The 4-Hour Workweek

We have a new reading recommendation for these lazy autumn days when you might wanna pick a good coffee and make yourself comfortable with a good book. “The 4-hour workweek bestseller” by Tim Ferriss has proved its worth by offering a better perspective on working from anywhere, without social boundaries or geographical constraints.

You might be thinking, “Oh, is this a new self-development book promise that’s gonna teach me nothing? Is it really worth the hype?”. I was in the same state of mind when someone recommended it to me. It was the beginning of the pandemic when I just lost my day-to-day job without feeling hope I could do it again. Without anything much to do in isolation, I decided to give it a try and see what else it can teach me about working remotely. And it did. So, I hope you’ll choose to believe me and read my recommendation below.

This book is the real DEAL.

While it sounds cliche, it was the author’s idea to structure all the book chapters into four areas, which he calls the DEAL, which means:

D = definition
E = elimination
A = automation
L = liberation

The definition

The book starts with the core idea of finding purpose in everything you do, not just work. Ask yourself, What do you want from life? What do you love to do? What brings you joy?

The author does not want you to make plans for the long term, but on the contrary. If you know what defines you as a human being, you’ll know your focus, which will be your north star in everything you do. The book offers the theory and guidance on how to do it and also includes templates and spreadsheets that can be downloaded from the author’s website.

This chapter helps in a particular way if you feel stuck under the traditional corporate life within a 9:00-5:00 schedule.

The elimination

A major change can’t come into your life if you can’t tie it to constant habits and thorough time management. The author speaks about connecting different daily tasks or habits of yours to do them more easily. For example, make a list of things you are grateful for today or your to-do list for tomorrow right after you brush your teeth at night. The more you associate activities together, the more likely they will become part of your daily schedule.

Tim Ferriss is also a huge fan of keeping a healthy schedule when it comes to checking your email or planning your meetings. Knowing when they happen gives you more control over your life. For example, you can schedule all your meetings after lunchtime for increased productivity each morning and decide to check your email only once or two times per day.

The automation

This part speaks more to those of you who might have a side gig or doing an online activity in a constant way. If you want to share your learnings with the world, the author gives you plenty of advice on this site.

It’s perfect if you need to learn how to set up an online business and automate as much as you can from its daily operations. This way, you can enjoy life without becoming overwhelmed by the required management tasks.

The liberation

The last part of the book tackles the elephant in the room, especially if you want to change your job and find something with greater flexibility for remote working.

This book provides tips and tricks for effective time management, managing a steady income, and integrating an online remote job that allows you to work from anywhere.

A book of examples

Each chapter of the book contains personal anecdotes from Tim’s life experience and is packed into a list of practical how-to recommendations or direct exercises you can jump into.

I hope you’ll give The 4-Hour Workweek a chance as your next book, and let me know what you think in the comments section below.