Own Your ONE Thing

“The main thing is to keep the main thing the main thing.” – Stephen Covey

This quote by Stephen Covey succinctly encapsulates the essence of focus in any endeavor, particularly in the workplace. In today's fast-paced, multifaceted business world, keeping the main thing the main thing - your ONE Thing - can be the key to unparalleled success and put you and your business on the fast track! Let's explore how businesses and individuals can leverage this powerful concept.

1). ONE Thing in Marketing and Product Development:

- Narrowing Focus: Businesses can apply the ONE Thing principle by concentrating their marketing efforts on their most profitable product or target demographic. This approach allows for more tailored and impactful marketing strategies. Use the 80/20 principle to narrow your focus on the most profitable and reliable customers. Often times just a handful of top customers can drive your business to new heights - so be sure to allocate your time and energy accordingly, rather than trying to squeeze out earnings from your lower-performing accounts.

- Product Development: In product development, focusing on a single core offering ensures quality and innovation. It's about doing one thing exceptionally well, rather than spreading resources thin over multiple mediocre products.

2). ONE Thing for Career Success:

- Individual Application: For individuals, applying the ONE Thing mindset can mean focusing on developing a single skill or expertise area. This specialization can make you indispensable in your field, accelerating career growth. Take the courses, attend the events, read the books, participate in the online forums. Just a small but steady stream of effort can propel you forward as a recognized thought leader in any field.

- Time Management: It also involves prioritizing tasks that align most closely with career goals, ensuring that daily activities contribute meaningfully to these objectives. In addition to having a “To Do List”, be sure to also make a “Success List” that is aligned with your ONE Thing.

3). Strategic Simplification:

When Steve Jobs returned to Apple in 1997, he observed that the company was losing focus, with dozens of products confusing the market and diluting Apple's brand strength. In a bold move, Jobs drastically simplified the product line to just a handful of products. He focused on creating a few, high-quality products that could literally fit on one table. This move was about more than just cutting costs; it was a strategic decision to refocus Apple’s energies and resources.

Impact of Focus: This approach allowed Apple to pour its creativity and technical expertise into fewer products, ensuring each was innovative and perfectly executed. The result was a series of game-changing products like the iPod, iPhone, and iPad, which not only resurrected Apple but also revolutionized entire industries.

4). Find the Blue Ocean

Identifying Core Competencies: Businesses should start by identifying what they do best – their core competencies. This could be a unique product, a particular service, or even a method of delivery.

Blue Ocean Strategy - Kim and Mauborgne: This strategy, articulated by W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne, involves looking beyond the existing competitive market space (the 'Red Ocean') and venturing into new market areas (the 'Blue Ocean'). By focusing on creating new demand and exploring untapped markets, businesses can discover innovative breakthroughs. Remember Jerry Garcia’s advice - “It's not enough to be the best at what you do; you must be perceived as the only one who does what you do.”

Application of Blue Ocean: In the context of the ONE Thing, the Blue Ocean Strategy encourages businesses to not just focus on beating competitors, but to redefine the terms of competition by focusing on a singular aspect that creates a new market space. For example, a company might focus on an overlooked customer need or a new method of service delivery, thereby creating its own 'blue ocean' of opportunity.

5). Steps to Uncover the ONE Thing:

- Brainstorm and List: List all products, services, and market segments your business engages with.

- Evaluate Impact: Assess which of these areas have the most significant impact on your business’s success.

- Seek Feedback: Gather feedback from customers, employees, and stakeholders to understand what your business is known for and valued.

- Focus and Execute: Once identified, focus your strategy, resources, and efforts on this ONE Thing. Remember, it’s about doing fewer things for more effect instead of doing more things with unwanted side effects!

Implementing the ONE Thing principle at work, whether you're a business or an individual, requires discipline and clarity. It's about recognizing that spreading yourself too thin can dilute your effectiveness. By focusing intensely on your ONE main thing, you harness the power of concentrated efforts to achieve extraordinary results.