The 4-Hour Workweek Tools That Still Work — The Art of Refusal and The Low-Information Diet (#809)

This time around, we have a bit of a different format, featuring the book that started it all for me, The 4-Hour Workweek. Readers and listeners often ask me what I would change or update, but an equally interesting question is: what wouldn’t I change? What stands the test of time and hasn’t lost any potency? This episode features two of the most important chapters from the audiobook of The 4-Hour Workweek. The chapters push you to defend your scarce attention—one by saying no to people, the other by saying no to excess information.

The chapter is narrated by the great voice actor Ray Porter. If you are interested in checking out the rest of the audiobook, which is produced and copyrighted by Blackstone Publishing, you can find it on Audible, Apple, Google, Spotify, Downpour.com, or wherever you find your favorite audiobooks.

Please enjoy!

Listen to the episode on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Overcast, Podcast Addict, Pocket Casts, Castbox, YouTube Music, Amazon Music, Audible, or on your favorite podcast platform.

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Want to hear another episode that features content straight from The 4-Hour Workweek? Listen here for the chapter preceding this one that includes tools and frameworks that I use to this day, including Pareto’s Law and Parkinson’s Law.

What was your favorite quote or lesson from this episode? Please let me know in the comments.

SELECTED LINKS FROM THE EPISODE

Books, Publications, and Movies

• The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich by Tim Ferriss | Amazon
• Calculating God by Robert J. Sawyer
• Response Magazine (Defunct)
• Inc. Magazine
• The Matrix Revolutions | Prime Video

Tools Mentioned

• Firefox Browser
• LeechBlock
• Skype
• Evernote
• Fujitsu ScanSnap S300M Mobile Scanner
• Dialpad
• GrandCentral (Now Google Voice)
• YouMail
• Doodle
• TimeDriver (Defunct) Alternatives: Calendly | Acuity Scheduling | Engageware
• Xobni (Defunct) Alternatives: Lookeen | Clearbit Connect | Contactually
• Jott (Defunct) Alternatives: Otter.ai | Google Assistant / Google Keep + Voice Input
• Copytalk
• Freedom

Relevant Resources

• The Low-Information Diet: How to Eliminate Email Overload and Triple Productivity in 24 Hours | Tim Ferriss
• Learn How to Triple Your Reading Speed in 5 Minutes (Seriously) | Tim Ferriss
• The Puppy Dog Close | Masit Communications Science Blog Mixed up with the Arts
• The Cost of Not Paying Attention: How Interruptions Impact Knowledge Worker Productivity by Jonathan B. Spira and Joshua B. Feintuch
• The 4-Hour Workweek: Empowerment Failure | Corrie Haffly
• Medical Tourism | Wikipedia

People

• Ray Porter
• Herbert A. Simon
• Albert Einstein
• Ralph Waldo Emerson
• Robert J. Sawyer
• Kathy Sierra
• Ralph Charell
• Dave Barry
• Dan Gable
• Annie Dillard
• Bill Gates
• Calvin

Show Notes

• [00:00:00] Start.
• [00:07:24] The low-information diet.
• [00:09:45] Cultivating selective ignorance.
• [00:14:32] How to read 200% faster in 10 minutes.
• [00:17:09] Questions and actions: Go on an immediate one-week media fast.
• [00:21:05] Develop the habit of asking yourself, “Will I definitely use this information for something immediate and important?”
• [00:22:03] Practice the art of nonfinishing.
• [00:22:49] Comfort challenge: Get phone numbers.
• [00:25:14] Interrupting interruption and the art of refusal.
• [00:28:16] Not all evils are created equal.
• [00:29:36] Time wasters: Become an ignoramus.
• [00:30:09] Limit email consumption and production.
• [00:33:05] Screen incoming and limit outgoing phone calls.
• [00:36:10] Master the art of refusal and avoiding meetings.
• [00:38:33] In order of preference, steer people toward email, phone, and in-person meetings.
• [00:38:59] Respond to voicemail via email whenever possible.
• [00:40:50] Meetings should only be held to make decisions about a predefined situation, not to define the problem.
• [00:41:53] If you absolutely cannot stop a meeting or call from happening, define the end time.
• [00:43:00] The cubicle is your temple — don’t permit casual visitors.
• [00:44:24] Use the Puppy Dog Close to help your superiors and others develop the no-meeting habit.
• [00:46:48] Time consumers: Batch and do not falter.
• [00:50:05] How much is your time worth?
• [00:50:45] Estimate the amount of time you will save by grouping similar tasks and batching them.
• [00:51:14] Determine how much problems cost to fix in each period.
• [00:53:02] Empowerment failure: Rules and readjustment.
• [00:59:44] Questions and actions: Create systems to limit your availability.
• [01:01:55] Batch activities to limit setup cost and provide more time for dreamline milestones.
• [01:02:25] Set or request autonomous rules and guidelines with occasional review of results.
• [01:03:18] Tools for eliminating paper distractions, capturing everything.
• [01:05:28] Tools for screening and avoiding unwanted calls.
• [01:07:12] Tools for scheduling without back-and-forth.
• [01:08:23] Tools for choosing the best email batching times.
• [01:09:13] Tools for emailing without entering the inbox black hole.
• [01:10:20] Tools for preventing web browsing/internet use.
• [01:11:10] Comfort challenge: revisit the terrible twos.
• [01:12:07] Lifestyle design in action.