The One Thing

The one thing by Gary W Keller and Jay Papasan is focused on understanding that one thing you need to focus on to make you successful. Not all tasks on your to-do list matter equally. There are some that are of high importance and consistently give a successful result, that is the ONE THING we are referring to. Sometimes it is the only thing you do, sometimes; it is the first thing you do. Whatever ways you handle it, there is always a key phrase that says doing the most important is the most important thing to do. You have to make the hard things easy to do by disciplining yourself.

Things become easier after you have discipline yourself and establish that habit not only the thing you trained yourself for. The key point is, aim for bigger achievement, dream big, follow peoples trail and don’t be scared o fail. Sometimes we blindly believe in some lies that sound like truth and this has a great impact on your productivity. Some of these lies are multitasking, everything matters equally, a balance etc. Gary and Jay made us understand that there is nothing like multitasking, equality, willpower. They are all lies. It is much advisable to do fewer things for more effect than doing many things with side effects. Successful people work with a clear sense of priority and not from junks of priorities. Gary Keller and Jay Papasan reminded us again of the 80/20 principle. He shared in his book that we don’t need a To Do list; instead we need a success list. A success list is a list designed purposefully around your highest leverage activities. Your leverage activities can be determined using the 80/20 principle. The principle states that the MINORITY of your effort is what leads to the MAJORITY of your result. Your little investment today will yield a bigger result of what you will experience. So most importantly, you have to understand those minute tasks, those little tasks you should divert your 20% attention to that will yield 80% impact on your results. With this, you have been able to turn your to-do list into success list. Gary continues, “You can do two things at a time but you can’t focus effectively on two things at once. The truth is when you focus on two things you feel you are multitasking without paying cognizance to the fact that your attention is being divided and something is serving as a distraction at that particular time. I admire a quote that says take up two things, and your attention gets divided, take on three things, and somethings get dropped. The buzz, flash, pings on your phones can wait or be avoided by shutting down your phone just for the limited period you need to concentrate. People who seem like they are highly disciplined has conditioned a handful habits into their lives. Developing a habit takes an average of 66 days, with your willpower and persistence you can turn your discipline into a habit and things become easier to execute. In summary, your willpower each day is limited so use it wisely and do the most important things first so that you will not miss it.

The Big Three – Key points

Key Point #1: Do fewer things and get more effect rather than doing many things with side effects

Key Point #2: Discipline can be groomed into a habit

Key Point #3: Work with your success list and not your To Do list

One Last Thing 

“Work is a rubber ball. If you drop it, it will bounce back. The other four balls– family, health, friends, integrity– are made of glass. If you drop one of these, it will be irrevocably scuffed, nicked, perhaps even shattered.”
― Gary Keller