4 Hour Work Week: Part II
Part II (Automation and liberation)
Some Criticism
We don’t exactly fit into the target demographic so please take these criticisms with a grain of salt. We all see things through the lense of our own experiences and values. Mr. Ferris obviously has a high IQ, but many aspects of the middle portion of the book are kind of ruthless in nature. Some of Ferris's suggestions seem to lack empathy and adherence to the Golden rule. For example, he suggests pretending to be on the phone so people get to the point in less than 30 seconds and don't try to start a conversation with you. But he also gives the example of when he was in college and would spend hours in his professor's office pestering him about test questions until he got an “A”. Towards the end of the book Ferris does come back around and focus on the more meaningful aspects of life such as connection and purpose.
Automation
I believe most are familiar with the concept of outsourcing, but Ferris introduces us to a side of this concept that we found to be fascinating. He suggested using various overseas outsourcing agencies to do everything from research to booking appointments to sending personal gifts to clients and loved ones. The benefits to this kind low cost help with some of the more tedious tasks. I believe this concept (among others) is why this was such a groundbreaking book at the time and continues to be a classic even ten years later.
The second portion of this section, “autopilot,” had a narrow focus. Ferris goes into quite a bit of detail in this chapter as to how to create a revenue stream(s) that partially or fully supports a mobile lifestyle with little to no personal involvement. Much of this content did not apply to us. We’re not interested in reselling a product or products, testing whether people want to buy them, then repeating the process. We have a different focus and use for this book. It may be useful content for some, but for us, we are interested in earning our place in this space (the personal development space). By that, I mean if there is learning and added benefit that comes from doing our own research, creating our own network of contacts, and doing some of these of these tasks that appear to be mundane... It may just force us to be more organized and efficient.
Liberation
In the beginning of the book Ferris introduces the counter conditioning idea of mini retirements when you’re younger and healthy as opposed to working for 40 years before retirement. Not going to lie - The idea of living in a different culture disconnected (for the most part) from responsibilities back home, is so enticing. This whole book is a road map to attain this outcome. Both of us have a persistent call to adventure and would love to take our significant others and families on an extended trip somewhere else in the world. This section lays lays out the “how” in exquisite detail ending with a “comfort challenge” of planning and taking your first trip. It may take awhile, but a mini retirement is definitely in the cards for this project!
Most Useful Portions
At the end of the book Ferris does an excellent job of tying a bow on all the concepts he introduced in the book. If we had to pick a favorite part it would be the “why” go through all this effort to eliminate and automate in order to liberate yourself from a soul-sucking job. In short, the “why” is Gabe and I don’t have soul-sucking jobs. However, if by implementing the tools laid out in this book, we can improve our ability to serve, connect and live life to the fullest... then we’re all in.
Here are the challenges we did from the book
Create your own six- month Dreamline
Parkinson's law for creating deadlines
For more details on how YOU can perform these challenges, check our video at the link below!