“I have so many things to do, but I don’t have enough time.”
Twenty-four hours just isn’t enough. You wake up already racing. Work wants your best. Family needs your presence. Messages keep piling up. And somewhere in the noise, you wonder: when do I actually get to do the things that matter to me?
I know that feeling. For years, I lived in the rush. My days were packed with meetings, emails, calls, errands—everything urgent, nothing truly important. I thought being busy meant I was valuable. But if I’m honest, busyness made me feel scattered, not satisfied.
Here’s the shift I want to share with you: you don’t have to do all things. You don’t even have to do more things than others. You only need to do great things—one great thing at a time.
Sounds simple, right? But simple doesn’t mean easy.
The world keeps telling you to do more, to be more, to chase more. But I’ve learned that greatness doesn’t come from doing more. It comes from doing what matters, with all your attention, one step at a time.
If today were your last, what would you do?
I doubt you’d choose to clear twenty small items from a to-do list. You’d choose something that mattered—something that would leave a mark, bring joy, or help someone else live better.
That’s what I mean when I say: do one great thing at a time.
The Illusion of Doing It All
Let me tell you about a friend of mine. She once showed me her to-do list for the day. Thirty-two items. Thirty-two. I looked at it and felt exhausted, and it wasn’t even my list. By evening, she had checked off maybe seven. Instead of celebrating progress, she felt like a failure.
That’s the trap of doing it all. No matter how much you finish, there will always be more. A longer list. Another meeting. One more email marked “urgent.” We wear busyness like a badge of honor, but most of the time, it’s just a mask for overwhelm.
Here’s the truth: a to-do list is a tool, not a reason for living.
Your worth is not measured by how many boxes you tick. If you believe that your reason for breathing another living minute is to accomplish a to-do list, you’ll always feel behind.
Because all things are not equal. Some matter deeply. Some don’t matter at all.
The gift of being human is that you get to choose. You decide what goes on that list. You decide what comes off. More importantly, you decide which one thing deserves your full attention now.
And that choice—that one decision—can change the way you live your day.
So I’ll ask you again: If today were your last, what would you do?
You wouldn’t spend it trying to do all things. You’d spend it on the one thing that mattered most.
That’s the shift.
What It Really Means to Focus on One Great Thing
When I say “do one great thing at a time,” people often ask me, “But what counts as great? Do I need to quit my job and start a foundation? Do I have to dream big all the time?”
Not at all.
“Great” doesn’t mean massive or glamorous. It simply means aligned with your purpose. It’s that one action today that reflects who you are and what you want your life to stand for.
For some, a great thing might be closing a deal that moves their business forward. For others, it could be calling their mom. Or finally starting the book they’ve been afraid to write.
You choose what’s great—because you decide what matters.
Here are a few lenses that have helped me and many leaders I’ve worked with:
- The Daily Highlight. At the start of each day, I ask: What’s the one thing that, if I do it today, will make the day meaningful? That becomes my highlight. I protect it fiercely. Sometimes it’s work-related. Sometimes it’s personal. The point is, it anchors my day.
- The North Star. In business, teams often choose one metric that guides everything else. Growth, impact, retention—whatever matters most. What if you had a personal North Star too? Something you can look at and say: This is what I’m really about.
- Big Rocks First. You’ve probably heard the story of putting rocks, pebbles, and sand in a jar. If you start with the sand, the big rocks won’t fit. But if you put the big rocks first, everything else can fall around them. Life works the same way.
And let me add another:
- The Power of No. Saying “yes” to your great thing means saying “no” to a hundred other things. That’s hard at first. But Steve Jobs once said, “Innovation means saying no to a thousand things.” Focus is about courage.
So here’s the shift: your life isn’t measured by how many things you do. It’s measured by the great things you choose to do—and your willingness to do them one at a time.
Why One Great Thing Works Better Than Everything
Here’s the surprising truth: doing one great thing at a time doesn’t just feel lighter—it actually works better.
Think about it. When you pour your full energy into one thing, you give it depth, attention, and love. And that changes the outcome. You don’t just finish; you create something that lasts.
Here are some of the gifts that come with this shift:
1. You actually get more done.
It sounds backwards, right? But focusing on one thing often produces 10x results without 10x effort. Instead of scattering your energy across twenty half-finished tasks, you build momentum in one direction. That momentum carries over into everything else.
2. You feel less stressed.
Busyness creates pressure because you’re always aware of what you haven’t done yet. Focusing on one great thing clears the noise. You stop juggling. You breathe easier. Suddenly, you have space to be present.
3. You enjoy life more.
A funny thing happens when you focus—you notice. You notice the satisfaction of progress. You notice the small joys in the process. You stop comparing yourself to everyone else, because your measure of success is yourself yesterday.
4. You make a bigger impact.
Great work doesn’t come from multitasking. It comes from attention. Leaders who stay centered on one mission inspire trust. Creators who commit to one project leave a legacy. When you do one great thing, you shape the future in a way that scattered effort never could.
5. You strengthen your relationships.
When you’re clear on your priorities, others feel it too. They see what you stand for. They know where you’re headed. And that clarity invites collaboration. It builds trust.
Imagine this: waking up in the morning not to a heavy list of thirty “shoulds,” but to one clear, chosen “must.” Wouldn’t your mind feel lighter already?
That’s the gift of one great thing.
Letting Go of Old Thinking
If doing one great thing at a time sounds so freeing, why don’t more of us live this way?
Because old habits die hard.
We’ve been trained—almost brainwashed—to believe that being busy is the same as being valuable. That a full calendar means a full life. That multitasking is a skill to brag about.
But let’s look closer.
Busyness as a badge.
How many times have you asked someone how they’re doing, and they answer: “Busy.” It’s almost like a status symbol. But busyness doesn’t always mean progress. Often, it just means running in circles. Tim Ferriss once said, “Being busy is a form of laziness—lazy thinking and indiscriminate action.” And he’s right.
The perfection trap.
Another old habit: waiting until something is perfect before we act. The truth? Perfection is a moving target. “Done” beats “perfect” every single time. One finished step creates more progress than a hundred polished intentions.
Scattered attention.
Our phones buzz. Emails ping. Thoughts race. We allow a thousand little things to compete for our focus, and in the end, nothing gets our best. It’s like trying to shine a flashlight in every direction at once—the light fades, the power weakens.
Productive worry.
Here’s another sneaky one: worry disguised as work. We replay problems in our minds, as if chewing on them will solve them. But worry doesn’t produce solutions—it just drains the energy we could be using for one great thing.
And here’s something I’ve noticed in many “time management” seminars: they often push us to do more, not better. They want us to squeeze more tasks into a day, but rarely encourage us to focus on what’s great. That kind of training makes you productive but not purposeful.
The shift is this: you don’t have to carry those old ways anymore. You can put them down. You can choose focus over frenzy, meaning over multitasking, greatness over busyness.
One decision at a time.
How to Choose Your One Great Thing Today
So, how do you actually live this out? How do you know which “one great thing” deserves your focus today?
Here’s where I like to begin: go back to your “why.”
Your “why” is the reason you get up in the morning. The cause, the purpose, the belief that gives meaning to your work and your life. When you reconnect with that, the clutter falls away.
I ask myself a simple question: “What do I want to be known for?”
Not at the end of the month. Not even at the end of the year. At the end of my life.
That perspective changes everything. Suddenly, many of the “urgent” things on my list don’t look so urgent anymore. But the few things that align with my deeper purpose? Those become non-negotiable.
Here are a few practical ways to decide your one great thing each day:
1. Pick your Highlight.
At the start of your day, choose one specific activity that, if done, would make your day meaningful. Protect it. This is your Highlight. Some days it’s urgent. Some days it’s joyful. Some days it’s deeply satisfying. The point is—it’s chosen, not forced on you.
2. Use frameworks to sort the noise.
- The Burner List: one front burner project, one back burner project, and a “kitchen sink” for everything else.
- The Dump List: write everything down, then reduce each item to a single verb and noun. Simplify. Prioritize.
- The Big Rocks: ask yourself which big rocks must go in the jar first today.
3. Ask the end-of-day question.
“What’s the one thing, if I did it today, that would make me smile tonight?”
Sometimes the answer surprises you. It’s not always the project with the biggest budget or the heaviest deadline. Sometimes it’s the phone call you’ve been putting off. Sometimes it’s time with someone you love. Sometimes it’s just finishing one solid piece of work.
Whatever it is, that’s your one great thing for the day.
And here’s the beauty: once you decide, everything else becomes easier. Not easier to do—but easier to ignore.
Protecting Focus: Entering Laser Mode
Deciding your one great thing is powerful. But here’s the challenge: once you’ve chosen it, the world will immediately try to steal it.
Emails. Notifications. Chat messages. Random questions. Even your own thoughts.
It’s like sitting down to eat your favorite meal, and every five minutes, someone puts another plate in front of you. Pretty soon, you’re full—but not satisfied.
That’s why protecting focus is just as important as choosing focus. I call this entering Laser Mode.
Laser Mode means carving out time where your attention belongs to one thing only. Here are a few ways to step into it:
1. Create a focus block.
Set aside a chunk of time—30 minutes, an hour, maybe two—where you work only on your one great thing. Turn off notifications. Silence your phone. Disconnect from the internet if you must. For that window, nothing else matters.
2. Batch the small stuff.
Instead of letting little tasks interrupt your flow, group them together. Answer emails at a set time. Return calls in one batch. That way, you don’t keep paying the “switching cost” of jumping from one thing to another.
3. Keep a “random thought” list.
Your brain will always try to distract you with little reminders: “Oh, don’t forget to buy coffee filters!” Instead of following the distraction, jot it down on a notepad. Promise yourself you’ll check it later. That one habit can save hours.
4. Work with wholeheartedness.
Sometimes focus isn’t about willpower—it’s about love. Throw yourself fully into the task, even if it feels small. Give it your full attention, as if it’s the only thing that matters. Because in that moment, it is.
When you enter Laser Mode, time feels different. It stretches. You get more done in one focused hour than in three scattered ones. And when you’re finished, you feel lighter, clearer, more alive.
That’s the gift of guarding your one great thing.
Building a Life of One Great Thing at a Time
Doing one great thing today is powerful. But imagine if you built your whole life around this rhythm. Day after day, year after year, choosing and completing one thing that matters most. That’s how ordinary lives turn extraordinary.
The secret isn’t big leaps. It’s small, repeated choices that compound. Here are some ways to make this shift a lifestyle:
1. Create simple rituals.
- Groundhog It. Pick the same great thing for several days in a row. This consistency lets ideas take root and grow instead of being pulled up too soon.
- Three Wins. At the end of the day, pause and name three meaningful wins—no matter how small. This trains your brain to see progress and fuels tomorrow’s energy.
2. Take care of your energy.
Your body is the engine of your focus. Exercise, sleep, and real food aren’t luxuries; they’re fuel. Even five minutes of mindfulness—just one conscious breath—can reset your brain. Some journal daily to clear the mental clutter. Others pray. Others walk. The practice doesn’t matter as much as the rhythm.
3. Build your circle.
Greatness isn’t meant to be pursued alone. Surround yourself with people who understand what you’re aiming for. Mentors, peers, partners who remind you of your “why” and hold you accountable. Sometimes the right conversation can bring more clarity than a week of solitary thinking.
4. Delegate and automate.
Not everything needs your personal touch. If something doesn’t require your unique presence, let someone else do it—or build a system that does it for you. Free your time and energy for the things only you can do.
5. Embrace iteration.
Don’t wait for the perfect start. Pick something. Begin. Test. Learn. Adjust. Doing one great thing at a time doesn’t mean you’ll always pick the right one. But it does mean you’ll always be moving forward.
When you string together days of one great thing, you build weeks of progress. Weeks turn into months. Months into years. And before you know it, you’ve built a life that feels whole—not because you did it all, but because you did what mattered.
The Gift of Living This Way
Let me tell you what happens when you start living with this rhythm—one great thing at a time.
The heaviness lifts. The noise quiets. The race slows down. You stop measuring yourself by how many boxes you checked, and you start measuring yourself by the meaning you create.
You walk through your day lighter, because you know what you chose to protect. You end your day satisfied, because you know you gave your best to what mattered most.
For me, my one great thing is often this:
I do that which inspires, equips, and enables leaders.
I do that which creates and contributes to happiness.
I do that which serves the greater good.
Not all at once. Not in one grand gesture. But one great thing at a time.
And that’s what I want for you too.
Because this way of living isn’t about productivity hacks. It isn’t about proving yourself. It isn’t even about balance.
It’s about building a life that feels like a gift—one day at a time.
If Today Were Your Last
Here’s a question that has guided me more than any productivity tool ever could:
If today were your last, what would you do?
It changes the way you look at your list, doesn’t it? Suddenly, the half-hearted tasks fade. The trivial noise disappears. What remains are the few things that carry weight—the conversations, the creations, the commitments that leave a mark.
The truth is, none of us knows how many days we have left. But we do know this: we get to choose how we live the one in front of us.
You don’t need to do it all. You don’t even need to do most of it. You only need to do one great thing at a time.
So live a great life today. It might be your last. Choose your one great thing. Protect it. Do it with all your heart.
What’s next?
