How to Take Action in 2026: 11 Lessons from Gary Keller, Morgan Housel, and Sahil Bloom

The ONE Thing

NOVA Media

Entrepreneurship, Business, Careers

4.8 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 22 December 2025

⏱️ 44 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

We’re closing out the year with a special highlight reel from some of Jay Papasan’s favorite conversations of 2025, all centered on two big themes: taking action and sustaining action. On the “taking action” side, Jenny Wood reframes fear as a signal of agency, Pat Flynn walks us through his “DeLorean” future-casting exercise, and Sahil Bloom challenges us to let our calendars prove what truly matters. Morgan Housel explores defining “enough” beyond money, Brandon Turner breaks big dreams into MINS—most important next steps—and Anne-Laure invites us to lower the stakes with tiny experiments instead of perfectionism. On the “sustaining action” side, Coach Jordan Freed shares his awareness–agency–accountability cycle, Chris explains why self-care is a strategy (not selfish), Dr. Robin Hanley-Defoe shows how to process emotion in real time, and Liz Bohannon gives us a practical path to building real community. Revisit the moments that moved you most, then dive into the full episodes linked in the show notes to go deeper and share them with someone who needs them. Challenge of the Week: Pick one lesson from this episode and turn it into a simple daily practice for the next week. *** To learn more, and for the complete show notes, visit: the1thing.com/pods. We talk about: [00:00] Why This Episode Exists and What We’re Reflecting On [01:44] Fear as a Compass and a Source of Agency (Jenny Wood) [06:01] Using the DeLorean Exercise to Gain Perspective [09:31] What Would a Stranger Say About Your Priorities (Sahil Bloom) [12:05] Defining Enough Beyond Money [14:29] What Is the Most Important Next Step (MINS) [17:21] Why Consistency Is Intensity (Gary Keller) [21:20] Lowering the Stakes with Tiny Experiments (Anne-Laure Le Cunff) [24:51] How Long Success Really Takes (Dorie Clark) [30:11] Why Self-Care Is a Strategy, Not a Reward (Chris, The Long Haul Leader) [34:04] Processing Emotion Instead of Carrying It (Dr. Robin Hanley-Defoe) [37:26] Building Community Through Consistent Rhythms [42:53] Choosing One Lesson and Carrying It Forward Links & Tools from This Episode: The Unconventional Traits That Fast-Track Success | Jenny Wood and Jay Papasan Why Smart People Stay Stuck in "Getting Ready" Mode | Pat Flynn & Jay Papasan Define Success on Your Own Terms | Sahil Bloom & Jay Papasan The Art of Spending Money (And Why Most of Us Get It Wrong) | Morgan Housel & Jay Papasan How to 6X Your Goals Using The ONE Thing | Jay Papasan & Brandon Turner Tiny Experiments: The Neuroscience of Getting Unstuck | Anne-Laure Le Cunff and Jay Papasan The Way: 5 Principles That Create Extraordinary Results | Gary Keller & Jay Papasan The 10 BOLD Truths for Building an Amazing Life | Gary Keller & Jay Papasan How to Win The Long Game (When Everyone Else Plays Short) | Jay Papasan & Dorie Clark The 4 Hidden Thieves Destroying Your Productivity | Jay Papasan & Jordan Freed How to Lead for the Long Haul Without Burning Out | Jay Papasan & Chris Ducker Why High Achievers Burn Out (and What to Do About It) Leadership’s Hidden Cost: Loneliness - And How to Build Real Community | Jay Papasan & Liz Bohannon Free Resources Want to be a guest or share feedback? Email podcast@the1thing.com or send us an audio note at Speakpipe.com/the1thing. Produced by NOVA

Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey there, One Thing family. We're wrapping up a great year of podcasting with the One Thing podcast.
0:05.0	It's actually my first full year behind the microphone for the podcast. I picked it up at the end of
0:11.1	24. And what I thought we would do, we teach people to do this, is reflect back. What were some of the
0:17.4	highlights? What were some of my favorite learning moments from the guest we had on the show this year?
0:22.6	So we've selected a baker's dozen of really nice highlights. They were either favorited by you and your comments at your shares or by me and our team that we felt like were some of the best lessons that we had to learn around two themes, taking action and sustaining action. Now, as a
0:39.0	reminder, if you go to the podcast notes, if you really like anything that you're hearing,
0:43.5	all of these episodes are linked in the podcast notes. You can dive in and listen to the full ones there.
0:49.8	And feel free if you hear one that you really think, man, I needed that, but I know someone
0:54.2	who needs it more.
0:55.2	Please share.
0:56.2	Please share it with people that need it.
0:57.8	These are some of the best highlights of our year.
1:00.0	I hope you enjoy revisited them as much as I did.
1:03.0	I'm Jay Papazan and this is The One Thing, your weekly guide to the simple steps that lead
1:07.6	to extraordinary results.
1:24.1	All right, so to set up this episode, we're going to do it in two parts. The first half before the break, we will talk about action, taking action and achievement.
1:29.3	And in the second half, the theme is going to be around kind of sustaining action and achievement.
1:35.2	There are the things we do to get in motion and achieve our goals. And there are the things that we do to stay in motion so we can continue with our success journey.
1:44.0	And we're going to kick this show off with my friend Jenny Wood, author of Wild
1:48.2	Courage.
1:49.4	Now, this is a clip where she's talking about the power of fear and some of its unexpected
1:54.6	benefits.
	...

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