If you have ever asked yourself why you work so hard, or what  you really want to achieve in life, you will realize that these are difficult questions to answer. We are programmed sub-consciously, to go to school, get a job or start a business, build it, and by the time you are ready to retire you can finally exit the rat race and ‘enjoy’ life. We work within a model of ‘delayed gratification’  although in most everything else in life we want it, yesterday . It certainly makes you wonder what we are all really doing! Well Tim Ferris seems to have broken the mould, and is propagating fundamental shifts in our daily lives. According to him, by outsourcing and setting up passive income models, we can break free from the day to day stresses of life and follow our dream, all that we truly want. If what I have said upto this point interests  you, I recommend getting the above book and reading it.

I must admit, I picked up this book purely because of the hype  it had generated around itself.  I could however relate to the title of the book on some level because I have taken several steps over the past few years to develop passive income generators that allow me substantial  freedom to do as I please in my daily life. I bought this book because I wanted to read how other people were doing it. The book starts off with the author narrating his own story of slaving away as an entrepreneur without making nearly enough money,but with a high degree of stress. He goes on to describe how he broke away and managed to set himself an income through passive business models which require no more than 4 hours of attention every week.  Hence the name of the book.

The book is broken up into 4 sections according to an acronym the author has termed as “DEAL”. We first go through a series of steps that outline some of the differences between traditional mindsets and what the author proposes as an “ideal” lifestyle. This ‘ideal’ lifestyle provides one with much broader levels of freedom and the ability to choose to do what one loves. (Sounds ideal doesn’t it) Further chapters take you through specifics discussing strategies,  setting goals, outsourcing non critical tasks and finally how to break free from the crutches of the 9-5 routine. The book covers each section in significant detail. However, individuals with limited knowledge of internet marketing may find some of the concepts and strategies confusing.

I cannot imagine working only 4 hours a week. I have a number of lofty ambitions which require a much greater level of effort. However, individuals who do not want to launch the next Google but do want to have a greater degree of freedom in their lives will find this book very helpful. The main points I took away from this book are :

1. Ask yourself what you want and are passionate about in life
2. The power of passive income streams
3. The importance of outsourcing non critical tasks
4. The importance of taking vacations at regular intervals

Most entrepreneurs including myself, tend to get so caught up in our work that we forget to live in the moment. We delay a lot of things with the excuse that we will do it later on in life. Unfortunately, we will only be young once and if you want to go bunjee jumping, parasailing, white water rafting or backpacking through a foreign country you should be making plans to do them sooner than later.