The ONE Thing: The Surprisingly Simple Truth About Extraordinary Results

by Gary Keller

“Going small” is ignoring all the things you could do and doing what you should do. It’s recognizing that not all things matter equally and finding the things that matter most. It’s a tighter way to connect what you do with what you want. It’s realizing that extraordinary results are directly determined by how narrow you can make your focus.

You need to be doing fewer things for more effect instead of doing more things with side effects.

Getting extraordinary results is all about creating a domino effect in your life.

extraordinary success is sequential, not simultaneous.

The key is over time. Success is built sequentially. It’s one thing at a time.

Passion for something leads to disproportionate time practicing or working at it. That time spent eventually translates to skill, and when skill improves, results improve. Better results generally lead to more enjoyment, and more passion and more time is invested. It can be a virtuous cycle all the way to extraordinary results.

The real solutions we seek are almost always hiding in plain sight; unfortunately, they’ve usually been obscured by an unbelievable amount of bunk, an astounding flood of “common sense” that turns out to be nonsense.

THE SIX LIES BETWEEN YOU AND SUCCESS Everything Matters Equally Multitasking A Disciplined Life Willpower Is Always on Will-Call A Balanced Life Big Is Bad

When everything feels urgent and important, everything seems equal. We become active and busy, but this doesn’t actually move us any closer to success. Activity is often unrelated to productivity, and busyness rarely takes care of business.

code by three o’clock the following morning. His name was Joseph M. Juran. Juran later cited this incident as the starting point for cracking

Start with as large a list as you want, but develop the mindset that you will whittle your way from there to the critical few and not stop until you end with the essential ONE. The imperative ONE. The ONE Thing.

Success is actually a short race—a sprint fueled by discipline just long enough for habit to kick in and take over.

The trick to success is to choose the right habit and bring just enough discipline to establish it.

“What’s the ONE Thing I can do / such that by doing it / everything else will be easier or unnecessary?”

When you ask a Great Question, you’re in essence pursuing a great goal.

A big, specific question leads to a big, specific answer, which is absolutely necessary for achieving a big goal.

“What’s the ONE Thing I can do in my life that would mean the most to me and the world, such that by doing it everything else would be easier or unnecessary?”

Live with purpose and you know where you want to go. Live by priority and you’ll know what to do to get there.

Based on my someday goal, what’s the ONE Thing I can do in the next five years to be on track to achieve it? Now, based on my five-year goal, what’s the ONE Thing I can do this year to be on track to achieve my five-year goal, so that I’m on track to achieve my someday goal? Now, based on my goal this year, what’s the ONE Thing I can do this month so I’m on track to achieve my goal this year, so I’m on track to achieve my five-year goal, so I’m on track to achieve my someday goal? Now, based on my goal this month, what’s the ONE Thing I can do this week so I’m on track to achieve my goal this month, so I’m on track to achieve my goal this year, so I’m on track to achieve my five-year goal, so I’m on track to achieve my someday goal? Now, based on my goal this week, what’s the ONE Thing I can do today so I’m on track to achieve my goal this week,

so I’m on track to achieve my goal this month, so I’m on track to achieve my goal this year, so I’m on track to achieve my five-year goal, so I’m on track to achieve my someday goal? So, based on my goal today, what’s the ONE Thing I can do right NOW so I’m on track to achieve my goal today, so I’m on track to achieve my goal this week, so I’m on track to achieve my goal this month, so I’m on track to achieve my goal this year, so I’m on track to achieve my five-year goal, so I’m on track to achieve my someday goal?

Productive people get more done, achieve better results, and earn far more in their hours than the rest.

They time block their ONE Thing and then protect their time blocks with a vengeance. They’ve connected the dots between working their time blocks consistently and the extra-ordinary results they seek.

To experience extraordinary results, be a maker in the morning and a manager in the afternoon.

The people who achieve extraordinary results don’t achieve them by working more hours. They achieve them by getting more done in the hours they work.

Mastery is a commitment to becoming your best, so to achieve extraordinary results you must embrace the extraordinary effort it represents.

The Purposeful person follows the simple rule that “a different result requires doing something different.”

don’t know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody.”

The wrong people in your environment can most certainly dissuade, deter, and distract you from the productivity course you’ve set out on. But the opposite is also true. No one succeeds alone and no one fails alone. Pay attention to the people around you. Seek out those who will support your goals, and show the door to anyone who won’t.

Getting your focus as small as possible simplifies your thinking and crystallizes what you must do.