Book: The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich

Timothy Ferris' new book The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich contains some pretty solid (and again challenging) thinking for most of us.

Tim describes the DLP (delayed life plan) that most of us aspire to as ill-conceived. Rather than spending your whole life working to save for a retirement, which many never see or are no longer capable of enjoying, Tim argues that you should look to take mini-retirements constantly. Leaving it all for a later day is not sensible.

I've often heard descriptions of life that say that it's not the destination that's important, it's the journey that matters. The older I get, the more I think that's just so true. Any time you find yourself saying to one of your kids "Sorry, I can't do xxx with you right now. I have to work. We'll do it sometime soon.", you are losing in life's journey. The old Cats in the Cradle song by the late Jim Croce was so insightful and I'm sure struck a chord with so many in the world.

In the book, Tim argues that in future (or even now), real wealth needs to be assessed by including factors like available time. An investment banker on $500,000 USD per year but who is chained to his/her work is not rich, regardless of how the community may have perceived them. One day, the person hopes to be able to stop working and do the things that they should have done throughout their lives while they were physically capable of enjoying them.

Much of the book is based on trying to develop a working lifestyle that isn't chained to any location and being able to experience the rest of the world first hand. Ironically, our industry is one that lends itself well to this style of work. The book also includes some great thoughts on learning to delegate (till it hurts and then beyond).

While I can't say I agree with all of Tim's premises in the book, it's hard to imagine reading it and not learning a few solid lessons along the way.

Recommended!