Finding & Keeping Good Friends

I have often lamented at how hard it is to find and keep lasting friends. A few months ago, I read one book in hopes that it would help. But Dale Carnegie's "How to Win Friends & Influence People" was really not what I was searching for. It was more a manual of tools and tactics, which could be used "for good or for evil." While I did learn a few things from it, I was looking for something deeper.

I believe I have found what I wanted in the book I just completed. Stephen R. Covey's "The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People" really hits to the heart of the matter. The section between habits 3 & 4 especially hit home with me:

We can often live for years with the chronic pain of our lack of vision, leadership or management in our personal lives.

Covey also speaks to those who would rely solely on tools such as Dale Carnegie's book:

That's when we try to treat the symptoms with quick fixes and techniques — the band-aids of the Personality Ethic.

While it is something far easier said than done, I will work on implementing the seven habits in my own life, to be come better independent and interdependent.