PRAISE FOR
The 4-Hour Workweek
“It’s about time this book was written. It is a long-overdue manifesto for the mobile lifestyle, and Tim Ferriss is the ideal ambassador. This will be huge.”
—JACK CANFIELD, cocreator of
“Stunning and amazing. From mini-retirements to outsourcing your life, it’s all here. Whether you’re a wage slave or a Fortune 500 CEO, this book will change your life!”
—PHIL TOWN,
—MICHAEL E. GERBER, founder and chairman of E-Myth Worldwide and the world’s #1 small business guru
“This is a whole new ball game. Highly recommended.”
—DR. STEWART D. FRIEDMAN, adviser to Jack Welch and former Vice President Al Gore on work/family issues and director of the Work/Life Integration Program at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania
“Timothy has packed more lives into his 29 years than Steve Jobs has in his 51.”
—TOM FOREMSKI, journalist and publisher of SiliconValleyWatcher.com
“If you want to live life on your own terms, this is your blueprint.”
—MIKE MAPLES, cofounder of Motive Communications (IPO to $260M market cap) and founding executive of Tivoli (sold to IBM for $750M)
“Thanks to Tim Ferriss, I have more time in my life to travel, spend time with family, and write book blurbs. This is a dazzling and highly useful work.”
—A. J. JACOBS, editor-at-large of
“Tim is Indiana Jones for the digital age. I’ve already used his advice to go spearfishing on remote islands and ski the best hidden slopes of Argentina. Simply put, do what he says and you can live like a millionaire.”
—ALBERT POPE, derivatives specialist at UBS World Headquarters
“Reading this book is like putting a few zeros on your income. Tim brings lifestyle to a new level—listen to him!”
—MICHAEL D. KERLIN, McKinsey & Company consultant to Bush-Clinton Katrina Fund and a J. William Fulbright Scholar
“Part scientist and part adventure hunter, Tim Ferriss has created a road map for an entirely new world. I devoured this book in one sitting—I have seen nothing like it.”
—CHARLES L. BROCK, chairman and CEO of Brock Capital Group; former CFO, COO, and general counsel of Scholastic, Inc.; and former president of the Harvard Law School Association
“Outsourcing is no longer just for Fortune 500 companies. Small and mid-sized firms, as well as busy professionals, can outsource their work to increase their productivity and free time for more important commitments. It’s time for the world to take advantage of this revolution.”
—VIVEK KULKARNI, CEO of Brickwork India and former IT secretary of Bangalore; credited as the “techno-bureaucrat” who helped make Bangalore an IT destination in India
“Tim is the master! I should know. I followed his rags to riches path and watched him transform himself from competitive fighter to entrepreneur. He tears apart conventional assumptions until he finds a better way.”
—DAN PARTLAND, Emmy Award–winning producer of
—JOHN LUSK, group product manager at Microsoft World Headquarters
“If you want to live your dreams now, and not in 20 or 30 years, buy this book!”
—LAURA RODEN, chairman of the Silicon Valley Association of Startup Entrepreneurs and a lecturer in Corporate Finance at San Jose State University
“With this kind of time management and focus on the important things in life, people should be able to get 15 times as much done in a normal workweek.”
—TIM DRAPER, founder of Draper Fisher Jurvetson, financiers to innovators including Hotmail, Skype, and Overture.com
“Tim has done what most people only dream of doing. I can’t believe he is going to let his secrets out of the bag. This book is a must read!”
—STEPHEN KEY, top inventor and team designer of Teddy Ruxpin and Lazer Tag and a consultant to the television show
For my parents,
DONALD AND FRANCES FERRISS,
who taught a little hellion that marching to a different drummer
was a good thing. I love you both and owe you everything.
SUPPORT YOUR LOCAL TEACHER—
10% of all author royalties are donated to educational
not-for-profits, including Donorschoose.org.
PREFACE TO THE EXPANDED AND UPDATED EDITION
T
After it was sold, the president of one potential marketing partner, a large bookseller, e-mailed me historical bestseller statistics to make it clear—this wouldn’t be a mainstream success.
So I did all I knew how to do. I wrote it with two of my closest friends in mind, speaking directly to them and their problems—problems I long had—and I focused on the unusual options that had worked for me around the world.
I certainly tried to set conditions for making a sleeper hit possible, but I knew it wasn’t likely. I hoped for the best and planned for the worst.
May 2, 2007, I receive a call on my cell phone from my editor.
“Tim, you hit the list.”
It was just past 5 P.M. in New York City, and I was exhausted. The book had launched five days before, and I
