Frank Slootman, the legendary CEO who took DataDomain, ServiceNow, and Snowflake to stratospheric success (including the largest software IPO ever), is famous for his no-nonsense, high-intensity leadership style. In his book Amp It Up and countless interviews, he hammers home a brutal truth about focus.
is message: Most organizations—and people—are spread too thin.
We’re a mile wide and an inch deep.
Everything moves slowly—like swimming in glue or wading through molasses.To break this paralysis, Slootman poses a deceptively simple but terrifying exercise:
“If you could do only one thing for the rest of the year, what would it be? And why?”People struggle mightily with this question. Why? Because it forces ruthless honesty. It’s easy to be wrong—and being wrong means precious resources (time, energy, money) are misallocated on a grand scale.It’s far more comfortable to rattle off five or ten “priorities.” But as Slootman sharply points out:
The moment you have multiple priorities, you have none.Priority is singular.
He channels Andrew Carnegie, who built an empire with the same wisdom:
Ladies and Gentlemen—One Thing!What’s yours?
is message: Most organizations—and people—are spread too thin.
We’re a mile wide and an inch deep.
Everything moves slowly—like swimming in glue or wading through molasses.To break this paralysis, Slootman poses a deceptively simple but terrifying exercise:
“If you could do only one thing for the rest of the year, what would it be? And why?”
The moment you have multiple priorities, you have none.Priority is singular.
He channels Andrew Carnegie, who built an empire with the same wisdom:
“Put all your good eggs in one basket—and then watch that basket.”
In a world addicted to multitasking and endless to-do lists, this is radical. But it’s how extraordinary results happen.Slootman’s track record proves it: At Snowflake, he didn’t chase ten initiatives—he obsessed over speed, execution, and dominating the cloud data market.So, ask yourself today:If you could accomplish only one thing in the coming year—what would it be?Be bold. Be specific. Be willing to be wrong (and adjust).Because scattered effort guarantees mediocrity.Ladies and Gentlemen—One Thing!What’s yours?