The ONE Thing: The Surprisingly Simple Truth Behind Extraordinary Results (Abstract of the book)

Saying “no” to unimportant tasks is vital if you are to focus your efforts on the most important ones.

When asked about success, Bill Cosby recalled a key piece of advice he’d received: “I don’t know the key to success, but the key to failure is trying to please everybody.”

We all struggle at one time or another with saying “no” to requests, because we want to be helpful. Helping others can be deeply rewarding, but, in order to preserve your time and energy for your biggest goals, you need to say “no” to lower-priority requests.

Steve Jobs was famously as proud of the projects he didn’t pursue as the ones he did. When he returned to Apple in 1997, he reduced the company's output from 350 products down to just 10. That’s a lot of no's. At a developer’s conference in 1997, he explained, “When you think about focusing, you think ‘Well, focusing is about saying yes.’ No! Focusing is about saying no.”

Saying “no” to people all the time does not have to be as cold or as selfish as it may appear. You can always try to give them an alternative solution that doesn’t require your assistance, or redirect them to someone who can be more helpful.

Also, think about implementing strategies that will cut down on the requests you get; for example, by asking that staff refer to a list of frequently asked questions before approaching you. This may help, but remember: sometimes you will still have to actually turn people down if you are to succeed.

With limited time and resources, you must be prepared to say “no” to trivial tasks if you want to focus your energy and get the most important ones done.

Saying “no” to unimportant tasks is vital if you are to focus your efforts on the most important ones.