The Belief Behind The One Thing
Every behavior has a belief behind it. If you want real change, don’t change the action, change the belief.
A few years ago, everyone I respected was raving about a book called The One Thing by Gary Keller.
They said it changed how they worked. Changed how they grew. Changed their lives.
So I read it.
And I thought:
That’s it?
Focus on fewer things. Don’t multitask. Time block. Prioritize.
Useful, sure. But I put the book down thinking I hadn’t learned anything I didn’t already know.
But I missed it. Because the point of The One Thing isn’t the productivity advice. The point is:
There is always one thing that creates a disproportionate impact.
And the real question—the Unlimiting question—is:
What’s the belief that’s been stopping you from doing it?
Every founder I know says they want focus. They want clarity. They want to pour into what matters most.
But they don’t. They add more. They build around the edges. They bounce between half-strategies, under-funded priorities, and people pleasing.
And when you really dig? You find the belief behind the behavior:
"If I stop doing everything, I won’t be enough."
"If I go all-in on one thing, I’ll lose the rest."
"What if I’m wrong?"
"What if I give it everything and it still doesn’t work?"
The truth is: you don’t have a focus problem. You have a belief problem.
The brilliance of The One Thing is its simplicity:
Find the thing that makes everything else easier or unnecessary.
But that doesn’t just apply to time management. It applies to people. To teams. To companies.
And once you see it... You start spotting the real "One Things" everywhere:
That one unspoken fear inside your leadership team
That one assumption in your hiring process that limits who you bring in
That one cultural belief that’s capping how bold your people are allowed to be
If you remove that belief? Everything else starts working better.
Here’s how I think about it now:
Strategy is the visible ceiling. Belief is the invisible one.
You can change your goals. You can install an “Operating System.” You can hire better.
But if the belief underneath it all doesn’t shift? You’ll keep rebuilding the same company in different clothes.
The true One Thing isn’t a productivity hack. It’s a permission slip to ask:
What’s the belief I’ve been afraid to challenge? What if removing that made everything else easier... or unnecessary?
That’s the question that changes a company. And often, a life.