Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less

by Greg McKeown

The Nonessentialist operates under the false logic that the more he strives, the more he will achieve, but the reality is, the more we reach for the stars, the harder it is to get ourselves off the ground.

the Essentialist starts small and celebrates progress. Instead of going for the big, flashy wins that don’t really matter, the Essentialist pursues small and simple wins in areas that are essential.

Research has shown that of all forms of human motivation the most effective one is progress. Why? Because a small, concrete win creates momentum and affirms our faith in our further success.

Instead of starting big and then flaring out with nothing to show for it other than time and energy wasted, to really get essential things done we need to start small and build momentum. Then we can use that momentum to work toward the next win, and the next one and so on until we have a significant breakthrough—and when we do, our progress will have become so frictionless and effortless that the breakthrough will seem like overnight success.

ROUTINE, IN AN INTELLIGENT MAN, IS A SIGN OF AMBITION. —W. H. Auden

to get big results we must start small.

When he says, “win,” he’s also referring to a single question, with its apt acronym, that guides what he expects from his players: “What’s important now?”

It is mind-bending to consider that in practical terms we only ever have now. We can’t control the future in a literal sense, just the now. Of course, we learn from the past and can imagine the future. Yet only in the here and now can we actually execute on the things that really matter.

Wow!

I applied only to Stanford—both times. When I finally received my offer the second time around it couldn’t have been more clear to me that this was the most vital thing for me to be doing. It was the right path at the right time. It was the quiet, personal confirmation of the way of the Essentialist.

Talent program.

“Clarity equals success.”

DAY 1: The Essentialist Find an accountability partner and read chapter 1 of Essentialism together. Invite them to do the 21-Day Challenge with you. DAY 2: Choose Catch yourself one time saying the words, “I have to.” Replace them with, “I choose to [fill in the blank].” DAY 3: Discern Ask, “What is the most important thing I can do today?” DAY 4: Trade-off When the thought “I will do both” crosses your mind, stop, pause, and pick one of the choices. DAY 5: Escape Schedule a Personal Quarterly Off-Site to explore what is essential. DAY 6: Look Start an essentialist journal: Write only one sentence a day answering the question, “What’s the most important thing that happened today?” DAY 7: Play Spend ten minutes playing a game with a child. Lose yourself in the magical exploration that comes so easily to children. DAY 8: Sleep Take a twenty-minute nap. DAY 9: Select One time today when something isn’t a clear yes, make it a clear no. DAY 10: Clarify Before going into your next meeting, pause and ask yourself, “What is the one thing I really want to achieve in this meeting?” DAY 11: Dare Write out how to say no gracefully. Word it carefully and practice it. DAY 12: Uncommit Look at each commitment on your calendar for the week. Ask, “If I wasn’t already involved, how hard would I work to get involved now?” DAY 13: Edit Use this new rule for one day: If you add a new activity, you need to edit out an existing activity to make space for it. DAY 14: Limit Next time anyone asks y...

Practice!