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The ONE Thing: The Surprisingly Simple Truth About Extraordinary Results Kindle Edition

by Gary Keller (Author), Jay Papasan (Author) Format: Kindle Edition

4.6 20,721 ratings

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What's your ONE thing?

People are using this simple, powerful concept to focus on what matters most in their personal and work lives. Companies are helping their employees be more productive with study groups, training, and coaching. Sales teams are boosting sales. Churches are conducting classes and recommending for their members.

By focusing their energy on one thing at a time people are living more rewarding lives by building their careers, strengthening their finances, losing weight and getting in shape, deepening their faith, and nurturing stronger marriages and personal relationships.

YOU WANT LESS. You want fewer distractions and less on your plate. The daily barrage of e-mails, texts, tweets, messages, and meetings distract you and stress you out. The simultaneous demands of work and family are taking a toll. And what's the cost? Second-rate work, missed deadlines, smaller paychecks, fewer promotions--and lots of stress.

AND YOU WANT MORE. You want more productivity from your work. More income for a better lifestyle. You want more satisfaction from life, and more time for yourself, your family, and your friends.

NOW YOU CAN HAVE BOTH ― LESS AND MORE. In The ONE Thing, you'll learn to:

cut through the clutter
achieve better results in less time
build momentum toward your goal
dial down the stress
overcome that overwhelmed feeling
revive your energy
stay on track
master what matters to you

The book has:

Made on more than 575 appearances on national bestseller lists
Been #1 Wall Street Journal bestseller, New York Times bestseller, and USA Today bestseller
Been translated into 40 languages
Won 12 book awards
Voted Top 100 Business Book of All Time on Goodreads

The ONE Thing delivers extraordinary results in every area of your life--work, personal, family, and spiritual. WHAT'S YOUR ONE THING?

From the Publisher

WARNING: California’s Proposition 65

Editorial Reviews

Review

“Encouraging bones of advice worth gnawing on, but absent substantial meat to sink your teeth into.” ― Kirkus Reviews

“It kind of hit home for me […] that when you wake up in the morning, you put your focus on this one thing of what you want to accomplish during the day, which seems like a no-brainer.” ― Maria Sharapova, World #1 Womens Tennis Association

“The ONE Thing by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan is an easy to read but profound book that helped me to focus on keeping the main thing the main thing in all areas of my life.” ― Brandon Turner, Author and Podcast Co-Host

About the Author

Gary Keller is chairman of the board and cofounder of Keller Williams Realty, Inc., which holds the #1 position as the largest real estate company in the world. His New York Times bestselling books have sold more than 2,000,000 copies.

Jay Papasan, a former editor at HarperCollins Publishers in New York, coauthors Gary’s books and is Vice President of Publishing at Keller Williams. He’s a frequent event speaker and corporate trainer."

Product details

ASIN ‏ : ‎ B00C1BHQXK
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Bard Press; 1st edition (April 1, 2013)
Publication date ‏ : ‎ April 1, 2013
Language ‏ : ‎ English
File size ‏ : ‎ 3.3 MB
Text-to-Speech ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Screen Reader ‏ : ‎ Supported
Enhanced typesetting ‏ : ‎ Enabled
X-Ray ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Word Wise ‏ : ‎ Enabled
Print length ‏ : ‎ 240 pages

Best Sellers Rank: #33,268 in Kindle Store (See Top 100 in Kindle Store)
- #18 in Time Management in Business
- #40 in Personal Success in Business
- #57 in Personal Time Management

Customer Reviews:
4.6 20,721 ratings

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Gary Keller
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Gary Keller is executive chairman of both kwx, a holding company that represents the collection of all Keller Williams affiliates and subsidiaries, and of Keller Williams Realty. Several of his books have been bestsellers and held positions on the New York Times and Wall Street Journal lists. Collectively, his titles have sold more than 5.4 million copies worldwide.
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Jay Papasan
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Jay Papasan [Pap-uh-zan] is a bestselling author who serves as the Vice President of Strategic Content for Keller Williams Realty International, the world’s largest real estate company. He is also Vice President of KellerINK and Co-Owner, alongside his wife Wendy, of Papasan Properties Group with Keller Williams Realty in Austin, Texas.
Jay was born and raised in Memphis, TN. After attending the University of Memphis, he spent several years working in Paris. He later graduated from New York University’s graduate writing program and began his publishing career at HarperCollins Publishers. There, he helped piece together bestselling books such as Body-for-Life by Bill Phillips and Go for the Goal by Mia Hamm.
After moving to Austin, Jay joined Keller Williams Realty International, and in 2003 he co-authored The Millionaire Real Estate Agent, a million-copy bestseller, alongside Gary Keller and Dave Jenks.
His most recent work with Gary Keller on The ONE Thing has sold nearly 2.5 million copies worldwide and garnered more than 500 appearances on national bestseller lists, including #1 on The Wall Street Journal’s hardcover business list. It has been translated into 41 different languages.
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Customers find the book easy to read and well-written. They appreciate the insights and practical strategies it provides for focusing on the most important things. The book helps them focus on one thing and prioritize effectively. They find it useful for simplifying their lives and achieving greater success. The book provides actionable advice and practical exercises that can be implemented.

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Readability Insight Focus Productivity Simplicity Actionable Multitasking Pacing

1,224 customers mention "Readability"1,198 positive26 negative

Customers find the book easy to read and a great resource. They describe it as concise, well-researched, and practical. Readers enjoy the clear and logical writing style.

"...I love it, I love the style of writing, I love the way of bringing across concept and principles with figures...." Read more

"...Clear, practical, and actionable, this book is a must-read for entrepreneurs, goal-setters, and high achievers...." Read more

"...a large library of books over the years is because books are a great go-to resource...." Read more

"...I enjoyed reading the book and strongly agree with most of what the author proposes. You can use the framework “as-is” or adapt it to suit your needs" Read more

932 customers mention "Insight"924 positive8 negative

Customers find the book insightful and practical. It helps them prioritize tasks and avoid multitasking. They say it helps them overcome multitasking and do one thing at a time, which is more successful. The book provides actionable insights and practical strategies to help readers understand better. Readers praise the book as well-researched and well-written.

"No words to describe how good and relevant this book is...." Read more

"...this book is a must-read for entrepreneurs, goal-setters, and high achievers. If you want to achieve more by doing less, The One Thing is the key." Read more

"...This is the useful part - and it is actually very useful. So I changed my rating...." Read more

"...just read a powerful book, The ONE Thing: The Surprisingly Simple Truth Behind Extraordinary Results, by Gary Keller with Jay Papasan...." Read more

222 customers mention "Focus"222 positive0 negative

Customers appreciate the book's focus. They find it helps them stay focused on one thing and identify daily distractions that cause loss of focus. The book provides practical advice about focusing on one crucial task and how it can lead to extraordinary results.

"...you have found one. Gary emphasises on Living with Purpose, by Priorities and for productivities. Hence what is your One thing?..." Read more

"...The book debunks multitasking myths and teaches you to prioritize effectively using the focusing question: “What’s the one thing I can do such that..." Read more

"...They provide practical strategies for overcoming distractions, building productive habits, and maintaining focus...." Read more

"...it is well researched and well written and makes a unique contribution to a crowded field...." Read more

182 customers mention "Productivity"182 positive0 negative

Customers find the book useful for improving productivity and efficiency. They say it simplifies their lives, helps them achieve greater success, and reduces stress. The principles of prioritization, doing work they love, and taking complete action are mentioned. Readers appreciate the practical way of working that can be easily applied. It helps them narrow down daily tasks and figure out what they need for focus.

"...Gary emphasises on Living with Purpose, by Priorities and for productivities. Hence what is your One thing? Yeah to you reading this comment?..." Read more

"The One Thing is a game-changer for anyone seeking focus, productivity, and success...." Read more

"...I’ve just read a powerful book, The ONE Thing: The Surprisingly Simple Truth Behind Extraordinary Results, by Gary Keller with Jay Papasan...." Read more

"...better learning strategies, experience less helplessness, exhibit more positive effort, and achieve more in the classroom than their fixed-minded..." Read more

120 customers mention "Simplicity"105 positive15 negative

Customers appreciate the book's simplicity. They find it easy to incorporate the One Thing into their lives and achieve greater success. The book whittles everything down to the essentials and forces you to think big and create a list.

"...of writing, I love the way of bringing across concept and principles with figures...." Read more

"...The writing is accessible, the explanations are clear, and the book is well organized - we can tell that Keller has extensive teaching, coaching..." Read more

"...Reading this very accessible book will ensure the message is internalized. And you will be very pleased you did...." Read more

"...from big picture to small detail it feels easy to remember and to adopt straight away. For me, it's very reminiscent of the Toyota way of asking Why?..." Read more

42 customers mention "Actionable"42 positive0 negative

Customers find the book provides practical advice and strategies to help them focus. They appreciate the clear strategies and tactics, as well as the habit of thinking and acting in order of priority. The book teaches how to manage time effectively and create movement.

"...Clear, practical, and actionable, this book is a must-read for entrepreneurs, goal-setters, and high achievers...." Read more

"...Packed with so many practical tactics, I now have a number of ways to identify my priority, protect it from being pushed out by everything else, and..." Read more

"...The book’s clear, concise writing and actionable steps make it an accessible and valuable read for anyone looking to boost their productivity and..." Read more

"...this book, I am developing the habit of thinking and acting in order of priority...." Read more

34 customers mention "Multitasking"29 positive5 negative

Customers find the book helpful in shedding light on the myth of multitasking. They appreciate the author's perspective and examples that encourage them to focus on one task at a time. The book is suitable for busy entrepreneurs who want to be more productive while still having plenty of free time.

"...The book debunks multitasking myths and teaches you to prioritize effectively using the focusing question: “What’s the one thing I can do such that..." Read more

"...They talk about focusing on one thing at a time and avoid multitasking, which is detrimental to accomplishing anything, and it doesn't help your..." Read more

"...The highlight off this book is that I have been delivered from multitasking and focusing on my “One Thing”, which I was able to experience the..." Read more

"...The part of myths of Multitasking and a balanced life are phenomenal. Of course, Focusing Question is great...." Read more

90 customers mention "Pacing"38 positive52 negative

Customers have mixed opinions about the book's pacing. Some find it engaging and compelling, with interesting exercises like Goal Setting to the Now. Others feel the content is repetitive and lacks substance.

"...It covers a lot of really basic things, and gets a little repetitive sometimes. For example: X was famous. X's story is blah blah blah...." Read more

"...on focus, several of which the authors quote, but this is the most compelling and practical discussion of the topic that I have seen...." Read more

"...Upon a closer examination, the book is sorely disappointing. The author tries to fit everything in the context of "The One Thing"...." Read more

"...I also like his focus on free time and family...." Read more

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Vinie Kouamou
A GREAT BOOK
Reviewed in the United States on February 11, 2025
Verified Purchase

No words to describe how good and relevant this book is. I love it, I love the style of writing, I love the way of bringing across concept and principles with figures. If you are looking for strategies to excel in everything you do, there you go. you have found one. Gary emphasises on Living with Purpose, by Priorities and for productivities. Hence what is your One thing? Yeah to you reading this comment? What is your One thing? You will dive in this book and understand more about all this. Great book

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Shauna Parker
Game=Changer!!!!!
Reviewed in the United States on February 20, 2025
Verified Purchase
The One Thing is a game-changer for anyone seeking focus, productivity, and success. Gary Keller’s simple yet powerful concept—focusing on the one thing that matters most—can transform how you approach goals and daily tasks. The book debunks multitasking myths and teaches you to prioritize effectively using the focusing question: “What’s the one thing I can do such that by doing it everything else will be easier or unnecessary?”

Clear, practical, and actionable, this book is a must-read for entrepreneurs, goal-setters, and high achievers. If you want to achieve more by doing less, The One Thing is the key.

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AudioBook Addict
do yourself a favor and push through parts one and two. Part three is worth it.
Reviewed in the United States on October 21, 2016
Verified Purchase
This REVIEW HAS BEEN UPDATED. I'm leaving my original review because it was truth for me. The book made me very angry on first reading (hearing - I used the audio addition). If you look in the comments you can see that:
1st) one of the authors responded to my 1 star review
2nd) I responded to him a number of times and while doing that I realized that I had come to the book with very high expectations and these were disappointed. But I respected the fact that the author got back to me so I decided to give the book another try - but this time I did not relisten to the part that lit my hair on fire. Instead I listened to the last third of the book again. This is the useful part - and it is actually very useful. So I changed my rating. It would be a better book if there was less of the eye roll inducing introduction of the concepts and more of the "how to." I hope the book will be edited to be less of a drag and more of a tool. (More on the eye rolls in my response comment.)

Here's my original review - it came with 1 star
___________________________________________________

Amazon sells this as a business book which is appropriate. But I kept seeing quotes from the book in places where I go for help organizing and prioritizing all aspects of my home, work and personal life. The quotes looked good and I kept reading that the book taught a great method that could be used in all those areas of life. Well don’t you believe it!

Do not buy this book if you are a mom, or even a pet owner. Do not buy this book unless you have someone else to clean your home, do your laundry, shop for food, prepare your meals, or even answer the damned phone. In other words, do not buy this book, unless you have a um... unit. Well you can buy it, but certainly don’t *read* it because it will make you mad as hell. All of those things I listed above are ignored as parts of real life.

This book is about how to set priorities in your business life and NOTHING else. Nothing. That’s the one thing. That’s it.

One of the things I did before buying the book was purchase one of those little book summaries that people have begun publishing for kindle and I listened to the audio of it. That was a much better purchase. It got the idea across in a few minutes – and it’s not actually a new idea: Find the gating task and focus on that. Do the most important thing first.

There, I saved you $15 or whatever and some high blood pressure medication.

(I realize that what I've said here is sexist... My husband does the shopping and cooks, but he would also be totally fine with no housework ever getting done and wading through dirty underwear and accidental dog puddles to go to work and focus on "one thing" all day so... Look, this book really pissed me off, ok!?!)

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John W. Pearson
10 Tweetable Quotations
Reviewed in the United States on May 1, 2016
Verified Purchase
Never done this before! Right there—on page 117—was a stunner-of-a-statement that went immediately from the book to my brain, to my laptop, to my printer, and now it’s big and bold on my office door:

"Until my ONE Thing is done—everything everything else is a distraction."

I’ve just read a powerful book, The ONE Thing: The Surprisingly Simple Truth Behind Extraordinary Results, by Gary Keller with Jay Papasan. This bestseller will certainly be on my Top-10 book list for 2016, and is already a contender for my 2016 book-of-the-year.

But first—an apology. The ONE Thing waited patiently on my overflowing “books-to-read” shelves for three years. Then recently, it popped back onto The Wall Street Journal business bestsellers list. (OK. OK. I’ll read it!) But I apologize because you (and I) could have been much more productive over these last three years. So sorry—but better late than never.

Gary Keller, chairman of the board and cofounder of Keller Williams Realty, Inc., the largest real estate company in the U.S., has seen his share of failures and successes—and that’s how he discovered The ONE Thing.

He writes, “Where I’d had huge success, I had narrowed my concentration to one thing, and where my success varied, my focus had too.” Here’s Keller’s big idea:

"What's the ONE Thing you can do this week such that by doing it everything else would be easier or unnecessary?"

Read his chapter titles and you’re hooked. The first section highlights six lies that mislead and derail us:
• Lie #1: Everything Matters Equally
• Lie #2: Multitasking
• Lie #3: A Disciplined Life
• Lie #4: Willpower Is Always on Will-Call
• Lie #5: A Balanced Life
• Lie #6: Big Is Bad

The second section addresses the focusing question, the success habit (66 days), and the path to great answers. The final section motivates with unusual clarity on the four thieves of productivity:
• Thief #1: Inability to Say “No”
• Thief #2: Fear of Chaos
• Thief #3: Poor Health Habits
• Thief #4: Environment Doesn’t Support Your Goals

Well…I promised you 10 tweetable quotations. (I know—somewhat ironic that I have over 20 quotations in a book review about The ONE Thing.) On a short plane ride, I winnowed hundreds of PowerPoint-worthy insights down to just 35—just before I landed. I’ve given you three already—and here are 20 more (but who’s counting?). Tweet your 10 favorite!

On rabbits, to-do lists, and irrelevancy:
• "If you chase two rabbits, you will not catch either one." (Russian proverb)
• "Instead of a to-do list, you need a success list—a list that is purposefully created around extraordinary results."
• "...it turns out that high multitaskers are suckers for irrelevancy."

On a “balanced life” and productivity:
• "A 'balanced life' is a myth—a misleading concept most accept as a worthy and attainable goal without ever stopping to truly consider it."
• "'Don't put all your eggs in one basket is all wrong.' I tell you ‘put all your eggs in one basket, and then watch that basket.'" (Dale Carnegie)
• "Productivity isn’t about being a workhorse, keeping busy or burning the midnight oil. ... It's more about priorities, planning, and fiercely protecting your time." (Margarita Tartakovsky)

On goal-setting, accountability, and coaching:
• "Accountable people receive results only others dream of."
• "When Arthur Guinness set up his first brewery, he signed a 9,000-year lease."
• "Earlier I discussed Dr. Gail Matthew's research that individuals with written goals were 39.5 percent more likely to succeed. But there's more to the story. Individuals who wrote their goals and sent progress reports to friends were 76.7 percent more likely to achieve them."
• “Ericsson’s research on expert performance confirms the same relationship between elite performance and coaching. He observed that ‘the single most important difference between these amateurs and the three groups of elite performers is that the future elite performers seek out teachers and coaches and engage in supervised training, whereas the amateurs rarely engage in similar types of practice.’”

On saying no:
• “Someone once told me that one ‘yes’ must be defended over time by 1,000 no’s.”
• In the two years after Steve Jobs returned to Apple in 1997, “he took the company from 350 products to ten. That’s 340 no’s, not counting anything else proposed during that period.”

On time-blocking and buckets to focus on The ONE Thing:
• "Build a bunker. Turn off your phone, shut down your email, and exit your Internet browser. Your most important work deserves 100 percent of your attention."
• "My recommendation is to block four hours a day. This isn't a typo. I repeat: four hours a day. Honestly, that’s the minimum. If you can do more, then do it."
• "If your time-blocking were on trial, would your calendar contain enough evidence to convict you?"
• "The people who achieve extraordinary results don't achieve them by working more hours. They achieve them by getting more done in the hours they work."
• "Paul Graham's 2009 essay, 'Maker's Schedule, Manager's Schedule,' underscores the need for large time blocks."
• "Graham divides all work into two buckets: maker (do or create) and manager (oversee or direct)."
•"To experience extraordinary results, be a maker in the morning and a manager in the afternoon. Your goal is 'ONE and done.’ But if you don't block each day to do your ONE Thing, your ONE Thing won't become a done thing."

On books:
"One of the reasons I've amassed a large library of books over the years is because books are a great go-to resource. Short of having a conversation with someone who has accomplished what you hope to achieve, in my experience books and published works offer the most in terms of documented research and role models for success."

Warning!
Keller: “After my wife, Mary, read this book, I asked her to do something. She turned to me and you know what she said? ‘Gary, that’s not my ONE Thing right now!’ We laughed, high-fived, and I got to do it myself!”

Ready, set, TWEET!

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Abhishek Dwivedi
Better than Expected
Reviewed in Canada on April 20, 2024
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Raise your expectations and read this book. You still won’t be disappointed. This is a fast read despite its depth because it’s interesting, useful and very well written.

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Luis
Excelente Libro
Reviewed in Mexico on April 17, 2024
Verified Purchase
Me gusto que es un libro que de una manera sencilla te ayuda a enfocarte en tus prioridades

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Amazon Customer
The best book to have clarity towards your goal.
Reviewed in India on January 25, 2025
Verified Purchase
It is the best book to help you to know about your ONE thing that makes all other things easy and unnecessary. I am grateful to both authors who present this wonderful idea of ONE thing in simple words.

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Glory
Libro interesante, para mantener tu capacidad de comprensión del inglés.
Reviewed in Spain on August 15, 2024
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Libro entretenido y agradable a la vez que te ayuda a mantener lo aprendido del idioma de inglés.

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Hayat Essakkati
Motivating!
Reviewed in the Netherlands on August 4, 2024
Verified Purchase
Amazing book! I read it in one go - focused on one thing ;)

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Top reviews from the United States

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5.0 out of 5 stars A GREAT BOOK

5.0 out of 5 stars Game=Changer!!!!!

4.0 out of 5 stars do yourself a favor and push through parts one and two. Part three is worth it.

5.0 out of 5 stars 10 Tweetable Quotations

Top reviews from other countries

5.0 out of 5 stars Better than Expected

5.0 out of 5 stars Excelente Libro

5.0 out of 5 stars The best book to have clarity towards your goal.

5.0 out of 5 stars Libro interesante, para mantener tu capacidad de comprensión del inglés.

5.0 out of 5 stars Motivating!

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A GREAT BOOK

Game=Changer!!!!!

do yourself a favor and push through parts one and two. Part three is worth it.

10 Tweetable Quotations

Better than Expected

Excelente Libro

The best book to have clarity towards your goal.

Libro interesante, para mantener tu capacidad de comprensión del inglés.

Motivating!