Time management trips I learned from years of hating Tim Ferriss (2009)
blog.penelopetrunk.com
blog.penelopetrunk.com
The author wanted to use Tim to hang out with cool people at the conference - it backfired and she was hurt, implying that Tim tricked her. Did he? We'll never know. When I read that first one, I saw where this was going...
Also, the way the post ends - that's a really nasty comment about a person. The author outright says that Tim is not a kind person and not a good person.
It seems to me that the author is not either of those things if judging purely on this one blog post. Why so much hate? This seems like a personal attack wrapped in some kind of a productivity blog post.
By no means is the book a panacea on entrepreneurship, Tim focuses on outsourcing in many places where digital automation could handle the work and his definition of Work is "things I don't want to do" rather than "billable hours" so it's unclear if even he meets the books titular goal.
I was with you right up to the end. Obviously there are plenty of things to learn, and you identified some of them.
How you judge those lessons according to your own values will vary, but they're not vacuous.
Personally I'm immediately wary of an article which starts off with how much hate someone has for another person.
But aside from that. This is from 2009. And a lot of the opinions I see in the comments here seem from that era too. Tim Ferris is now a lot more than the 4 Hour Work Week (whatever you think of that book - admittedly it is very polarising).
I would encourage anyone who hasn't delved into his material more recently to do so. On his podcast, he's become a very good interviewer over the years, who asks thoughtful questions and leaves "space" for the interviewee to speak (unlike many other podcasters) and has increasingly not shied away from difficult topics.
Personally I think that some of his output on depression, anxiety [0], childhood abuse [1] and suicide [2] is incredibly important. Especially where the traditional view might be that to talk about such personal things may not be good for one's "image". It's not done with any sensationalism, it just comes across as someone who has become "ok enough" with themselves to be able to talk more openly about their own struggles.
(As someone who is no stranger to mental health struggles, I find listening to him speak on this topic to be incredibly relatable.)
I happen to also like a lot of his more practical, life-hack output as well, but I think it's important to recognise that he has rounded out over the years and has a bit more to offer now than the slightly narrow 4HWW caricature which still seems to persist.
[0] "Productivity" Tricks for the Neurotic, Manic-Depressive, and Crazy (Like Me)
https://tim.blog/2013/11/03/productivity-hacks/
[1] My Healing Journey After Childhood Abuse (Includes Extensive Resource List)
https://tim.blog/2020/09/14/how-to-heal-trauma/
[2] Some Practical Thoughts on Suicide
https://tim.blog/2015/05/06/how-to-commit-suicide/
EDIT: Wow, just browsed this lady's blog a bit more and seems she has a bit of a part time hobby of posting about people she "hates". Not a good look.
I sort of see him as a curator of interesting guests now - very often individuals I've never heard of. Some of those interviews have changed my perspective on the world.
Just wish I had time to listen to more of them.
Totally agree with this. He’s had some incredible guests.
Tim Ferris embodies an approach to the world that I feel like I’ve seen taken over and over again. It’s a cynical approach to work and the world that relies on achievement through shortcuts and technicalities rather than actually doing the work, and in some cases, rather than producing anything of value.
Having a family now I really seconded the part about relationships. It's easy and OK to spend a lot of time after work for personal projects/learning when you're living alone, not so much with kids (imho).