During the past summer the motivational speaker world lost one of it’s top transformer thinkers on leadership, Stephen Covey.  His book, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People,  has made an impact on my life.  Today’s blog is in respectful tribute to his 7 habits. And since we discuss landscaping ideas and solutions here, that’s the flavor I will use. 1. Be proactive.  Get outside and start daydreaming about what your yard could be. Have a vision on what your yard can be and don’t let your yard just happen to you.  If nothing else, keep it clean and well defined.  Don’t hesitate to call in a professional to get advice. 2. Begin with the end in mind. Wow, that is perfect for us in the garden.  I have developed many master landscape plans that are installed over time.  Knowing what the yard is going to be will help you have a clear plan to develop your beautiful yard. 3. Put first things first. Having a well designed yard can save lots of money and time.  Adding trees to provide shade and reduce the cooling bill in the summer makes good sense.  Evergreen shrubs along the north side can help break bitter cold winds.  A good design will save you money years down the road. 4. Think win-win. Creating a beautiful yard that is low maintenance and, let’s add, sustainable is a win/win (win).   We want our yard to be beautiful, but few of us want to be a slave to our yard.  Don’t fall for short cut tricks. Do it right, do it in stages, but only do what you can maintain.  There is nothing wrong with having natural areas that need less attention during the year.  If planned and planted correctly, it might not need any maintenance. Win, Win. 5. Seek first to understand, then to be understood. Listen, look, read, and learn all you can on what and how to do your yard.  Listen to the pros.  Check out their work.  Get references.  Now, it should be clearer to you what you want.   Seek to explain this to your design/maintenance professional. 6. Synergize. I have already mentioned that I think it's a good idea to have a design professional to help you work through ideas and put on paper, but have you toured any inspiring gardens?  Tell me where you have gone.  Places that inspire need to be duplicated to inspire you at home, at least on a smaller level.  Use your designer to develop inspiring ideas for your spaces. 7. Sharpen the saw. When is the last time you attended a Master Gardeners class, a garden trade show, or a place where yard “nuts” meet? Pun intended.  MSUcares has some great info on their web site that is free.  Renew your mind, your ideas and get excited about your yard and what it can be.  Make it a point to join me March 2nd(sign up here for Boot Camp!).  Keep growing and developing your green skills. Planting to grow, Jeff P.S. Do you like to write about gardening and landscaping?  Let me know, I have a few ideas on expanding the PTG newsletter. (jeff@jeffmcmanus.com)