“Escape the 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich”. This is what it says on the front page of Tim Ferris’s book “The Four Hour Work Week”. A title that I picked up from the bookshelf at my hotel on my recent trip to Vienna, Austria. Somewhere I had arrived from after 4 days spent away in Bratislava (SK) and Budapest (Hungary).
I mean I am not sure if I really was allowed to just take this and not bring it back but really I was just looking at the books at my hotel out of curiosity and this is definitely something that jumped right off the shelf at me.
It was kind of odd really as most of the books here were not English but there it was a book about Entrepreneurship.
And I must say that after reading this till the end I am quite excited to circle back and explore these ideas and references further. I will try not to spoil this book for anyone that might like to read it but what I will say is that even though many things (ideas) mentioned in this book are OUT OF DATE (at least in my edition) STILL even getting this old copy has a ton of valuable information inside for any keen entrepreneurs that want to start their own online business.
Something that I will look further to explore in this review! So please keep reading and I will share my thoughts on why I think this book is a must-read for any keen budding entrepreneur looking for new inspiration.
Now… let’s get to it…
The Four Hour Work Week By Tim Ferris
Table of Contents
My Book Review (2023)
*My Copy of this book I found at my hostel in Austria. I think either 2 things could have happened: this was either 1# lost and placed on the bookshelf with not much thought about the content inside, or 2# this was left to be found by someone maybe even Tim F himself knowing what the information inside could do for someone.
I will briefly describe this below;
- A Former No. 1 New York Times Best Seller
- How to Make $40K a week from Just 4 Hours of Work
- A shared Economics Model to vastly decrease your working week.
- The key to doing whatever you want and whenever you want to.
WARNING: DO NOT READ THIS BOOK UNLESS YOU WANT TO QUIT YOUR JOB!!!
This is what it says on the back page but how about this…
Who Is Tim Ferris Anyway?
In short Tim Ferris is a best-selling author of 5 books that have made #1 in both the NY Times and Wall Street Journal.
He is also the main host of the Tim Ferris Show podcast which according to Tim’s website has made over 900 MILLION Downloads since its inception. I have not checked out Tim’s podcast yet but some recent guests he has had to talk to;
All Episodes (From Newest to Oldest)
- Dr. Matthew Walker About Sleep and Melatonin
- Elan Lee, Co-Creator of Exploding Kittens — How to Raise Millions on Kickstarter
- Famed Explorer Wade Davis — How to Become the Architect of Your Life
- Legendary Investor Bill Gurley on Investing Rules, – Finding Outliers, Insights from Jeff Bezos and Howard Marks…
- Rick Rubin, Legendary Producer — Timeless Methods for Unlocking Creativity…
I mean I had never heard of Tim Ferris before but the more I’ve read about him the more high-profile I’ve realized he is.
For instance, Tim’s Twitter account was named one of the top “5 Must-Follow Twitter Accounts for Entrepreneurs,”
He has also appeared in a number of very famous media publications including Forbes and Times magazine.
So, he is definitely a very successful individual but let’s get back to talking about the book.
What Is The Four Hour Work Week
According to ChatGPT ~ (I know I’m cheating here lol) but this is their main description of Tim’s book…
“The 4-Hour Work Week” is a book written by Tim Ferris that was published in 2007. The book presents a new approach to work and life, aimed at helping individuals achieve more by working considerably less.
For this purpose It provides a plethora of different strategies for reducing work hours, increasing productivity, and outsourcing tasks to free up time for more meaningful pursuits.
To help achieve this means this book offers practical advice on how to eliminate unnecessary work, automate income streams, and create more free time for travel, personal growth, and leisure activities.
It covers topics such as lifestyle design, productivity, and entrepreneurship and provides a blueprint for achieving financial independence and creating a more fulfilling life.
In Tim’s words “The 4-Hour Work Week,” he argues that the problem with most people is that they are trapped in the “deferred-life plan,” working long hours and sacrificing their personal lives for the promise of a better future.
I mean I can tell you that the amount of hours I spend working this is definitely true. As much as I get out traveling (4 trips in 6 months) still I don’t have anything close to the freedom this book speaks about, and really I like writing but I digress.
My Thoughts On The Content In This Book
When I found this book it was my first morning in Vienna. The night before I had ended up at a bar called Sissy’s (somewhere I hope to go back to one day) no complaints there but on the first night I lost my UK travel adapter. Like I remember being given it back but due to this, I could not use my laptop and strangely this coincided with finding this book.
So everything basically in this book I felt was of interest to me. In the past 4 years, I have left the UK several times and I seem to be going away more and more if I’m being honest. So just reading about someone that has been able to make this a reality was quite inspiring but other things too such as how to read faster and automate your business better.
I mean the laptop lifestyle seriously I am not anywhere near there yet properly. eBay I’ve actually got to thank you for financing much of my last two trips away but I would have to say that to really excel as a remote online businessman you don’t really want to be coming back to 100+ things to do.
I actually did this all in a day (my work after this trip) but if you are selling your own products what you want is to either sell digital information products (another tip from Tim’s book) or to get into Dropshipping (something else Tim recommends).
This is by no means it either he even has a page about how to ask out a girl lol but yes loads of good information.
Where To Buy “The Four-Hour Work Week”
From what I have been able to find the newly updated version of the “The Four Hour Work Week” is available from all the following places;
- Amazon
- Barnes & Noble
- Books A Million
- Bookshop.org
- Hudson Booksellers
- IndieBoundPowell’s
- Target
- Walmart
Really I should get myself a copy because the book I read is the original from back when people used Blackberry phones and I’m sure solely based on that and other outdated ideas that I read should get the updated version but also there are other books by Tim Ferris too.
Other Books By Tim Ferris
- Tribe of Mentors — Short Life Advice from the Best in the World
- Tools of Titans — The Tactics, Routines, and Habits of Billionaires, Icons, and World-Class Performers
- The 4-Hour Chef — The Simple Path to Cooking Like a Pro, Learning Anything, and Living the Good Life
- The 4-Hour Body — An Uncommon Guide to Rapid Fat Loss, Incredible Sex, and How To Become Superhuman
Tim also recommends a lot of other books for further reading in “the four-hour work week”.
I would suspect that this list has maybe changed since the revised edition was published but anyhow in my 2003 Edition;
- The Magic of Thinking Big By David Schwartz
- How To Make Million’s With Your Ideas: An Entrepreneurs Guide By Dan S. Kennedy
- The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Work and What to do About It By Michael E. Gerber
- Vagabonding: An Uncommon Guide To The Art of Long-Term Word Travel by Rolf Potts
I’ve personally not heard of any of these books but I will provide the links above. Now…
My Own Advice For Budding Entrepreneurs
So I will be brutally honest with you. My Secret To Success For Online Entrepreneurs, take from this what you will, I am not rich yet, and trust me I have not yet fully managed to set up multiple successful businesses ~ Really besides eBay I still have quite a way to go. Although, still there are things that I can advise people on for sure.
I would say these are;
- Set up a Reliable Income Stream: To start your own business might mean making sacrifices. Tim Ferris for example says cutting down your work hours is an absolute must but simply still you must fill the gap financially.
- Start a Website: Basically Set Up An Authority Platform To Build Trust With Your Audience
- Learn New Skills: Whether You Are Setting Up a Website, Looking To Offer Online Service, or Whatever Else Learn the Skills You Need To Stand Out From The Competition and to Make Sure What You Do Becomes a Success.
- and Be Persistent: Trust Me There Will Be Times When You Feel Like Quitting But Don’t Give Up On Something That You Will Given Time Make Work. Being Patient and Persistent May Pay Off Sooner Than You Think!
So, Probably my favorite quote at the moment. “Go to Sleep with a Dream and Wake Up with a Purpose
This I can definitely relate to because you must want what you’re doing to work. 3 years of blogging now and I think this is a perfect example. I am always looking forward to my next international trip and I think why is because going away is a motivation for me to be successful.
Being able to go to more places, afford the luxuries I couldn’t before, and stay away for longer. These are all things that keep me working towards making my websites better. I am always thinking about what I can do next to make this more possible and seriously I honestly believe that as long as I keep going it surely is only a matter of time.
So for anyone reading this, my advice is to do what I am doing. Don’t just stop and start new projects every few months because you are not making money yet STICK IT OUT and find where you are going wrong.
Read a book like “The Four Hour Work Week” and Get Inspired!
Also, Check Out My No.1 Recommended Course To Make Money Online…
