The 4-Hour Workweek

Key Concepts

Achieving the 4-hour workweek starts by controlling the inputs

“Money is multiplied in practical value depending on the number of W’s you control in your life: what you do, when you do it, where you do it, and with whom you do it. I call this the ‘freedom multiplier.’” (p. 22)

Most people are held back by fear

“‘Someday’ is a disease that will take your dreams to the grave with you. Pro and con lists are just as bad. If it’s important to you and you want to do it “eventually,” just do it and correct course along the way.” (p. 33)

“Most people will choose unhappiness over uncertainty.” (p. 40)

“It is not at all difficult to sweep gaps under the rug and make uncommon items the very things that get job interviews. How? Do something interesting and make them jealous.” (p. 245)

Dreamlining

“What would you do if there were no way you could fail? If you were 10 times smarter than the rest of the world?” (p. 57)

“Create two timelines—6 months and 12 months—and list up to five things you dream of having (including, but not limited to, material wants: house, car, clothing, etc.), being (be a great cook, be fluent in Chinese, etc.), and doing (visiting Thailand, tracing your roots overseas, racing ostriches, etc.) in that order.” (p. 57)

Efficiency comes from focus on the things that matter

“What you do is infinitely more important than how you do it. Efficiency is still important, but it is useless unless applied to the right things.” (p. 70)

“Which 20% of sources are causing 80% of my problems and unhappiness?” (p. 71)

“Which 20% of sources are resulting in 80% of my desired outcomes and happiness?” (p. 71)

In testing a product, one must focus on real intent to buy

“To get an accurate indicator of commercial viability, don’t ask people if they would buy—ask them to buy. The response to the second is the only one that matters.” (p. 179)

Quotables

“People don’t want to be millionaires—they want to experience what they believe only millions can buy.” (p. 8)

“The first principle is that you must not fool yourself, and you are the easiest person to fool.” —RICHARD P. FEYNMAN, Nobel Prize–winning physicist (p. 22)

“It is far more lucrative and fun to leverage your strengths instead of attempting to fix all the chinks in your armor. The choice is between multiplication of results using strengths or incremental improvement fixing weaknesses that will, at best, become mediocre.” (p. 34)

Excitement is the more practical synonym for happiness, and it is precisely what you should strive to chase. It is the cure-all. (p. 51)

“Being efficient without regard to effectiveness is the default mode of the universe.” (p. 69)

“Problems, as a rule, solve themselves or disappear if you remove yourself as an information bottleneck and empower others.” (p. 87)

“It is your job to train those around you to be effective and efficient. No one else will do it for you.” (p. 101)

“The first rule of any technology used in a business is that automation applied to an efficient operation will magnify the efficiency. The second is that automation applied to an inefficient operation will magnify the inefficiency.” —BILL GATES (p. 129)

“By working faithfully eight hours a day, you may eventually get to be a boss and work twelve hours a day.” —ROBERT FROST, (p. 227)

“Just because you are embarrassed to admit that you’re still living the consequences of bad decisions made 5, 10, or 20 years ago shouldn’t stop you from making good decisions now.” (p. 243)

“Decreasing income-driven work isn’t the end goal. Living more—and becoming more—is.” (p. 288)

“If you can’t define it or act upon it, forget it. If you take just this point from this book, it will put you in the top 1% of performers in the world and keep most philosophical distress out of your life.” (p. 292)

Clients, please email to request the full notes from this book.

<Leadership Library