The ONE Thing Book Review

The ONE Thing

“People do no decide their futures, they decide their habits and their habits decide their futures.” – F.M. Alexander

In his book (The ONE Thing) Gary Keller raises the question, “What’s the ONE Thing I need to do such that by doing it, everything else becomes easier or unnecessary?”

The author explains that To-Do lists often do not force you to decide which actions have the most value. Each day should be a step towards your ONE Thing – your most important future goal. Asking the right question (What’s my ONE Thing right now?) is what will help prioritize your habits.

“In The ONE Thing, we call this concept The Domino Effect. The path to great achievement is often lined with steps that are aligned with one another. No matter how small the first step is, the power generated from that first activity compounds into something much greater. There is literally no limit to the potential you can achieve when your priorities, goals and daily actions are lined up for you to knock over one by one.”

This mindset eliminates distractions and aligns you with your purpose daily. Block your time and get your ONE Thing done early in the day. Research shows that it takes 66 days to form a habit.

“You can become successful with less discipline than you think, for one simple reason: success is about doing the right thing, not about doing everything right. The trick to success is to choose the right habit and bring just enough discipline to establish it. That’s it.”

Posting a 66 day calendar on the wall and marking a big red X when you have completed your ONE Thing for the day is a way of building momentum. This string of red X’s on the calendar is motivating and great for accountability.

Gary talks about the Domino Effect where small daily steps pave the way to your future goal. Connecting today to your tomorrow requires action RIGHT NOW which is driven by your daily goal.

Right Now…Daily Goal…Weekly Goal…Monthly Goal…One Year Goal…Five Year Goal…Someday goal

https://www.the1thing.com/the-one-thing/use-the-domino-effect-to-crush-your-biggest-goal/

I personally use a 50-20-50 time blocking method. At the “I Love Marketing” conference in 2012 Dean Jackson shared this 50-20-50 strategy with everyone. He sets a timer for 50 minutes of work that involves a single task. This is followed by a 20-minute break. I normally engage in movement, play the drums, or make tea during this time. Then a second 50-minute block of work is completed. Every Sunday I spend 50 minutes on organizing and planning my week.

My online ONE Thing this year is daily blogging, so one of my 50 minute blocks every day is devoted to a post. I find that having a timer on slows time down and speeds up my productivity.

In 2018 use this two hour block of time over the course of 66 days to move closer to your goal.

“What you build today will either empower or restrict you tomorrow.”

“If you chase two rabbits – you will not catch either one.” – Russian Proverb

“How we phrase the questions we ask ourselves determines the answer that eventually become our life.”

– Kevin J. Kula, “The Flexibility Coach”