Some books have to be read more than once.
In fact some books need to be read every year just to remind yourself about the power of the book.
The 4-hour work week by Tim Ferriss is one of those books.
For those of you who don't know Timothy Ferriss he is an Author, Blogger, Entrepreneur, investor,lifestyle designer and philosopher.
Tim Ferriss is one of those guys that you would classify as a genius.
He is a brilliant thinker that changed entrepreneurship and the lives of hundreds of thousands of people around the world.
It was almost 9 years ago that I read the 4 hour work week book the first time.
I was in Seoul ,South Korea at the time and on my way to catch a train from Seoul Station to Busan which is a city in the south of the country.
On my way to the train station, I stopped by the bookstore and saw this book with an orange cover and the title “The Four Hour Work Week, by Timothy Ferriss”.
I thought to myself ,”This book looks interesting”.
I started reading the book in Seoul station and finished it the same day in Busan.
I got sucked into this world that I didn't know existed.
Here is a guy who was telling me the story of his life and introducing me to ideas that I didn't even know was possible.
The idea that you can start your own business,run it from your laptop on an island somewhere.
The idea that you don't have to jump into the world of a job that you hate and doing it for 40 years.
A job that makes you miserable and that only gives you the promise of a few good years at the end.
These few good years that most people call retirement.
Time Ferriss has the idea that if you put in the work you can create a business that would at some stage be strong enough to run without you being hands-on 24/7.
At the time I thought this was a great idea but it sounded a bit too good to be true.
For three years I didn't fully buy into his ideas.
But when I read the book 3 years later things started to take some shape.
Fast forward to today.
I am now a free man.
I run my own business.
As I'm writing this I'm sitting in Bangkok in an Entrepreneurial work space.
I got here at 1 pm to check into my business and do a few things online.
Last year I traveled to 7 countries.
And this year I will continue doing more of the same.
Do I work?
Yes I do work but on my terms.
I build an online business that I own.
I manage the business with a few people that work for me online.
I work from anywhere in the world.
I only need my laptop and an internet connection.
Was it easy to create the business?
No!
It took hard work and commitment to create it.
It took me 5 years.
But then one day I realized I make enough money to walk away.
For me, the magic number was $10000 a month of passive income.
This was the Green light for me to walk away.
It was a ticket to freedom.
I would have never done it without the ideas of the four-hour workweek,by Timothy Ferriss.
I meet many people that think people like me “got lucky” or its “too good to be true”.
But there are many people like me out there.
The thing is when you are in the system it's hard to look out and think a world like this exists.
But once you are out you look back and you ask yourself this:
“How the fuck did you do that shit job for so long?”
And then you ask yourself the second question?
“How the fuck did I live on so little money?”
Tim Ferriss's book is packed with lessons and ideas on how to change your life.
I recommend you get the book because I'm not going to talk about them all here today.
But I will tell you the biggest mindset lesson I learned from Tim Ferriss and his book.
The Big Lesson From The 4 Hour Work Week Book
The biggest lesson I learned from Tim Ferriss is this:
Doing the unrealistic is easier than doing the realistic.
The point he makes is that most people don't dream big.
Most don't think great things are possible for them.
They don't believe their dreams can become real.
They aim low and they get low.
Tim talks about the reality that 99% of the people in the world don't believe they can achieve anything great.
Truer words have never been spoken.
Most people have been convinced to stop dreaming and just accept the cards they got and be grateful for it.
They just don't buy the “dream” that there is a different way to live life.
It's lonely at the top because most never try to reach the top.
They take the middle road.
They try to be reasonable.
Rich and successful people are not reasonable, they think big.
But again, it's lonely there at the top, because most believe it's not possible for them.
So once you break out of the “matrix” you realize that it wasn't that hard to get to the top.
You also realize that most people believe that this “dream world” cant ever become real for them.
So what happens?
They never even give it a shot.
And guess what?
If you don't take a shot, one thing is certain.
Nothing changes.
Think about dating for example.
Most men will walk into a bar and never approach the perfect 10 girls.
They would go for the 8 or the 7 because that is the safe choice and more “realistic”.
The reality is most guys won't approach her in real life, maybe online because it's safer.
But never will they go after a 10 in real life.
But the reality is that at the 8 it's overcrowded.
And the reality is that you missed out on the 10 because you were telling yourself it can't happen for you.
The reality of big goals and unusual goals is that the competition is a lot less because most will never go for it.
But you only find this out once you get in the game.
Was it easy?
Again, no it's not easy, but its a lot easier than going for average and living with that painful reality.
This week I bought my third copy of the 4-hour workweek in Bangkok and started to reread the book.
And even now I get inspiration and new ideas from it.
If you can get 1 new idea today that you must hold onto for dear life then let it be this:
Life is short, very short,don't wait for the best years of your life to pass you by.
Take a shot.
Step up and do whatever you have to turn your dream into a reality.
Even if you have to build your business after hours while doing your regular job.
Then do it.
And then walk away and get your freedom.
The best part of living this independent lifestyle is that you can do whatever you want every day.
Work if you want and where you want.
Fly to a tropical island.
Read a book.
Go for a walk.
Do what you want….
You design your life once you are in a position to do so.
For example today this was my schedule:
-I got up at 9am and had some coffee.
-I took a swim at 9:30 – 10
-Read for an hour 10 -11
-11:30 Took a shower
-Take a taxi to the city center for some lunch at 12pm.
-Walk to Work Space and start checking on my business at 1pm.
-Go for coffee at 5pm
-Go home at 6pm
Remember
But remember I'm not selling a hoax:
I'm not saying quit your job tomorrow and the next day start working only 4 hours a week.
It takes time and hard work to get to that level.
Are there times where I work hard? Yes
Does sit take back-breaking work to create a business?Yes
But at a certain level, you get a high level of freedom and the ability to live free and manage yourself.
Conclusion
Once you get your freedom everything changes.
You will come to a point when you start smiling when you wake up.
Then you will know that you are finally living life on your terms.
So get up.
Start dreaming.
Start taking the steps to make that dream real.
And then start really living.
The clock is ticking!!!
Get up now!!
Until next time my brothers.
