Stephen Covey or Dale Carnegie???

I agree with you xyla_v. And I also admit I found it difficult to read and comprehend most of Covey's books. But I understand the reason why. Covey's teachings are deeper in meaning than Carnegie's. But it is hard to compare the two because they are not in the same category. Carnegie's are in Personality Ethic while Covey's are in Character Ethic.

In my opinion, Dale Carnagie set the path. All other similar books, while still good and provide quality information, are spinoffs from Dale Carnagie's book, "Winning Friends and Influencing People." I think that most (if not all) of the other authors who write on the same topic probably learned a great deal from Dale Carnagie. That doesn't mean I wouldn't read their books ... I do read many of them. They just seem to be repeating what Carnagie has already said, but it's good to read it more than once anyway.