This article is an excerpt from the Shortform book guide to "The One Thing" by Gary Keller. Shortform has the world's best summaries and analyses of books you should be reading.
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The Focusing Question is a powerful productivity tool from Gary Keller’s book The ONE Thing that helps you identify the single most important action you can take to achieve your goals. By asking “What’s the one thing I can do such that by doing it everything else will be easier or unnecessary?”, you cut through distractions and focus on what truly matters.
Continue reading to learn how to ask the Focusing Question effectively, find powerful answers at different time scales, and make it a daily success habit that improves how you work and live.
Originally Published: August 16, 2021
Last Updated: January 5, 2026
Table of Contents
The Focusing Question
In The ONE Thing, Gary Keller observes that we overanalyze and over-plan our careers and lives. We accept feeling overstressed, while following conventional advice for success, including acting and dressing for success, meditating for inspiration, and getting to work before anyone else so we can do more. However, the key to success isn’t doing more than anyone else, but focusing on a few, right things and doing them well. The Focusing Question helps you get there.
Andrew Carnegie, whose steel company was the largest enterprise in the world, gave this advice to college students in 1885: “Concentrate your energy, thought, and capital exclusively upon the business in which you are engaged.”
He had observed that the companies that fail are the ones that spread themselves too thin by going in too many directions. “Put all your eggs in one basket, and then watch that basket,” he said. “It’s easy to watch and carry the one basket. It is trying to carry too many baskets that breaks the most eggs in this country.”
Uncommon Success Requires Uncommon Focus
Keller contends that, if you want to achieve uncommon results, you need to have uncommon focus. Don’t spread yourself thin across competing priorities. Just identify the single highest-leverage action available to you—the one thing that’ll move you forward most effectively—and take it.
How do you identify that one most important thing? By asking the right kind of question. The way you determine which basket to pick is by asking the Focusing Question: “What’s the one thing I can do such that by doing it everything else will be easier or unnecessary?”
(Shortform note: In Essentialism, McKeown agrees with Keller that questions help you eliminate what’s inessential and get to what matters. However, he says that essentialists ask tough questions to find essentials, plural (such as key work activities). So, according to McKeown, if there’s more than one thing you want to do—or more than one thing you have to do—take it in stride: You can focus on a small set of tasks and still get plenty done.)
The Focusing Question is a simple formula for getting answers that lead to exceptional results. Asking and answering this question about your one thing helps you find uncommon focus on two time scales. In the long run, it helps you identify your purpose—whatever you live to achieve, or what gets you up in the morning and keeps you going when times get tough. In the short run, the question helps you identify your priority—the single task that will yield the most progress toward your purpose today.
With your purpose and priority clear, all you need to do is be productive: Execute your priority daily—in doing so, you’ll serve your purpose too.
(Shortform note: With its two scales (long-term purpose and short-term priority), Keller’s planning framework is simpler than some others, such as those built around vision, mission, strategy, tactics, goals, and other categories. Keller’s three key “p” terms—purpose, priority, and productivity—may also be easier to remember, especially if you visualize how they interact. Etymologically, purpose defines a goal, while productivity suggests forward motion. Add to this priority, which refers to what comes first, and the resulting image is that of a distant goal (your purpose) at the end of a long road of tasks (your priorities) that you’ll need to complete so you can continue moving forward (productivity) toward your goal.)
How Focus Creates Momentum
Why does asking the Focusing Question accomplish what conventional productivity doesn’t? Because it forces you to focus intensely, which gives you momentum in doing the work that matters.
Focusing on your one thing is like knocking over dominoes: One small action sets off a chain of events that compound into increasingly larger results. A 1983 study showed that one domino can knock down another domino that’s 50% bigger. Starting with a 2-inch domino, the effect grows exponentially: The 13th would be as tall as a two-story house (~21 feet), and the 40th would reach the International Space Station’s orbital distance (250mi/400km).
In other words, doing the right small thing now sets up the next right thing, which sets up the next, creating momentum that compounds over time and helps you achieve your goals sooner. Your One Thing will be the first domino.
Using the Focusing Question to find your focus also gives you a leg up on the competition. Anyone who achieves notable success owes it to intense focus on their one thing. Take Reed Hastings, the CEO of Netflix. Hastings believed as early as the late 1990s that DVDs would become obsolete and that the internet would deliver content into people’s homes. He built Netflix with the belief that they would succeed by doing one thing—delivering content via streaming—exceptionally well.
(Shortform note: Focus probably is a necessary ingredient in success, but to think it’s sufficient is to fall prey to survivorship bias. This cognitive bias causes us to overvalue the stories of those who succeed (“I did it by focusing!”), while ignoring the fact that many who failed may have taken a similar approach (“We tried that too…”). For every person who succeeds, there are many more who also focused and worked hard but, in the end, didn’t find success. Don’t take this as a reason not to focus—but realize that many other factors, like luck and your relative social standing, also play a large role in who makes it and who doesn’t.)
Understanding the Focusing Question
Here’s a breakdown of the Focusing Question:
What’s the one thing I can do: You must choose the vital One Thing out of the many. Besides being specific, your choice must be actionable, something you “can do” versus “should” or “might” do.
Such that by doing it: This part of the question indicates there’s a criterion your answer must meet. You’re doing something for a specific purpose—when you do One Thing, something else will happen.
Everything else will be easier or unnecessary: Your one action will be leverage for further action toward accomplishing your goal. After completing your action, the subsequent steps will be easier and some may not be necessary. Many things don’t need to be done if you avoid distractions and start by doing the right thing.
In summary, the Focusing Question is both big picture and small focus: your One Thing is your big-picture goal, and your One Thing right now is your priority today for getting there.
Implement the ONE Thing Systematically
With the right mindset in place, it’s time to identify and execute your one thing. This approach involves three parts—asking a powerful question, finding a powerful answer, and asking the question at different time scales.
Step 1: Ask a Powerful Question
To get a great answer, it’s not enough to just ask yourself what your one thing is—you need to ask the Focusing Question while thinking both ambitiously and concretely.
Thinking ambitiously pushes you toward high-leverage outcomes rather than incremental improvements. An example of a big and specific (exceptional) question is: What can I do to double sales in six months? This is a big goal, with a specific timeframe. Achieving it will challenge you to look beyond the usual solutions.
In contrast, a big question that’s broad rather than specific would be: What can I do to double sales? It’s broad because it lacks a timeframe.
You can go small and broad by asking, What can I do to increase sales?, but this is really a brainstorming question rather than a goal-oriented question. You also could go small and specific: What can I do to increase sales by 5% this year? Although specific, the goal isn’t challenging and will lead to only average results.
Thinking concretely means considering the real constraints—like timeframes or measurable outcomes—that tell you exactly what you’re aiming for. A question like “What’s the one thing I can do to get healthier?” is vague, but a question like “What’s the one thing I can do to stop eating sugar?” is specific and will lead to concrete results.
So your question must be big and specific to get exceptional results. Next, turn it into a Focusing Question: What’s the ONE Thing I can do to double sales in six months such that by doing it everything else will be easier or unnecessary? Now you have to figure out your most important step and start there.
(Shortform note: Keller isn’t alone in stressing the importance of asking the right questions. In A More Beautiful Question, Warren Berger argues that asking the right questions is the basis of learning and creativity. Berger emphasizes a simpler sort of question, though, saying that the most useful questions are those we asked as children: Why? What if? How? Consider asking these questions to help you confirm whether your one thing is ambitious and concrete enough. Use “What if?” to expand your aim (think bigger about what’s possible), use “Why?” to test whether your one thing is truly high-leverage, and use “How?” to make sure it’s concrete enough to translate into your next steps.)
Step 2: Find a Powerful Answer
Once you’ve asked a powerful question using the Focusing Question, you face the challenge of finding a powerful answer. There are three categories of possible answers for your One Thing: doable, a stretch, and a possibility.
The doable answer is easily within your reach, the one likely to be achieved. The stretch answer is also within reach but pushes the envelope for you. Achieving it depends on your effort—you need to extend yourself by researching solutions and finding examples of success to emulate.
The highest achievers choose the third answer—the possible, extraordinary goal that requires going beyond what’s been achieved before. This is an answer that’s both challenging and possibly manageable—something you can barely conceive of yet, but that you might achieve if you focus intensely enough. For instance, if you’re an aspiring writer looking for your one thing, your answer might be to innovate a new literary form beyond books, essays, or anything that currently exists.
It involves finding a path where none has existed. Accomplishing the extraordinary requires research plus benchmarking and trending:
Research: Search for ideas and role models to suggest a direction. Ask yourself, has anyone else accomplished this or something like it? Find out what others have learned. Build on their actions.
Benchmark: Based on your research, you can establish a benchmark for what’s known or been achieved. This would be your maximum if you were looking for a stretch answer, but it’s your minimum for a possible answer. Use the success of top performers as a benchmark for yours: Considering how much they’ve achieved, what might you be able to do?
Trending: From the benchmark, the highest achievement so far, look for the next level you can take it to or for a different direction (trending). The benchmark is today’s optimum, while the trend is tomorrow’s. Extrapolate outward, either by imagining how you can improve on what the best performers are doing or by finding an entirely new direction.
This is the path to exceptional achievement. Because you’re breaking new ground, you’ll have to grow and change in the process. But when you achieve the extraordinary, your life becomes extraordinary.
(Shortform note: If you can’t quickly answer what your one thing is, that isn’t necessarily a bad thing. In A More Beautiful Question, Berger writes that, in fact, questions we can’t easily answer are the basis of creativity. When the answer is nebulous or unknown, we have to spend more time curiously pursuing the question, which Berger says can lead to artistic breakthroughs or scientific discoveries (if your question is ambitious enough). This creative thinking can prompt you to find novel ways to achieve your aims, helping you outperform current masters, or it could lead you to discover entirely new aims, prompting you to pursue a direction top performers haven’t yet considered.)
Step 3: Ask the Question at Different Time Scales
Asking the Focusing Question to identify your one thing should become something you do all the time, at multiple time scales. First, to identify your purpose, you should ask it on as large a time scale as possible—imagining the overall one thing that you might someday achieve. Then, to find your priorities at each time scale, ask what your immediate one thing is at the start of each year, month, week, and day. Each answer cascades from the level above, creating a clear line of sight from your biggest vision down to your immediate action. This ensures that your daily actions connect with your purpose and that you’re always working on the highest-leverage activity at every time scale.
(Shortform note: Keller’s advice parallels that of other productivity experts. For instance, David Allen (Getting Things Done) recommends using six “horizons of focus” to organize your life and work across multiple time scales: purpose (lifetime), vision (three to five years), goals (one to two years), areas of focus and projects (this year), and daily actions. Like Keller, he writes that the highest level—purpose and values—should inform the lower levels. Unlike Keller, he emphasizes that insights can also flow bottom-up: Through regular weekly reviews of your projects and daily actions, you may discover that one of your goals, or even your vision, needs adjustment.)
The Success Habit: Making the Focusing Question a Way of Life
The Focusing Question can be a success habit when you make it a way of life. You can ask the question when you start your day, when you get to work, and when you get home: “What’s the ONE Thing that will have the biggest impact?” With practice, you’ll know whether to use the big-picture or small-focus version.
You can apply it to every area of your life—spiritual, health, personal, relationships, job, and finances—to ensure that you’re doing what matters most. Customize the Focusing Question by inserting your area of focus; you can also include a time frame (this year/month). For instance:
For my spiritual life: What’s the ONE Thing I can do to help others (today, this week, this year) such that by doing it everything else will be easier or unnecessary?
For my job/business: What’s the ONE Thing I can do to improve my skills (today, this week, this year) such that by doing it everything else will be easier or unnecessary?
For my health: What’s the ONE Thing I can do to ensure I exercise (today, this week, this year) such that by doing it everything else will be easier or unnecessary?
For my relationships: What’s the ONE Thing I can do to strengthen my relationship with my spouse, children, parents (today, this week, this year) such that by doing it everything else will be easier or unnecessary?
For my finances: What’s the ONE Thing I can do to eliminate my credit card debt (today, this week, this year) such that by doing it everything else will be easier or unnecessary?
To make the ONE Thing part of your daily routine:
- Make it a habit—stick with it until it becomes routine. It can become the foundation of future habits.
- Create reminders or cues—post a sign: “Until my One Thing is done, everything else is a distraction.”
- Ask family, friends, and colleagues to respect your time blocks.
By consistently applying the Focusing Question across all areas of your life and at multiple time scales, you’ll develop the uncommon focus needed to achieve uncommon success.
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Like what you just read? Read the rest of the world's best book summary and analysis of Gary Keller's "The One Thing" at Shortform .
Here's what you'll find in our full The One Thing summary :
- Why focusing daily on one thing, rather than many, is the key to success
- How success is like dominos
- The six common myths about success
