I started reading this book called “THE ONE THING” during my lockdown/without-a-job phase, and I was like WOW, REALLY? I was always so proud of my multitasking abilities, only to realize that I was so wrong all along.
I am not talking about prioritizing, thought that’s a good start, I am talking about literally focusing on one important thing at the time.
So this is what you should be asking yourself…what’s the ONE thing that you can do such that by doing it everything else will be easier of unnecessary? And you can apply this principle to any area of life, as shown in the picture to the side.
“Going small” is ignoring all the things you could do and doing what you should do. Extraordinary success is sequential, not simultaneous. If you think about it, you need to so something great, before you can move to the next great thing. Moreover, successful people focus on one skill or one passion, that leads to a lot of time practicing and working on it, to make it perfect. So there is a proof out there in the world that this method works and it is proven to bring results. That time spent translates to skill, and when skill improves, results improves too. “Success demands singleness of purpose”.
There are 6 lies between you and success, and you need to break those down before you can realize that the ONE thing sits at the heart of success and it is the start to achieving extraordinary results:
- everything matters equally
- multitasking
- a disciplined life
- willpower is always on will-call
- a balanced life
- big is bad
It’s not enough to “be busy” – what are we “busy about” is the right statement. “Not everything matters equally and success isn’t a game won by whoever does the most. When everything feels urgent and important, everything seems equal and we become busy without moving closer to our goals”.
My famous and loved “to do lists” are apparently also banned in this method. “To do lists work against you. Achievers always work from a clear sense of priority. Change the to do list into a success list, because 20% of your efforts will lead to 80% results and the majority of what you want will come from the minority of what you do”.
DOING THE MOST IMPORTANT THING IS ALWAYS THE MOST IMPORTANT THING.
“Success is about doing the right thing, not about doing everything right. Choose the right habit and bring just enough discipline to establish it”.
Why was balance in the 6 lies? Because living in the middle prevents you from making extraordinary commitments to anything. Instead, seek purpose, seek meaning and significance and tilt your like and priorities towards the most important thing. Develop habits and dedicate most attention to your priority when your will power is at its highest: give it the time it deserves.
“Magic never happens in the middle…it happens at the extremes”.
We will talk about the MAGIC of thinking BIG in the next post.
Books & Mon 