Win/Win

I really liked that he defined win/win as being a philosophy. It makes the practice of it much easier. Most people try to implement a win/win, but don't really care about the "win" of the other person, as long as they get theirs. Thus, people get manipulated, used, or "handled" into a win/lose disguised as a win/win. However, what really made me think was the everyday application of the win/win. The philosophy is necessary, but it's hard to implement in a world that is patterned the other win/lose or lose/lose paradigms. It's always about being the best, passing everyone else on your way to the top. For example, when Covey discusses the education system, it is mostly patterned after a select group being the best and everyone else being inferior. On the other hand, how do you model a system that grades on how hard you try? How do you set those goals for students? how do you know what their actual capacity is? The same is true in the job market. In order for someone to get the job, everyone else has to lose it. What's the best way to apply a philosophy that your culture rejects?