The One Thing – The Surprisingly Simple Truth Behind Extraordinary Results
by Gary Keller with Jay Papasan
It’s wonderful to find a book that has the power to change lives or at least have a positive impact on life.
The One Thing is a book that had an immediate positive impact in my life and how I view goals and getting something I want.
In a nutshell, the book proposes that we each have so much going on in life – our mind is all over the place. This is the exact opposite of what will bring us success. Instead, we need to narrow our focus down to One Thing.
But how are we to narrow down ALL of the things we have to do to ONE Thing?
The authors proposes that we ask ourself this big question:
What’s the One Thing I can do such that by doing it everything else would be easier or unnecessary?
In fact, this question should be written in a very visible place in your workspace.
The idea here is that success requires narrowly focusing our concentration.
Extraordinary results are determined by how narrow your focus is.
We need to go small to get big results. That is, we must ignore all the things that we could do and only do the things we should do.
You only have so much time and energy, so when you spread yourself out, you end up spread thin. You want your achievements to add up, but that actually takes subtraction, not addition. You need to be doing fewer things for more effect instead of doing more things with side effects.
The Domino Effect
Did you know that one domino can bring down another domino that is 50% larger? Imagine what could be knocked down if each domino in a line were 50% bigger than the one before it. One small domino could end up being very powerful. In fact, ‘the 23rd domino would tower over the Eiffel Tower’ !
What we need to do is find that 1st domino, the One Thing that will lead to the success we want.
The book is divided into 3 parts:
1 – The Lies, They Mislead and Derail Us
2 – The Truth, The Simple Path to Productivity
3 – Extraordinary Results, Unlocking the Possibilities Within
Part 1 – The Lies
They Mislead and Derail Us
Here’s the problem – We have been told that in order to achieve success we have to have certain things in place (or we must behave in certain ways).
These things that we have been told, however, are lies and they hold us back from being successful.
What are the Lies?
1. Everything Matters Equally
2. Multitasking
3. A Disciplined Life
4. Willpower Is Always on Will-Call
5. A Balanced Life
6. Big Is Bad
When we believe these lies, we end up going in the wrong direction.
The 1st Lie: Everything Matters Equally
Doing things does not necessarily mean we are making success or moving toward success.
Activity is often unrelated to productivity.
Most ‘To Do’ lists are filled with menial items that bring us no closer to success, but simply get us through the day.
Long hours spent checking off a to-do list and ending the day with a full trash can and a clean desk are not virtuous and have nothing to do with success. Instead of a to-do list, you need a success list – a list that is purposefully created around extraordinary results.
There is too much noise in our life: unimportant email, meetings, calls, etc.
Everything does not matter equally, in fact, 20% of what we do is responsible for 80% of the results we get. This, of course, is Pareto’s Principle or The 80/20 Rule (‘a small amount of causes creates most of the results’).
Our focus needs to be on productivity and not being busy.
We need to figure out what matters the most, what is the core activity needed and narrow that down to One Thing – That is where we start.
The 2nd Lie: Multitasking
The ability to multitask is often thought of as a skill, something desirable. How many times have you read a job announcement that required the ‘ability to multitask’?
It is true that we can do 2 things at once (e.g. walk and talk), but we can’t focus on 2 things at once. In order to focus on something, we have to go back and forth between tasks. In doing so, one of the tasks suffers.
In the workplace, ‘researchers estimate that workers are interrupted every 11 minutes and then spend almost a third of their day recovering from these distractions’.
If we could spend dedicated, uninterrupted time on a task (One task), we would be able to finish that task. However, if we have interruptions or distractions, we have to switch from what we are working on and orient ourselves with the new project.
When it is time to switch back, we have to reorient ourselves with the project we left. This is a waste of valuable time, not to mention the fact that we may never get back to the point where we were before the task switch.
Task switching is costly, it really just divides our focus and dumbs down the outcome of all things.
The bottom line is when we try to do too much at once, nothing gets done very well. We need to figure out the One Thing that is the most important and work on that.
The 3rd Lie: The Disciplined Life
There is this pervasive idea that the successful person is the ‘disciplined person’ who leads a ‘disciplined life’.
This is simply not true.
No one is disciplined, they have just develop habits. That is, they had enough discipline to develop a habit (and now they appear disciplined).
Success is about doing the right thing – we need to choose the right habit to develop to lead us to success.
How long does it take to create a habit?
You may have heard 30 days or even 21 days. Research has shown that it takes an average of 66 days.
Instead of trying to force some sort of ‘disciple’ on ourselves, we need to focus on creating habits that lead to success.
Don’t be a disciplined person. Be a person of powerful habits and use select discipline to develop them.
The 4th Lie: Willpower is Always on Will-Call
To get something you want you just need a little willpower, right?
If you don’t succeed then it must be because you have no willpower. This is wrong. It turns out that we are not truly in control of our willpower, meaning we can’t just call upon it and make something happen.
Think of willpower like the power bar on your cell phone. Every morning you start out with a full charge. As the day goes on, every time you draw on it you are using it up.
Given this, it is important to use your willpower wisely each day; Use your willpower on the things that matter. The start of the day is when your willpower is strongest so do the One Thing at the start of your day.
There are many things that use up our willpower and we might not even know it. We can recharge our willpower, but it usually requires a long resting period (like sleeping).
Here are some things that use up willpower:
– taking a test
– dealing with fear
– implementing new behaviors
– resisting temptation
– trying to impress others
– doing something you don’t enjoy
– suppressing emotions
– restraining aggression
Plan your day appropriately to make sure you have the willpower to do the things that are necessary.
The 5th Lie: A Balanced Life
The authors suggests that a balanced life is simply not possible. There is just no way that one can achieve this ideal. We instead need to think of counterbalancing or prioritizing.
The problem with living in the middle is that it prevents you from making extraordinary time commitments to anything. In your effort to attend to all things, everything gets short changed and nothing gets it’s due.
In fact, the author believes that ‘magic happens at extremes’. We have to be able to dedicate time to projects and situations in order for extraordinary things to occur – otherwise we end up doing the bare minimum.
We have to become masters at figuring out what our priority is and give it the time that it needs to achieve proper counter-balance.
When you act on your priority, you’ll automatically go out of balance, giving more time to one thing over another. The challenge then doesn’t become one of not going out of balance, for in fact you must. The challenge becomes how long you stay on your priority. To be able to address your priorities outside of work, be clear about your most important work priority so you can get it done. Then go home and be clear about your priorities there so you can get back to work.
The idea here simply goes back to focus. If you are having family time, then that is what you are doing. You are not to check emails, etc. Similarly, when you are at work, you prioritize so you can later focus on another aspect of your life.
The 6th Lie: Big is Bad
If you fear big success, you’ll either avoid it or sabotage your efforts to achieve it.
It’s unfortunate that many people associate ‘big’ with ideas like – hard, time consuming, overwhelming, stressful, etc.
Given this, ‘lowering our trajectory feels safe. Staying where we are feels prudent. But the opposite is true: When big is believed to be bad, small thinking rules the day and he never sees the light of it.
The fact of the matter is, no one really knows the ceiling on their achievement. So think big! Why would you limit yourself?
‘Thinking big is essential to extraordinary results’ and you will only know what you are capable of if you go big.
So the 6 lies that hold us back from success are:
1. Believing that everything matters equally
2. Engaging in multitasking
3. Thinking we must be lead a disciplined life
4. Thinking that we can simply call upon our Willpower
5. Believing and trying to achieve a balanced life
6. Thinking that big is bad
These are the lies, now what about the truth?
Part 2 – The Truth
The Simple Path to Productivity
Here is where we find what the author calls, the ‘Focusing Question’.
The Question is:
‘What’s the ONE Thing I can do such that by doing it everything else will be easier or unnecessary?’
Anyone who dreams of an uncommon life eventually discovers there is no choice but to seek an uncommon approach to living it. The Focus Question is that uncommon approach. In a world of no instructions, it becomes the simple formula for finding exceptional answers that lead to extraordinary results…. It is so deceptively simple that its power is easily dismissed by anyone who doesn’t closely examine it. But that would be mistake.
The Focusing Question can have your big picture ‘One Thing’ as well as the smaller focus (what to do right now) thing. That is, ‘it’s both a map for the big picture and a compass for your smallest next move’.
We need to find the One Thing we can do that will make everything else easier.
It’s the first domino and then the next and the next – always keeping in mind the end game.
Most people struggle to comprehend how many things don’t need to be done, if they would just start by doing the right thing.
Focus to knock down that one domino and you will see the others ready to follow suit.
If we make this question a part of our daily habit we can achieve extraordinary things. Approach all of the important areas of your life in this way. This is not advice only for work – think of your spiritual life, your physical health, your financial goals, etc.
Part 3 – Extraordinary Results
Unlocking the Possibilities Within You
Purpose, Productivity, Priority
The most productive people are driven by a purpose and this purpose shows them their priority.
Purpose
What is meant by purpose?
We all want to be happy, but happiness isn’t something that you find – it’s something that you bring to your life. That is, when we make our life about something big, something with meaning, we will be on the path to happiness.
What is it that gets you excited to get out of bed in the morning (or what would get you excited)?
This is your Big Why. It is what is exciting about your life.
What if you don’t know your purpose or your ‘big why’? This is certainly not uncommon. To help in finding your purpose, ask yourself, what is ‘the ONE Thing you want your life to be about more than anything else?’ What do you want to be remembered for? What do you want to bring to the world?
Once we have purpose, priority and productivity fall in line.
Priority
To help with our priority, ‘Goal Setting to The Now’ is helpful.
This is basically looking at what you want to achieve long term and then bringing it closer and closer to the present moment.
Here is what it looks like: You think about what you want to achieve someday. That is, what is the One Thing you want to do or accomplish in your life someday? This is your ‘Big’ thing.
From this point you then think about 5 years from your present moment. Ask yourself, ‘based on my someday goal, what is the ONE Thing I can do in the next 5 years?’.
After you have that, then you think about 1 year and ask yourself: ‘What is the ONE Thing I can do this year to attain my 5-year goal?’.
Then you move on to a monthly goal doing the same (What is the ONE Thing I can do this month to attain my yearly goal?)
Next would be your Weekly Goal, then your Daily Goal, and finally you arrive at the question, ‘What is the One Thing I need to do right now to attain my Daily Goal?’.
Do you see how starting with a purpose makes everything else fall into place? You will be certain that you are on track because everything you do is based around your end goal.
You’re training your mind how to think, how to connect one goal with the next over time until you know the most important thing you must do right NOW.
Productivity
The most successful people are the most productive people.
Being productive means focusing on the most important thing and in order to do this, you must have a dedicated time to work on that thing.
This is called Time Blocking.
The author suggests blocking out 4 hours (yes, 4 hours!) each day (5 days per week) to work on your One Thing.
You need to create a calendar and block time off for your One Thing and don’t stray. You should also block time to review your goals and progress.
You may need to get creative with your time blocking due to other obligations, but it is an important element in your life.
Time Blocking may seem difficult if not impossible to do. It is, however, essential.
There are 3 things we must commit to in order to be successful at Time Blocking (and our One Thing in general):
1. Follow the Path to Mastery
2. Taking it one step further
3. Live the Accountability Cycle
1. You must seek to be a master – commit to being your very best at your One Thing. This is what having a master mentality is all about. You must know ahead of time however, that this will take time. It will help to know that mastery is ‘a path you go down instead of a destination you arrive at’.
2. You must be willing to not only do the best you can do but the best it can be done. Here you will push yourself, grow, and improve. This is when we get extraordinary results and break through the ceiling.
It’s the difference between running into a wall and believing there is nothing more you can do versus figuring out a way to break down that wall.
3. Here’s a fact: ‘Accountable people achieve results others only dream of.’
What do unaccountable people do?
– They avoiding reality (not asking or exploring questions)
– They fighting against reality (claiming something like, ‘I don’t see what you are talking about’)
– They blame (either people or circumstances)
– They make excuses (saying something like, ‘That’s not my job’)
– They wait for things to happen and hope for the best (saying something like, ‘If it doesn’t work out then it wasn’t meant to be’)
Do you know people like this? Have you behaved in this manner? This is the equivalent of being a victim in life. These people let life happen and do nothing about it.
On the other hand, accountable people face the world and make things happen.
What do accountable people do?
– They seek out information (they want to know what is going on)
– They acknowledge reality (they know what they are dealing with and can come up with a plan of attack)
– They own the outcome (they take on any challenge and the responsibility)
– They find a solution (they search for what can be done)
– They get on with it (they take the appropriate action)
The difference is really life happening to you and you happening to life.
Conclusion
If you think small then you will get small, so think big and act big. If you can imagine it then you can achieve it.
When you think big, ask yourself if what you are currently doing will get you to where you want to be. If not, figure out what you need to do instead.
Your actions must match what you want; there must be alignment. If you think big and don’t do anything then you’re just hoping. But if you think big and act big then you are making things happen – One Thing, One Domino at a time.
When Steve Jobs returned to Apple in 1997, he took the company from 350 products to 10 products. What happened? Extraordinary results!
Check out the book for yourself below.
Finally a poem from the book…
My Wage
by J.B. Rittenhouse
I bargained with Life for a penny,
And life would pay no more,
However I begged at evening
When I counted my scanty store.
For life is a just employer,
He gives you what you ask,
But once you have set the wages,
Why, you must bear the task.
I worked for a menial’s hire,
Only to learn, dismayed,
That any wage I had asked of Life,
Life would have willingly paid.
If you are interested in more inspiring book notes/ summaries, check out The Art of Nonconformity Book Notes/ Summary.
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