Since being published in 2007, and hitting #1 on the most prestigious business sales rankings, The Four Hour Work Week by Timothy Ferriss has gotten a lot of mixed reviews.  Obviously since it has done so well in its sales numbers, people like something about it.  I have seen and heard that many people do not want to even open the cover because of the title.  Whether this fact is because the title seems so out-of-the-box thinking, or people are scared to think of such a lifestyle, they should truly not judge a book by its cover.  This review will give you an unbiased view of the book so you can have a little more insight about it.

First a little bit about the author. Timothy Ferriss is a learning and experience-gaining-addict.  As you can see by his personal blog (named experiments in lifestyle design), his life goal is to gain as much time flexibility as possible in order to have self-fulfilling experiences throughout his entire life (what he calls mini-retirements).  He explains in his book that during and just after his time at Princeton University, he began his life in business and as a business owner.  Through experience with his software  and nutritional supplement business working 50+ hours a week while constantly being chained to his computer screen, he decided to make a change in his life.  This is how the ideas for The Four Hour Work Week arose.

He learned and practiced Pareto's 80/20 rule (a rule every business owner should live by), automated his business with virtual assistants and more efficient practices, and was able to take a year-long hiatus from his companies. He traveled the world for the year, only to come back to find that his companies had made more money while he was gone than the previous year while he had been working his butt off! 

After settling back into the United States, he continued to use many outsourcing practices which were very successful while he was gone, and was able to free up a lot of his time in order to pursue other ventures which were truly important to him.  He has now been able to publish a #1 selling book, give a TED.com talk, start an educational charity (which I think is awesome), and enjoy the finer things in life a whole lot more. 

Making more money without putting any hours into his business is what most people find hard to believe, or they also think that they would not be able to do as he did, but it truly is possible.  In the book Timothy explains in detail exactly how he was able to outsource his life and companies while gone, and there is definitely at least a couple things any business can benefit from by reading his book. 

There is also a lot of hoopla about people saying 'I wouldn't know what to do with myself if I had a four-hour work week!'  Unfortunately these people are missing the big picture.  The book is ultimately not advocating a 4-hour workweek, it is only titled that in order to gain curiosity and exposure.  The book should be looked at like a tool to increase profit and quality of life for anyone who would like such a thing  (and possibly a mini-retirement here in there instead of staying in the rat race the rest of your life while looking forward to a retirement when you are too old to enjoy it!)  Tim defines 'work' as something we truly would rather not do in order to gain income.  You are definitely encouraged to spend as many hours on things you enjoy and which bring happiness to your life and those around you.

Technology and the internet has allowed those who want to take control of their lives an unprecedented segue into an ideal lifestyle of happiness and financial freedom.  I have learned from Timothy Ferriss and thank him heavily for sharing his experiences and wisdom with me.  I enjoy incorporating many of his ideas into my life and teaching them to others.