13 ways the book: 'The One Thing' helps us join the top 1% most focused people

Cut the junk, and focus on what matters.

In a world obsessed with multitasking and endless to-do lists, it’s easy to feel pulled in every direction, striving to do more but accomplishing less.

Productivity has become a buzzword, yet many of us feel stuck, scattered, and unfulfilled.

When I read The One Thing by Gary Keller in 2016, it felt like dropping a 10-kilogram bag of rice I’d been carrying around for years. This book cuts through the noise and provides an effective approach to creating results.

The premise is simple: success isn’t about doing everything. It’s about doing the right thing.

Here are some of the best things I learned from Keller’s insights on focus and productivity:

1. The Focusing Question

The centrepiece of the book is the ‘focusing question’:

“What’s the ONE Thing I can do such that by doing it, everything else will be easier or unnecessary?”

I ask this question all the time for specific situations and challenges. The question helps you cut through distractions and identify the highest-impact action you should take.

Regularly ask yourself the focusing question for any life area to direct your energy toward what matters most.

2. Success Is Sequential, Not Simultaneous

Keller argues that success doesn’t come from doing everything at once but from building momentum by mastering one thing at a time. I like his take.

Focus on achieving small wins in a specific order.

Tackle one priority, then move to the next so that progress compounds over time.

3. Prioritise with the 80/20 Rule

The Pareto Principle states that 80% of results come from 20% of your actions.

The key to productivity is identifying and focusing on the 20% that truly matters.

Audit your to-do list and focus on the tasks with the biggest impact while letting go of less critical activities. This is a continual practice.

4. Multitasking Doesn’t Work

Multitasking divides your attention, reduces the quality of your work, and turns you into a frazzled chicken.

True focus requires doing one thing at a time.

Create blocks of uninterrupted time to focus on your most important task and minimise distractions.

5. The Domino Effect

Small, focused actions create a domino effect, leading to massive outcomes over time. You may not see the impact now, but you will later.

Start with the smallest, most manageable task contributing to your bigger goal.

Identify your first ‘domino’ and commit to toppling it. Consistency in small actions leads to extraordinary results.

6. Time Blocking

Time blocking is the practice of dedicating specific hours of your day to work on your most important task.

Schedule uninterrupted time for your ONE Thing each day, treating it like an appointment you cannot miss.

7. Protect Your Time

Distractions and interruptions are productivity killers best left for normies.

Keller emphasises creating boundaries to protect your focus time.

Set clear rules about when and how you can be interrupted. Use tools like ‘Do Not Disturb mode and communicate your focus times to others for that extra accountability.

8. Willpower Is Finite

Willpower is like a muscle. It weakens with use throughout the day.

The key is to tackle your most important task when your willpower is strongest earlier in the day.

Do your ONE Thing first thing in the morning when your energy and discipline peak.

9. Purpose Drives Productivity

Staying focused becomes far easier when your daily actions align with a bigger purpose.

Clarity about your goals fuels motivation and direction.

Reflect on your long-term goals and use them to guide your priorities. Ask yourself how today’s ONE Thing contributes to your purpose.

10. The Myth of a Balanced Life

Balance may not be the ideal approach, depending on what phase you’re in. Keller argues that achieving balance across all areas of life is unrealistic.

Instead, success requires embracing imbalance by giving disproportionate focus to your most important area.

Accept that achieving extraordinary results requires temporarily neglecting less critical areas to concentrate on your priority. Don’t guilt yourself for this. It’s part of the process.

11. Say No to Everything That Doesn’t Matter

Every time you say yes to something, you’re saying no to something else. This blew my mind.

The ability to say no to distractions is crucial for focusing on your ONE Thing.

Learn to say no gracefully and unapologetically to protect your time and energy.

12. Environment Shapes Productivity

Your surroundings significantly impact your ability to focus.

A cluttered workspace or distracting environment can derail progress.

Optimise your physical and digital environment for focus by removing distractions and organising tools to support your ONE Thing.

13. Think Big, Act Small

The authors stress that achieving extraordinary success requires thinking big but starting small. I love this.

It’s about aligning daily actions with your long-term vision but making that vision big and interesting.

Set ambitious goals, but break them down into small, actionable steps you can tackle each day.

You got this.

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