning, you will be a different person by the end of the month.

If you want to read more of Covey's life advice, you can get his book here: 7 Habits of Highly Effective People.

This article is part of our Business Coaching blog series. At Dataczar we talk to a lot of small businesses. We’ve found a few books that we keep recommending time and again. To better help our customers, we’ve added a Reading List for Small Businesses to our website. We encourage every small business owner to read and keep these timeless business books on their office shelf.

Submit

---