To kick off our first Reader Question Thursday, I decided to answer the question; What is Lifestyle Design?
In short, lifestyle design is creating a plan of action to realize your goals and dreams while eliminating unnecessary clutter and work for works sake. Put another way, it’s how to take control of your life!
The term lifestyle design was made popular by author Timothy Ferriss’s bestselling book The 4-Hour Workweek.
The 4-Hour Workweek is a fabulous book about adopting lifestyle design, giving up the deferred life plan, and becoming a member of the new rich.
In his book, Tim breaks down the sections using the acronym D.E.A.L. The following excerpt from his book explains how each part is laid out.
D for Definition turns misguided common sense upside down and introduces the rules and objectives of the new game. It replaces self-defeating assumptions and explains concepts such as relative wealth and eustress.
Who are the New Rich and how do they operate? This section explains the overall lifestyle design recipe-the fundamentals-before we add the three ingredients.
E for Elimination kills the obsolete notion of time management once and for all. It shows exactly how I used the words of an often-forgotten Italian economist to turn 12-hour days into two-hour days . . . in 48 hours.
Increase your per-hour results ten times or more with counterintuitive New Rich techniques for cultivating selective ignorance, developing a low-information diet, and otherwise ignoring the unimportant. This section provides the first of the three luxury lifestyle design ingredients: time.
A for Automation puts cash flow on autopilot using geographic arbitrage, outsourcing, and rules of nondecision. From bracketing to the routines of ultrasuccessful New Rich, it’s all here. This section provides the second ingredient of luxury lifestyle design: income.
L for Liberation is the mobile manifesto for the globally inclined. The concept of mini-retirements is introduced, as are the means for flawless remote control and escaping the boss. Liberation is not about cheap travel; it is about forever breaking the bonds that confine you to a single location.
This section delivers the third and final ingredient for luxury lifestyle design: mobility.
If you haven’t picked up a copy of The 4-Hour Work Week yet, do so RIGHT NOW! This book will change the way you look at work and life FOREVER. While I have quite a few books I highly recommend, this one is a must-read for anyone who wants a happier, fuller life.
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There are literally hundreds of books written on the subject of success in business and life. But I believe if you truly want to succeed there are three basic success principles you have to learn and adopt TODAY.