I recently finished reading Tim Ferriss' The 4-Hour Workweek, Escape 9 - 5, Live Anywhere and Join the New Rich. This is simply a must read for anyone interested in independence from the 9 to 5. Whether you have left your job and have started your own company, or sitting in your cubicle dreaming of quitting between cold calls.
Tim is an interesting character. The book flows with many stories of Tim's adventures. If only half of them are true, then Tim has really led a charmed life. Through these stories, Tim explains that "The 4-hour Workweek" is a lifestyle change, not a get-rich-quick plan. Tim's writing is refreshing. His message seems sincere.
After reading the book, I not only want to be a member of the New Rich, but I have a plan that Tim lays out very clearly on how that goal is obtainable. Tim does not preach about how to amass a fortune. In fact, he falls just short of telling you not to. Tim's idea is simply to figure out what you would want to do and where. From Tango world championships in Buenos Aires to kickboxing in Thailand, Tim shows you that it isn't about how much you have, but how much you enjoy.
His plan is to teach you how to decide what would make you the happiest, then decide how much it would cost you to do that, and then plan out how to make enough money (passively) to be able to live your dream. He really drives the point home that enjoying your life while you can is what can make life more than you can imagine. I've read books that say the same thing, but never a book that details it so well.
This book is not just about changing your thought process. The 4-Hour Workweek goes into great detail about HOW TO ACHIEVE your dreams. Tim isn't just another speaker saying "Think Big" and then leaving you to figure out what to do with your thoughts. I've read some GREAT books about thinking big and living large, but Tim really gives you a plan to let you achieve your dreams.
It takes you step-by-step on what you have to do to automate your business or get/start a business that you can automate. He doesn't simply tell you that you need to get out of the office, he has an extensive chapter telling you how to do it, gradually. Right down to the scripts you use to put a remote working agreement in place with your current company. He role-plays the discussions that will take place between you and your boss. He doesn't hold anything back.
There is just as much detail about how to automate your business to the point that it can run whether you are working from home in the same city as the office, or whether you are hiking up a mountain in Switzerland. Again, the details of how to do this are so in depth that you have the confidence immediately to think that you can do it.
I've read books, listened to Podcasts, purchased seminars, etc. I'm not knocking any of them. Some of them are what put me in the mind frame for finding and reading a book like The 4-Hour Workweek. But I have never come away from reading a book with such a clear plan of what to do to accomplish what the author's objective was. Tim really lays it out for you. He even has worksheets on his web site to help you work on your plan. Most books, podcasts, etc. that I've leave you with the message that "If you want to do this, sign up for one of my seminars and I'll show you how." They all seem like a sales pitch for buying the "rest of the story". This book is Tim's seminar. I've never read a more complete "How-To" in the entrepreneur genre than this book. Few books in life are the life-changing type. Few live up to their own hype. But this one is life changing and Tim cuts through the hype with actual facts. If you're ready for a ride to freedom, and not just financial freedom-but true freedom, you will find The 4-hour Workweek invaluable. Get this book, and then let's meet up sometime as members of The New Rich!
Trent