Morning Cereal

Start your day with inspirational quotes, followed by a fun journey through nostalgic facts from this day in history. Then, we dive into Stephen R. Covey’s The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People 
In Part 3, Habit 5, we’ll explore Covey’s timeless advice on building authentic connections, the art of influence, and creating positive interactions in every area of life.
In This Episode:
  • Daily inspirational quotes to spark your motivation
  • Fun historical facts from this day in history
  • A dive into Part 3, Habit 5 of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective
Whether you're a leader, communicator, or just someone looking to improve your relationships, this episode is packed with actionable insights.
Tune in now and let’s grow together!
Resources:
Covey, S. R. (1989). The 7 habits of highly effective people: Powerful lessons in personal change. Free Press. 

What is Morning Cereal?

Good morning, and welcome to Morning Cereal!
Pull up a stool, grab your favorite cereal, and let’s kick-start your day with a spoonful of inspiration, nostalgia and personal growth. Join your host, Shaen Inglis, as he highlights the music, movies, and moments that made the 80s, 90s, and 2000s unforgettable—kind of like digging for toy at the bottom of the cereal box. Each episode, Shaen also reviews a chapter or so from top wellness books, offering practical insights to help you set a positive tone for your day. Start your mornings right—no cartoons required!

Follow and subscribe to the Morning Cereal podcast and visit our Life Happens, Live Balanced channel and our website at shaeninglis.com to check out and follow our other podcasts. You can also follow Shaen @ShaenInglis on Instagram, YouTube, etc. Feel free to share the Morning Cereal with someone who could use a little fun and motivation to start their day right.

Good morning and

welcome to Morning Serial.

Okay, good morning

and welcome to Tuesday.

Congrats, you made it through another

Monday and today we've

got a high flying combo.

It's National Aviation Day and we're

celebrating powered flight.

I guess reminding us basically that we

can fly, which is pretty cool.

Well, it's also

International Orangutan Day, right?

No, not your ex actual great apes.

It's dedicated to preserving

these genius tree swingers.

Just reminding us that we might need to

work as hard to save

habitats as we do to save

our passwords.

Well, now a little something to jumpstart

your day from an old

friend, the late Matthew

Perry who said, "There's nothing better

than a world where

everybody's trying to make each

other laugh."

Well, sometimes you're just the Ross in a

world full of Rachels.

So do your best and let

the rest be their problem.

Well, today's news, facts and birthdays

are for August 19th and

we're going to start back

in 1950.

That's when ABC began broadcasting

Saturday morning kid shows

and the first one was Animal

Clinic and Acrobat Ranch.

Now that was a little before my time, but

it paved the way for

some incredible Saturday

mornings with the Flintstones, with the

Jetsons and the Smurfs and He-Man.

All these are classics.

All right, well, let's move up to 1991.

That's when the August coup began.

Soviet hardliners placed Mikhail

Gorbachev under house

arrest, setting in motion the

dissolution of the USSR.

Then in 2010, Operation Iraqi Freedom,

while it was winding down

as the last of the United

States brigade combat teams, they crossed

the border into Kuwait.

Well, happy birthday to you.

Today is your birthday.

You share a birthday

with singer Christina Perry.

She's 39 today.

Former US President Bill

Clinton, he's 79 today.

And of course, the late Matthew Perry.

He was born on this date in 1969.

Well, the number one song on this date

back in 1991 was

Everything I Do, I Do It For You

by Brian Adams.

Okay, not many love songs hit that

nostalgia button like this

one, bringing back memories

of junior high and images of Kevin

Costner shooting flaming arrows.

Well, the song was featured, as you

probably remember, in the

movie Robin Hood, Prince

of Thieves.

And Brian Adams said of this smash ballad

that he didn't expect

it to become such an

anthem.

Well, remember, check out Morning Serial

on Instagram or

YouTube Shorts or even on Tik

Tok.

And you can hear excerpts from all these

songs of the day that we cover.

Well, from seeing declarations of love to

self-awareness,

Kovey's The Seven Habits of

Highly Effective People.

And we are in the sub-chapter for

autobiographical responses.

And Kovey explains why many

attempts at communication fail.

Instead of truly listening, we've been

talking about that we

filter what others are saying

through the lens of our

own life's story, right?

He calls these automatic tendencies our

autobiographical responses.

Okay, Kovey identifies

four common patterns, okay?

Evaluating, probing,

advising, and interpreting.

Evaluation means we judge what someone

says, we're agreeing or

disagreeing before we really

even understand it.

Then probing happens when we ask

questions from our own

frame of reference, right?

Trying to get details that match our

perspective, not theirs.

Then we move into advising, which is when

we leap in with

solutions, even if the person

isn't even asking for advice.

Then lastly, interpreting.

It occurs when we try to explain someone

else's motives or behaviors

based on our own assumptions.

Now, each of these responses comes

naturally, but Kovey points out that they

block real understanding.

Kovey writes, "When we listen

autobiographically, we tend

to respond in one of four ways.

We evaluate, we probe, we

advise, or we interpret."

Now, these responses, they shift the

focus back to where?

To us rather than the speaker.

So then the other person, they might

start feeling unheard

or worse, judged by us.

Instead, Kovey emphasizes the importance

of empathic listening

that we talked about earlier.

Now, this requires setting aside our

autobiography long enough to enter the

speaker's frame of reference, right?

Empathic listening is not about

agreement, but about

accurate understanding.

Kovey explains that once people feel

genuinely understood, trust

is built in, they naturally

open up to influence, dialogue, and even

advice at that point,

if it's asked for, okay?

Well, the lesson of this sub-chapter is

that if we want

stronger communication, we must

recognize our tendency to

center our own perspective.

And then by resisting the urge to

evaluate, probe, advise,

or interpret too quickly, we

create space for others

to feel seen and respected.

Okay, here's your takeaway.

Communication improves when we quiet our

autobiographical responses and we

practice true empathy, right?

Listening first to

understand rather than to respond.

So whether you're launching into a day

like a jet or just

hanging out like an orangutan,

remember your best effort

comes from owning your story.

Hey, thanks for listening today.

Come back tomorrow for more nostalgia and

as always, have a fantastic day.

Don't forget to follow and subscribe to

the Morning Serial

podcast on the One Life Live

It channel.

You can find more episodes and videos by

visiting our YouTube

channel and the website

at seanenglis and at seanenglis.com,

where you can also

follow our other podcast, the

Mr. and Mrs. English podcast

and the Life Happens podcast.

And these other podcasts will dive deeper

into everyday issues,

self-improvement and

well-being, business and finance, and we

welcome special guests too.

So join us.

It will be a good time, I promise.

Thanks again for listening.

Have a fantastic day and

we'll see you tomorrow.