The ONE Thing by Gary Keller: Summary & Notes - Calvin ...

Business coach and author Gary Keller provides a simple and powerful framework for achieving extraordinary results in your personal and professional life. He ... Skiptocontent About Articles Foundations Newsletter Notes Scholarships Twitter About Articles Foundations Newsletter Notes Scholarships Twitter About Articles Foundations Newsletter Notes Scholarships Twitter About Articles Foundations Newsletter Notes Scholarships Twitter TheONEThing:TheSurprisinglySimpleTruthBehindExtraordinaryResultsbyGaryKeller Summary BusinesscoachandauthorGaryKellerprovidesasimpleandpowerfulframeworkforachievingextraordinaryresultsinyourpersonalandprofessionallife.Heshowsyouhowtoleverageapowerfulquestiontolivealifeofpurpose,priority,andproductivity.Aboveallelse,you’llwalkawaywithgreaterclarityonhowtocreatealifeworthliving. BuythisbookonAmazon(Highlyrecommend) AccessMySearchableCollectionof100+BookNotes KeyTakeaways TheONEthing Onethingisattheheartofeverysuccess.It’syourjobtofindandpursueyouronething. Sixliesofsuccess Everythingmattersequally Equalityisanidea,notapracticalrealityintheworldofresults. To-dolistscantyrannizeyourdayswithtasksifyoudon’tvetthem.Youfeelanobligationtodoeverythingonthelist,ratherthanthethingsthatreallymatter.Youshouldhavea“success”list,ratherthanato-dolist. Achievershaveaneyefortheessential. Livealifefocusedonthevitalfewthingsthatmatterratherthanthetrivialmany.Pareto’slawof80%ofoutputsaredrivenby20%ofinputsisapredictablelawofnature,notjustaninterestingtheory. Multitasking Peoplethinktheycanmultitask,buttheycan’t.Wemaybeabletodomultiplethingsatonce,butwecan’tfocusontwothingsatonce.Multitaskingisineffectiveandinefficient Italsoleadstoconstanttaskswitching,whichcostsyouvaluableenergy,timeandefficiency. Adisciplinedlife There’sacommonideathatsuccessrequiresyoutobedisciplinedatalltimes.Therealityisthatnooneisorcanbedisciplinedallthetime. Whatyoureallyneedisthedisciplinetobuildahabit,whichonaverage,takes66daystobuild.Onceyouformthehabit,theactionorbehaviorbecomesanear-automaticpartofyourlifeanddoesn’trequireasmuchdisciplineorcognitiveenergytokeepup. Soifyouhavethedisciplinetobuildtherighthabits,you’llstarthavingyourlifeworkforyou,ratherthanagainstyou. Willpower Thereisanideathatyoucantapintoyourwillpoweratanytimeyouwant.Soifyoudon’tfeellikedoingsomething,youjustinvokeyourwillpowerandit’sokay.Butthisisafaultyideabecausewillpowerisafiniteresource.It’slikeapowerbaronyourcellphone–alimitedandrenewableresourcethatneedstobemanaged. Whenyourwillpowerrunsout,youreverttoyourdefaultsettings.That’swhyattheendofadayofhardworkyou’remorelikelytogrababagofchipsoveranapple.Youmayknowthatyouwanttheappleforyourhealth,butyourwillpowerisdepletedandyouknowlongerhaveastrongdefensemechanismagainstthesaltychips. Therearemanywaysthatyourwillpoweristaxedthroughouttheday,including: Implementingnewbehaviors Filteringdistractions Suppressingemotions Restrainingaggression Suppressingimpulses Copingwithfear Tryingtoimpressothers Doingsomethingyoudon’tenjoy Choosingthelongtermovertheshortterm Youmustlearntomanageyourwillpower.Forexample,doyour“onething”earlyinthemorningwhenyourtankofwillpowerisstillfull. Abalancedlife Livingabalancedlifeisamisleadingconcept.Whatyouwanttoseekispurposeandmeaning,notbalance.Balanceisnotallbad,butifyoupursuesuccessincertainrealms,itnaturallycomesattheexpenseofotherthings.Whenthishappens,youneedtomakesurethecostisn’ttoohighbykeepingsomesemblanceofbalanceintheotherareasyoucareabout. Whenyou’rejugglingtheballsoflife,yourealizethat“work”isarubberballthatbouncesbackifyoumessupanddroptheball.Ontheotherhand,“family,”“health,”“friends,”and“integrity”arelikeglassballs.Whenyoudropthem,theconsequencesarehigher. Whenitcomestowork,treatitasaskillyouwanttodevelopuntilyouachievemastery.Deprioritizeeverythingelsewithwork.Withtheotherareasofyourlife,makesureyou’regivingsomethingtoeachofthem. Bigisbad Goingbiginyourlifeisnotabadthing.Ifyoubelieveinthismyth,thensmallthinkingwillprevailinyourlife.Bigisagoodthing.Bigisaboutwhoyoucanbecomeandtheboldideasthatreflectyourexcitingfuture. Whatyoubuildtodaywilleither:Empowerorrestrictyoutomorrow;serveasaplatformforthenextlevelofsuccessoraboxtrappingyouwhereyouare. Toliveagreatlife,youneedtothinkbig.Askbiggerquestions.Avoidincrementalthinking.Adoptagrowth,notafixedmindset. Thefocusingquestion Thequestionsyouaskmatter: Voltaire:“Judgeamanbyhisquestions,ratherthanhisanswers.” SirFrancisBacon:“Aprudentquestionisonehalfofwisdom.” Gandhi:“Thepowertoquestionisthebasisofallhumanprogress.” Thequestionyouneedtoaskforeverythingissimpleanddeceptivelypowerful: “What’stheonethingIcandosuchthatbydoingiteverythingelsewillbeeasierorunnecessary?” Whenyouconsistentlyaskandanswerthefocusingquestion,youractionsbecomeaprogressionofdoingonerightthingafteranother.Youfocusontheonethingthatmatters,digdeep,andcompleteactionsthatprovidethemostleverageforyoursuccess. Thesuccesshabit:powerfulquestionsandanswers Foreveryareaofyourlife–career,finances,leisure,learning,relationships,andhealth–identifytheonethingonacertaintimescalethatyouwilldobyansweringthefollowingquestionconsistently: Formy[career,finances,leisure,learning,relationships,andhealth],what’stheonethingIcando[today,thisweek,thisquarter,thisyear,inthenext5years]suchthatbydoingiteverythingelsewillbeeasierorunnecessary. Makeyourquestionbigandspecific.Forexample,“What’stheonethingIcandotodoublesalesin6monthssuchthatbydoingiteverythingelsewillbeeasierorunnecessary?” Therearethreetypesofanswerstoyourbigandspecificquestion: Doable→realisticandprobable,morelikeato-dolistitemtocheckoff Stretch→withinreach,butattheendoftherangeandwillpushyou Great→beyondnaturalgrasp,requiringyoutogobeyondyourcomfortzoneandexplorewhat’spossible. Ifyouwanttobesuccessful,choosegreatanswers. Livewithpurpose Yourpurposeisyourguidingforce.It’sthecombinationofwhereyou’regoingandwhat’simportanttoyou.Yourpurposedeterminesyourpriority,whichthendeterminestheproductivityofyouractions. Withoutpurpose,you’restuckintheunfulfillingcycleofpursuing,acquiring,andachieving.You’reneversatisfiedandalwayslookingforthenextmarkerofsuccess. Thereare5factorsforhappiness: Positiveemotionandpleasure Achievement Relationships Meaning Engagement Meaningandengagementarethemostimportantforyourhappiness.Whenyouareengagedwithandfindmeaninginwhatyoudo,youexperienceapowerfulandenduringhappiness. Withpurpose,claritycomesfaster,andwhenthingsdon’tgoyourway,you’remoreresilient.Tostartunderstandingyourpurpose,askyourself: “What’stheonethingIcandoinmylifethatwouldmeanthemosttomeandtheworldsuchthatbydoingiteverythingelsewillbeeasierorunnecessary?” Whatdrivesyou?Whatkeepsyougoing?Evenifyouaren’tsure,pickadirectionandstartlearning.Youcanalwayschangeyourpurpose. Livebypriority Priorityiswhatyoudonowtogetwhereyouwanttogo.Yourpriorityisthemostimportantactionyoudotofulfillyourpurpose. Thereareafewproblemswithhowwethinkaboutpriority: Hyperbolic-discounting:thefartherawayarewardisinthefuture,thesmallerisourimmediatemotivationtoachieveit.Thisbiasforpresentrewardslimitsourfutureresults. Planningfallacy:Overconfidenceleadsustooverestimatewhatwecanachieveinacertainamountoftime. Writingdownyourpriorityisessential.Peoplewhowritedowngoalsare39%morelikelytoachievethem,andthosewhoshareprogressontheirgoalswithfriends,are76%morelikelytoachievethem. Liveforproductivity Successisborninproductivity.Thereareafewwaystobemoreproductive,themostimportantofwhichistimeblockingthreethings: Timeoff–planyourvacationinadvance,sothatworkcomesinbetweenvacations,ratherthanavacationbeingatemporaryreleasefromwork. Onething–designyourdaysothatyoucompleteyouronething.Blockoff4hourstodothiswhenit’sbestforyou,whichistypicallyinthemorning. Planningtime–Conductadaily,weekly,quarterly,andannualreviewtocheckinonwhatyouronethingisandtomakesurethatyou’resettingyourselfuptosucceed. Protectyourtimefortheonething:Whensomeoneasksyoutodosomethingthatdoesn’talignwithyourpriority,protectyourtime.Often,it’snotasurgentasyouthink.Perhapssaysomethinglike,“IfIgetitdoneby[x]date,isthatokayforyou?” 3commitments Adoptamasterymindset Masteryisanever-endingprocessofdeliberatepractice.Decidewhatyouwanttomaster,andputinthework. Seekthebestwaystodothings Thebestofthebestarecommittedtoimprovinghowwelltheydothings.Extraordinaryresultsrequiredoingthingsdifferently.Whenyouhitthe“okay”plateauwhereyouarecompetent,don’tstoptherebecauseit’scomfortable.Seektobecomethebestatthetaskathand. Beaccountableforyouronething You’reeitheraccountableornot.Accountablepeopleovercomechallenges,solveproblems,getresults.Beaccountable.Findanaccountabilitypartnerwhocanholdyoutohighstandards,provideobjectivefeedback,andbrainstormwhenyouneedit. 4productivitythieves Inabilitytosayno Lifepresentsendlessrequestsforyourtime.Youcan’tsayyestoeverything,andyoushouldn’t.Yourresponsibilityistosayyestoyouronething.Theremaybemanyreasonsyoufearsayingno,butyouneedtofindsystemstolearnhowtosaynoandbecomfortablewithit. Fearofchaos Whenyousayyestoyouronething,thatoftencomesattheexpenseofdoingtheendlesslistofthingsthatyoufeelyouneedtodo.Ifyou’reusedtotryingtodoeverything,youmightfearwhathappenswhenyouletsomethingsgo.Butgettingcomfortablewithlettingafewsmallbadthingshappensothatyoucanfocusontheonethingthattrulymattersisessentialtoyoursuccess. Poorhealthhabits Youwillnothavetheenergyorabilitytosucceedifyoudon’ttakecareofyourhealth.Youneedtoprotectyourmostvaluableasset,yourself.Meditate,exercise,takebreaks,sleep,andsoon.Dowhateverittakestokeepyourselfingoodhealth. Anenvironmentthatdoesn’tsupportyourgoals Everyday,whoyouarearoundandwhatyouexperiencedetermineyourdestiny.Surroundyourselfwithnegativepeople,andthatattitudewillruboffonyou.Youthink,act,andbecomelikethepeopleyouspendthemosttimewith.Surroundyourselfwithpositive,driven,smart,andsuccessfulpeople.Designyourworkingenvironmentsothatyoucanfocusonyouronething. Livealifeofnoregrets Alifeworthlivingisalifeofnoregrets.The5mostcommonregretspeoplehaveare: Notgivingthemselvespermissiontobehappier Failingtostayintouchwithfriends Nothavingthecouragetoexpresstheirfeelings Workingtoohard Nothavethecouragetolivelifeforthemselvesversusfortheexpectationsofothers Don’tgettoyourdeathbedwithanyregrets.It’snotworthit. Ifyoufoundthesenoteshelpful... Youmightalsoenjoythesebooks... Wanting:ThePowerofMimeticDesireinEverydayLifebyLukeBurgis StillnessIstheKeybyRyanHoliday HowtoStopWorryingandStartLivingbyDaleCarnegie FooledbyRandomness:TheHiddenRoleofChanceinLifeandintheMarketsbyNassimTaleb ThinkinginBets:MakingSmarterDecisionsWhenYouDon’tHaveAlltheFactsbyAnnieDuke ThinkAgain:ThePowerofKnowingWhatYouDon’tKnowbyAdamGrant StartwithWhy:HowGreatLeadersInspireEveryonetoTakeActionbySimonSinek RadicalCandor:BeaKick-AssBossWithoutLosingYourHumanityByKimScott Can’tHurtMe:MasterYourMindandDefytheOddsbyDavidGoggins TheRideofaLifetimebyRobertIger AboutMe CalvinRosserhere. Icreatedthissitetoimprovethequalityofyourlife.Ifyoupokearound,you'llfindhelpfularticles,podcastepisodes,booksummaries,andmore.Thankyouforbeinghere. Opensinanewtab Learnsomethingneweveryweek Yourock!Pleasecheckyouremailtoconfirmyoursubscription. Therewasanerrorsubmittingyoursubscription.Pleasetryagain. EmailAddress I'dliketoreceivethefreeemailcourse. 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