Sep 28, 2008 Posted in Random Thoughts

The Four Hour Work Week

I’ve just gone through the Four Hour Work Week by Timothy Ferriss for the third time and it simply gets more interesting with each read.

This guy is the bomb. We live in a society where we’re defined by our work and we try to measure others using the same yardstick. Then this book comes along and I’m thinking to myself, “Man, it is like this guy is speaking directly to me.”

According to Tim, the average American works over 70 hours per week and much of that is what he calls, “Work for Work’s Sake.” This is busy work done to keep the boss off our backs rather than doing what is truly effective. Tim’s philosophy (and I couldn’t agree more) is that we shouldn’t be measured on how long something takes to do but rather the results we produce.

The Four Hour Work Week outlines a plan to eliminate the busy work and unimportant tasks from your life and focus on what is actually important. Tim is the extreme when it comes to this but his suggestions make total sense. Automate and outsource as much as you can and focus on what you do best. The concept is simple but the book is a real eye-opener.

I was reading the book on a flight last week and the woman sitting next to me asked if that was possible. I said that according to the author it was. Her response? What would you do with all that time?

Good question. Fortunately, the Four Hour Work Week has some intriguing answers for you.

Pick this book up and read it. It is probably the most interesting book that I’ve read in the last five years. Very cool stuff.