Do It Today: Overcome Procrastination, Improve Productivity, and Achieve More Meaningful Things

Success Adds Up
Real success happens when we focus on one thing at a time.
The first time I discovered that idea was in high school.
When I was preparing for my final exams, I decided to study
only one subject at a time. And I only moved on to the next
when I fully grasped the material.
I noticed that I could learn something way faster if I
immersed myself in it for a few days. Most of my peers
studied multiple subjects a day. I never like that approach
because it’s too scattered.
If I’m working on a project at work, I don’t pick up another
big project. If I’m working on a new course for my blog, I
don’t start writing a book at the same time. That strategy
helps me to get things done quicker and better. Hence, I
achieve much more when I give my attention to one thing.

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Gary Keller and Jay Papasan, authors of The One Thing,
which is a great book about this same concept, said it best:
“Where I’d had huge success, I had narrowed my
concentration to one thing, and where my success varied,
my focus had too.”
Are you working on a lot of things? Is your attention not on
one thing? There’s a big chance that you will not achieve
the best possible results. Or worse: You might fail if you try
to achieve many things at the same time The reason is
simple: Most of us believe that success happens all at once.
Real life is different. Keller and Papasan put it well:
“Success is sequential, not simultaneous.”
Things add up. You learn one skill. Then another. You finish
one project. Then another. Over time, your accomplishments
add up to form an impressive feat.
This is especially true for money. Most people earned their
money over time. Few people make a big financial splash.
Forget about the Conor McGregors and Evan Spiegels of this
world. These are people who hit the career jackpot. But you
don’t need special talent or skills to succeed in life. If you
take the long road, achieve one goal after the other, and
build up your wealth step by step, you are more likely to live
a good life. It’s simple. And it always works. People who say
it doesn’t just haven’t had the patience to apply it to their
own life.
One of my mentors owns a few dozen properties, worth
millions. He acquired his wealth over time. He’s in his sixties
now. You see, things take time. And when you combine
patience with compounding, you achieve the biggest
results. And these are not extraordinary things. I’m not
promising you a gold medal at the 2020 Olympics or that

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you’ll become the next Zuckerberg. 
Everyone
can save
money, improve their skills, and create wealth.