“The One Thing” by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan (Book ...

The One Thing by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan is a productivity book based on a simple premise: If you want more – more productivity, income, ... Home>>Blog>>BookSummaries>>“TheOneThing”byGaryKellerandJayPapasan(BookSummary)“TheOneThing”byGaryKellerandJayPapasan(BookSummary)TheOneThingbyGaryKellerandJayPapasanisaproductivitybookbasedonasimplepremise:Ifyouwantmore–moreproductivity,income,satisfaction,time–youneedtogosmallandwantless.Astheauthorsputit,“Youwantfewerdistractionsandlessonyourplate.Thebarrageofe-mails,texts,calls,andmeetingskeepyoufromyourmostimportantwork.Simultaneousdemandsofworkandfamilytakeatoll.What’sthecost?Second-ratework,misseddeadlines,smallerpaychecks–andlotsofstress.”Thebookfocusesonafewkeypoints,includingprioritization,goalsetting,andthesuperiorityofsingle-taskingovermultitasking.Mostimportantly,thebookteachesyouoneofthemostpowerfulquestionsyoucaneveraskyourself.WhoisTheOneThingfor?AnyonewithtoomuchontheirplateAnyonetryingtodotoomanythingsatonceAnyoneinterestedinbecomingmoreproductive1.GoingSmall“Whenyouwanttheabsolutebestchancetosucceedatanythingyouwant,yourapproachshouldalwaysbethesame.Gosmall.‘Goingsmall’isignoringallthethingsyoucoulddoanddoingwhatyoushoulddo.It’srecognizingthatnotallthingsmatterequallyandfindingthethingsthatmattermost.It’satighterwaytoconnectwhatyoudowithwhatyouwant.It’srealizingthatextraordinaryresultsaredirectlydeterminedbyhownarrowyoucanmakeyourfocus.”“Whenyougoassmallaspossible,you’llbestaringatonething.Andthat’sthepoint.”Therecommendationtogosmallisattheveryheartofthebook.It’saboutfocusingononething,ratherthanfiveortenorfiftyorahundred.Mostofusspreadourselvestoothin.Thetruthis,wehaveonlysomuchtimeandenergyavailabletous.Ifwewantthebestchancesofachievingsomethingmeaningful,weneedtoprioritize:Chooseournextdominoandgiveitourfullattention.2.TheDominoEffect“Topplingdominoesisprettystraightforward.Youlinethemupandtipoverthefirstone.Intherealworld,though,it’sabitmorecomplicated.Thechallengeisthatlifedoesn’tlineeverythingupforusandsay,“Here’swhereyoushouldstart.”Highlysuccessfulpeopleknowthis.Soeverydaytheylineuptheirprioritiesanew,findtheleaddomino,andwhackawayatituntilitfalls.Whydoesthisapproachwork?Becauseextraordinarysuccessissequential,notsimultaneous.Whatstartsoutlinearbecomesgeometric.Youdotherightthingandthenyoudothenextrightthing.Overtimeitaddsup,andthegeometricpotentialofsuccessisunleashed.Thedominoeffectappliestothebigpicture,likeyourworkoryourbusiness,anditappliestothesmallestmomentineachdaywhenyou’retryingtodecidewhattodonext.Successbuildsonsuccess,andasthishappens,overandover,youmovetowardthehighestsuccesspossible.”AccordingtoWikipedia,adominoeffect“orchainreactionisthecumulativeeffectproducedwhenoneeventsetsoffachainofsimilarevents.”Theauthorsexplainthatadominocanknockoveranextdominothat’s50%bigger.Ifyoustartwitha2inchdomino,the10thdominowouldbeastallasNFLquarterbackPeytonManning,the18thdominothesizeoftheTowerofPisa,the23rdthesizeoftheEifelTower,the31sttallerthanMountEverest,andthe57thwouldnearlygetyouallthewaytothemoon.Thepointis:Extraordinaryresultscomefromdoingonethingatatime.Successisbuiltsequentially,notsimultaneously.It’sallaboutliningupthedomino,givingitallofourattention,knockingitover,andthenliningupthenextdomino.Onethingatatime.Overalongenoughtimeperiod,bigthingswillhappen.3.Prioritization,the80/20Principle,andSuccessVersusTo-DoLists“Achieversoperatedifferently.Theyhaveaneyefortheessential.Theypausejustlongenoughtodecidewhatmattersandthenallowwhatmatterstodrivetheirday.Achieversdosoonerwhatothersplantodolateranddefer,perhapsindefinitely,whatothersdosooner.Thedifferenceisn’tinintent,butinrightofway.Achieversalwaysworkfromaclearsenseofpriority.”“RichardKoch,inhisbookThe80/20Principle,defineditaboutaswellasanyone:‘The80/20Principleassertsthataminorityofcauses,inputs,oreffortusuallyleadtoamajorityoftheresults,outputs,orrewards.’Inotherwords,intheworldofsuccess,thingsaren’tequal.Asmallamountofcausescreatesmostoftheresults.Justtherightinputcreatesmostoftheoutput.Selectedeffortcreatesalmostalloftherewards.”“Paretopointsusinaverycleardirection:themajorityofwhatyouwantwillcomefromtheminorityofwhatyoudo.Extraordinaryresultsaredisproportionatelycreatedbyfeweractionsthanmostrealize.”“…noteverythingmattersequally;somethingsmattermorethanothers—alotmore.Ato-dolistbecomesasuccesslistwhenyouapplyPareto’sPrincipletoit.”Prioritization,the80/20principle,andtheideaofsuccessversusto-dolistsallcomedowntothissimpletruth:Notallactivitiesareequallyvaluableandnotallactivitiesbringaboutthesamerewards.Thisgoesbacktotheideaof“beingbusyversusbeingproductive.”Astheauthorsputit:“To-doliststendtobelong;successlistsareshort.Onepullsyouinalldirections;theotheraimsyouinaspecificdirection.Oneisadisorganizeddirectoryandtheotherisanorganizeddirective.Ifalistisn’tbuiltaroundsuccess,thenthat’snotwhereittakesyou.Ifyourto-dolistcontainseverything,thenit’sprobablytakingyoueverywherebutwhereyoureallywanttogo.”Theprescriptionissimple.Focusonthefewthingsthattrulymatter.Identifythe20%thatcreate80%oftheresults.Andthentakethose20%againandnarrowitdownevenfurther–until,ultimately,youhaveonedominotofocuson.Then,goaboutknockingoverthatdomino.4.JugglingisanIllusion“Jugglingisanillusion.Tothecasualobserver,ajugglerisjugglingthreeballsatonce.Inreality,theballsarebeingindependentlycaughtandthrowninrapidsuccession.Catch,toss,catch,toss,catch,toss.Oneballatatime.It’swhatresearchersrefertoas‘taskswitching.’”Whenyouswitchfromonetasktoanother,voluntarilyornot,twothingshappen.Thefirstisnearlyinstantaneous:youdecidetoswitch.Thesecondislesspredictable:youhavetoactivatethe‘rules’forwhateveryou’reabouttodo(seefigure6).Switchingbetweentwosimpletasks—likewatchingtelevisionandfoldingclothes—isquickandrelativelypainless.However,ifyou’reworkingonaspreadsheetandaco-workerpopsintoyourofficetodiscussabusinessproblem,therelativecomplexityofthosetasksmakesitimpossibletoeasilyjumpbackandforth.Italwaystakessometimetostartanewtaskandrestarttheoneyouquit,andthere’snoguaranteethatyou’lleverpickupexactlywhereyouleftoff.Thereisapriceforthis.‘Thecostintermsofextratimefromhavingtotaskswitchdependsonhowcomplexorsimplethetasksare,’reportsresearcherDr.DavidMeyer.‘Itcanrangefromtimeincreasesof25percentorlessforsimpletaskstowellover100percentormoreforverycomplicatedtasks.’Taskswitchingexactsacostfewrealizethey’reevenpaying.”Opposedtopopularbelief,multitaskingdoesn’tmakeyoumoreproductive,itmakesyoulessproductive.Thereason:switchingcosts.Everytimeyouswitchfromonetasktoanother,youneedto“forget”abouttheprevioustaskandactivatetherulesofthenewtask.Thismayberelativelyeffortlesswhenthetasksaresimple,butnotwhentheyarecomplex.AsresearcherDavidMeyersays,thetimecostscanrangefrom25percentorlesstowellover100percent.Andthelossinproductivityisbyallmeansnottheonlyissuewithmultitasking.Theauthorssumuptheproblemsasfollows:Thereisjustsomuchbraincapabilityatanyonetime.Divideitupasmuchasyouwant,butyou’llpayapriceintimeandeffectiveness.Themoretimeyouspendswitchedtoanothertask,thelesslikelyyouaretogetbacktoyouroriginaltask.Thisishowlooseendspileup.Bouncebetweenoneactivityandanotherandyoulosetimeasyourbrainreorientstothenewtask.Thosemillisecondsaddup.Researchersestimatewelose28percentofanaverageworkdaytomultitaskingineffectiveness.Chronicmultitaskersdevelopadistortedsenseofhowlongittakestodothings.Theyalmostalwaysbelievetaskstakelongertocompletethanisactuallyrequired.Multitaskersmakemoremistakesthannon-multitaskers.Theyoftenmakepoorerdecisionsbecausetheyfavornewinformationoverold,eveniftheolderinformationismorevaluable.Multitaskersexperiencemorelife-reducing,happiness-squelchingstress.Inshort:Multitaskingleadstomistakes,poorchoices,stress,andlowproductivity.5.TheFocusingQuestion“Extraordinaryresultsarerarelyhappenstance.Theycomefromthechoiceswemakeandtheactionswetake.TheFocusingQuestionalwaysaimsyouattheabsolutebestofbothbyforcingyoutodowhatisessentialtosuccess—makeadecision.Butnotjustanydecision—itdrivesyoutomakethebestdecision.Itignoreswhatisdoableanddrillsdowntowhatisnecessary,towhatmatters.Itleadsyoutothefirstdomino.”“TheFocusingQuestion:What’stheONE THINGIcandosuchthatbydoingiteverythingelsewillbeeasierorunnecessary?”TheFocusingQuestionisthesecretsauceofthisbook.It’stheonepieceofadviceyouwon’tfindinanyotherbook.Thequestiongoeslikethis:What’stheONETHINGIcandosuchthatbydoingiteverythingelsewillbeeasierorunnecessary?It’samagicalquestionformultiplereasons.Itforcesyoutoprioritize,focusononething,bespecific,anditdirectsyoutotakeaction.Thequestioncanbeusedinavarietyofways.Youcanuseittocreateavisionforyourlife,youcanuseitfirstthingeverymorning,youcanuseitthroughouttheday,youcanuseittosetgoals,oryoucanuseittoprioritize.(You’llfindspecificusesforthequestionbelow.)Accordingtotheauthors,regularlyusingthisquestionisagame-changer:“TheFocusingQuestionisthefoundationalhabitIusetoachieveextraordinaryresultsandleadabiglife.”6.SpecificUsesfortheFocusingQuestion“TheFocusingQuestioncandirectyoutoyourONEThinginthedifferentareasofyourlife.SimplyreframetheFocusingQuestionbyinsertingyourareaoffocus.Youcanalsoincludeatimeframe—suchas‘rightnow’or‘thisyear’—togiveyouranswertheappropriatelevelofimmediacy,or‘infiveyears’or‘someday’tofindabig-pictureanswerthatpointsyouatoutcomestoaimfor.HerearesomeFocusingQuestionstoaskyourself.Saythecategoryfirst,thenstatethequestion,addatimeframe,andendbyadding‘suchthatbydoingiteverythingelsewillbeeasierorunnecessary?’Forexample:‘Formyjob,what’stheONEThingIcandotoensureIhitmygoalsthisweeksuchthatbydoingiteverythingelsewillbeeasierorunnecessary?’”Herearethespecificquestionstheauthorsrecommend…FORMYSPIRITUALLIFE...What’stheONEThingIcandotohelpothers...?What’stheONEThingIcandotoimprovemyrelationshipwithGod...?FORMYPHYSICALHEALTH...What’stheONEThingIcandotoachievemydietgoals...?What’stheONEThingIcandotoensurethatIexercise...?What’stheONEThingIcandotorelievemystress...?FORMYPERSONALLIFE...What’stheONEThingIcandotoimprovemyskillat________...?What’stheONEThingIcandotofindtimeformyself...?FORMYKEYRELATIONSHIPS...What’stheONEThingIcandotoimprovemyrelationshipwithmyspouse/partner...?What’stheONEThingIcandotoimprovemychildren’sschoolperformance...?What’stheONEThingIcandotoshowmyappreciationtomyparents...?What’stheONEThingIcandotomakemyfamilystronger...?FORMYJOB...What’stheONEThingIcandotoensurethatIhitmygoals...?What’stheONEThingIcandotoimprovemyskills...?What’stheONEThingIcandotohelpmyteamsucceed...?What’stheONEThingIcandotofurthermycareer...?FORMYBUSINESS...What’stheONEThingIcandotomakeusmorecompetitive...?What’stheONEThingIcandotomakeourproductthebest...?What’stheONEThingIcandotomakeusmoreprofitable...?What’stheONEThingIcandotoimproveourcustomerexperience...?FORMYFINANCES...What’stheONEThingIcandotoincreasemynetworth...?What’stheONEThingIcandotoimprovemyinvestmentcashflow...?What’stheONEThingIcandotoeliminatemycreditcarddebt...?7.Productivity’sGreatestPowerTool“Mostpeoplethinkthere’sneverenoughtimetobesuccessful,butthereiswhenyoublockit.Timeblockingisaveryresultsorientedwayofviewingandusingtime.It’sawayofmakingsurethatwhathastobedonegetsdone.AlexanderGrahamBellsaid,‘Concentrateallyourthoughtsupontheworkathand.Thesun’sraysdonotburnuntilbroughttoafocus.’Timeblockingharnessesyourenergyandcentersitonyourmostimportantwork.It’sproductivity’sgreatestpowertool.”Timeblockingmeanstoblockoutlargepiecesofuninterruptedtimeforspecificuses.Forme,myfirsttimeblockeverydayisthemorningritual.Ifollowthisupwitha2-3hourtimeblockofdeepwork.Ithentakeabreakfollowedbyanotherdeepworktimeblock.Thencomesatimeblockoflunchandrest.Foryou,thismightbedifferent.ItalldependsonyourONEThing.Whateveritis,youneedtoblockouttimeforitonyourcalendar.Ifit’saone-timething,youblockonespecifictime.Ifit’sarepeatable,every-daything,youblockitoffeveryday.Andonceyou’veblockedaspecificchunkoftime,nothinggetsintheway.Thinkaboutitthisway:IfdisproportionateresultscomefromONEactivity,thenyoumustgivethatactivitydisproportionatetime.PapasanandKellersuggesttimeblockingthreethings:YourtimeoffYourONEThingYourplanningtimeYouwanttogotoyourcalendarandblockofflargeamountsoftimeforthesethreeactivities.8.TimeBlockYourTimeOff“Extraordinarilysuccessfulpeoplelaunchtheiryearbytakingtimeouttoplantheirtimeoff.Why?Theyknowthey’llneeditandtheyknowthey’llbeabletoaffordit.Intruth,themostsuccessfulsimplyseethemselvesasworkingbetweenvacations.Ontheotherhand,theleastsuccessfuldon’treservetimeoff,becausetheydon’tthinkthey’lldeserveitorbeabletoaffordit.Byplanningyourtimeoffinadvance,youare,ineffect,managingyourworktimearoundyourdowntimeinsteadoftheotherwayaround.”Productivityisn’taboutputtinginmorehours,it’saboutgettingasmuchhigh-valueworkdoneinaslittletimeaspossible.Workingtoomanyhoursonlyslowsyoudown.Astheauthorssuggest:Taketimeoff.Blockoutlongvacationsandlongweekends,thentakethem.You’llbelessstressed,betterrested,morerelaxed,andmoreproductivewhenyoucomeback.9.TimeBlockYourONEThing“Afteryou’vetimeblockedyourtimeoff,timeblockyourONEThing.Yes,youreadthatright.Yourmostimportantworkcomessecond.Why?Becauseyoucan’thappilysustainsuccessinyourprofessionallifeifyouneglectyourpersonal‘re-creation’time.Timeblockyourtimeoff,andthenmaketimeforyourONEThing.Themostproductivepeople,theoneswhoexperienceextraordinaryresults,designtheirdaysarounddoingtheirONEThing.Theirmostimportantappointmenteachdayiswiththemselves,andtheynevermissit.”Thefirstthingonyourcalendarisyourtime-offtimeblocks.ThenextthingisyourONE-Thingtimeblocks.Thereasoningforthisissimple,andwe’vementioneditearlier:IfyourONEThingcreatesdisproportionateresults,itonlymakessensetospenddisproportionatetimeonit.Unlessyoublocktimeforyour#1high-valueactivity,youwon’tspendnearlyenoughtimeonit.Instead,you’llendupwastingtimeonemail,socialmedia,meetings,andotherlow-valueactivities.10.TheOneThing“Ifyoutrytodoeverything,youcouldwindupwithnothing.IfyoutrytodojustONEThing,therightONEThing,youcouldwindupwitheverythingyoueverwanted.TheONEThingisreal.Ifyouputittowork,itwillwork.Sodon’tdelay.Askyourselfthequestion,‘What’stheONEThingIcandorightnowtostartusingTheONEThinginmylifesuchthatbydoingiteverythingelsewillbeeasierorunnecessary?’AndmakedoingtheansweryourfirstONEThing!”Thosearethelastwordsofthebook.So,whatareyouwaitingfor?Startapplyingwhatyou’velearnedandaskyourself:What’stheONEThingIcandorightnowtostartusingTheONEThinginmylifesuchthatbydoingiteverythingelsewillbeeasierorunnecessary?FurtherReadingIfyouenjoyedthissummary,you’llenjoythefollowingbooksaswell:DeepWorkbyCalNewport.Thebestproductivitybookonthemarketrightnow.EatThatFrogbyBrianTracy.Anotherpowerfulbookonproductivityandprioritization.TheProductivityProjectbyChrisBailey.Perhapsthemostcomprehensiveandbeginner-friendlybookonpersonalproductivity.NilsSalzgeberNilsSalzgeberisanAmazon#1bestsellingauthorandco-founderofNJlifehacks.Heisaproductivityandpersonaltransformationspecialistwhocombinespersonalexperiencewithmodernscience.Hequituniversityattheageof21aftersuccessfullymakingtheleaptoentrepreneurship.Sincethen,hehasbeentravelingtheworld,builtseveralsuccessfulonlinebusinesses,andpublishedtwobooks.igorsays:March19,2019at3:16amVerygoodreview!Thankyou!!ReplyNilsSalzgebersays:March19,2019at4:15amMypleasure.ReplyKumarsays:March19,2019at8:18amVeryinformativeandhelpfulDefinitely,IwouldapplytomylifeReplyNilsSalzgebersays:March19,2019at10:37amCheers,Kumar.ReplyStefsays:June10,2019at2:28amGreatsummary.Thanksforsharing.SavedmehourssothatIcanconcentrateonmyONEthing.PS:TheProductivityProjectisnotlinkableReplyNilsSalzgebersays:June10,2019at8:42amMypleasure,Stef.Gladyouenjoyedit!ReplyAzhersays:July23,2019at2:21amPlease,makemorebooksummary.youguysareawesome.ReplyNilsSalzgebersays:July23,2019at10:21amThanks,Azher!Appreciatethekindwords🙂ReplyGuillermosays:July25,2019at1:09amGreatSummaryTHANKYOU!ReplyNilsSalzgebersays:July25,2019at9:22amMypleasure,man!ReplyTariqsays:August14,2019at12:48pmItwasgreatreading.Youmadeitsoquickandeasy.Evenbetterthanreal.Pleaseadd“AwakentheGiant“inyourlistReplyNilsSalzgebersays:August15,2019at7:33amThankyou,Tariq!Willconsideryourrecommendation🙂ReplyCamilosays:December2,2019at2:10pmThanksalotforthesummary!Wantedtogetthemainideaofthebookandyoumadeitsof.clear!BTWI’mreadingthebookonStoicismandit’sbeenagreatreadsofar!Bestofthevibesforyoutokeepspreadingsuchamazingknowledge.ReplyNilsSalzgebersays:December5,2019at1:55amMypleasure,Camilo.Thankyouforthekindwords.Reply