Not long ago I was at the home of Stephen Covey, author of The 7 Habits. It was a real pleasure to meet him and rub shoulders for a few minutes. He was welcoming and gracious and very insightful when he spoke to you.
You can tell a lot about a person from their home. When I first walked into his house, I noticed the large mosaic in the tile floor of a compass pointing north. In addition, I didn't see any TVs in his house. But the main focal point at the center of his home, with large windows overlooking the valley, was a living area and a library. I decided to see what his library was like.
His library wasn't necessarily large, it was probably about 20 feet square with a vaulted ceiling about 15 feet overhead. It had a fireplace and a soft couch in the middle, and one of those ladders that goes around the perimeter in order to access all of the books. At the center of his collection he had volumes and volumes of classic and inspiring pieces of literature. He also had inspiring quotes written on the walls that, as he said, would take you on a journey of self discovery.
As I was looking over his collection of books, I noticed something. I didn't seen any of his books—the books that he wrote. I wanted to ask him, but then I saw them. They were piled into a haphazard little stack on the floor in the far corner. I should have taken a picture but I didn't. I just thought it was funny.