Life Travel: Combining the Forces of Outsourcing and Tim Ferriss03 Aug
Tim Ferriss - Four Hour Workweek 4HWW
Who wouldn’t like to work less and live life more vibrantly? Renowned author Tim Ferriss developed a guide to escaping the traditional confines of working 9-5. The Four Hour Work Week (4HWW) explores the life and times of entrepreneurs who have developed creative ways to work less and travel more. One of the key principles address in the 4HWW is outsourcing. Here are some of the unique ways that savvy entrepreneurs have used outsourcing to work less and enjoy life more:
- Life is more enjoyable and relaxing when it is built around “lifestyle design.” Tim Ferriss advocates for entrepreneurs to live the life they always dreamed and build business objectives around that lifestyle. This process is called lifestyle design, and it is a fundamental principle of the 4HWW. The key is to avoid letting professional obligations override personal ones. With lifestyle design, it’s almost like engaging in a continual state of retirement while working when the opportunity arises. Outsourcing makes it possible for entrepreneurs to create a lifestyle design that is more conducive to the 4HWW.
- Outsourcing can be used to make a business owner “location independent.” With outsourcing, essential business functions are taken care of by virtual assistants and call center staff in faraway locations like the Philippines. The overhead costs associated with providing customer service, accounting, billing and project management are significantly less in these areas, thus saving business owners money and lessening direct responsibilities. No matter where the business owner is located, access to qualified and competent virtual assistants is made easy with outsourcing. The business owner no longer needs to work onsite, therefore creating a location-independent operation.
- Finding a balance between life and work is easier when information intake is minimized. The wealth of information available to the average professional is overwhelming. Tim Ferriss maintains that information is extremely time consuming, and it takes away from personal and professional goals. To achieve the 4HWW, one must limit the amount of information overload and maximize on the time spent on important tasks. With a virtual assistant and outsourcing, business owners can delegate information overload tasks to others and create a better work-life balance for themselves.
It’s clear that outsourcing, the 4HWW and the philosophies of Tim Ferriss go hand-in-hand. While working less and living more certainly won’t happen overnight, business process outsourcing is a valuable tool that entrepreneurs can use to design a better lifestyle and live the dream of the 4HWW.
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7 Responses to “Life Travel: Combining the Forces of Outsourcing and Tim Ferriss”
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Outsourcing is a form of management that has been around forever — it just acquired a new name.
Many of my clients spent years working in a conventional office environment where they had staffmembers to do anything assigned to them. When my clients “jumped ship” and became “solopreneurs” they were amazed at how much time was consumed with just basic tasks. By outsourcing (to people like me) they were once again in control of their lives and able to pursue the work they enjoyed.
Unfortunately some folks like to micro-manage — and that’s not very efficient when you “outsource” work. On the other hand, the need to micro-manage comes for distrust of the people who are working for you. Employing someone you don’t trust is a poor choice and one a true executive should never make.
There are many good and experienced people out there — available to help you succeed in your profession. Seek them out and find one you enjoy working with.
And, finally, remember — you get what you pay for. Don’t shortchange yourself into thinking the lowest quote will always meet your needs. If that person’s skills don’t provide you with a professional product, not only will you be frustrated — but you’ll be working hard to polish your own tarnished image!
Excellent points, Karalyn!
Not only has it acquired a new name, it’s acquiring a much higher percentage of Gen Y workers. In addition, it’s gaining popularity at the same time that it’s becoming much more efficient to do business across the world in different time zones.
There’s quite a bit of banter about onshore vs. offshore outsourcing, but I really believe that both have their place and their benefit to businesses and consumers.
Appreciate your post!
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I’m just building a new website…well I’m not, I have a wonderful virtual assitant in California (I live in Spain) called Carrie doing it all for me. I hadn’t heard of outsourcing or VA’s before reading Tims book. I’ve obviously been in the dark ages!!!
I’d recommend finding someone who you feel you can work with. We all have different styles and preferences and as Karalyn says above cheapest is always best.
@Colin
Yes being able to work with your VA is a must. Is similar to the pitcher and catcher relationship in baseball. Eventually, a good VA will know exactly what you want before your ask. THis prediction is critical to becoming an efficient team. Don’t you agree?
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