5 Time management tricks I learned from years of hating Tim Ferriss
I have hated Tim Ferriss for a long time. I have hated him since we both had editors at Crown Publishing who sat next to each other and I heard how difficult he is.
I didn’t blog about it because first of all, I’m sure the buzz about me is that I’m difficult, too. And also, his book, The 4-Hour Workweek, was a bestseller and mine wasn’t. So I figured people would say that I’m jealous. And really, what author is not jealous sometimes? I mean, every author wants to write a bestseller.
But at this point, two years later, my hatred goes way beyond jealousy. My hatred is more selfless than that. And while I do understand that Tim is great at accelerated learning, the time management tips I have learned from him stem from the energy I have spent hating him:
1.Don’t hang out with people who don’t respect your time
This all started at SXSW conference in 2007, right before Tim’s book came out, when he was promoting the hell out of it to bloggers. Of course, this was not a bad idea, and to be fair, Tim was brilliant to start this book marketing trend. But that is beside the point. He approached me after my panel and said, “Can I get you coffee? I’d love to talk with you.”
I said, “Uh. No. I have plans.”
And he asked who with.
I wasn’t really sure. I knew there were cool people to hang out with after my panel, though, and I knew he wasn’t one of them. I gave a vague answer.
He said he was also meeting three people, and he name-dropped them. I can’t remember who they were. But they were fun, interesting, and I wanted to have coffee with them. So I said okay.
Then Tim couldn’t find them and I had coffee with only Tim.
Then I realized this was his strategy all along.
I told myself not to be pissy. I told myself bait-and-switch is the oldest sales tool in the world, and it’s my fault for falling for it.
I even wrote a blog post that included his book.
2.Cut to the chase: Tell people who are full of sh*t that they’re full of sh*t
When his book came out, there were vacuous, annoying comments all over my blog directing people to his book. Like, “The topic of priorities is an interesting one. I like how Tim Ferris handles that in his new book,blah blah” and then there’s a link to the book.
At this point I knew Tim, sort of. And I called him on his phone and told him to tell his employees to stop spamming my blog.
First he implied it was his fan base and he had little control.
I said that I thought he was full of sh*t.
He said he’d make sure there were no more comments like that on my blog.
3.Self-centered people are more likely to waste your time
Really, when I found he was spamming my site, I didn’t call him first. First, I emailed him. And I got some sort of crazy response about how he is only checking email twice a day and then instructions on what to do.
I emailed him back to tell him that I do not want automatic emails from him every time I try to contact him.
Which generated another, identical response about how he doesn’t check mail.
So I called him to tell him that he is generating spam back to me to tell me about his email checking and I don’t care. If he wants to check twice a day, fine, but don’t clog my in box with emails about it.
He said he’d take me off his list.
I am STILL getting this sort of spam from him. But the scope has widened. For example, now, he has commented on my blog and he forgot to say that he doesn’t want to be alerted to new comments. So every time there’s a comment, he spams everyone in the comments string, telling them that he doesn’t answer his email.
It’s insane. I cannot believe how many automated announcements I receive saying that Tim does not have a Blackberry. (Yes, the email really says that.) What if we all sent automated emails like that? Email would be totally nonfunctional. What if Tim just shut up about his email and if he thinks its fine to answer twice a day, then he should do that? And not spam everyone about it.
4.Productivity is about meeting your goals, not getting out of doing work
The week that Tim actually works a four-hour work week will be a cold week in hell. Tim got to where he is by being an insanely hard worker. I don’t know anyone who worked harder at promoting a book than he did. But the thing is, he didn’t call it work. Somehow, sliming me into having coffee with him to talk about his book is not work.
Fine. But then his four-hour work week is merely semantic. Because everything Tim does he turns into what the rest of us would call work, and he calls it not-work. For example, tango. If you want to be world-record holder, it’s work. It’s your job to be special at dancing the tango. That’s your big goal that you’re working toward. How you earn money is probably just a day job. So most weeks Tim probably has a 100-hour workweek. It’s just that he’s doing things he likes, so he lies to you and says he only works four hours. He defines work only as doing what you don’t like.
It’s childish. It’s a childish, semantic game. And it reminds me of him winning the Chinese National Kickboxing Championships by leveraging a little-known rule that people are disqualified if they stop outside the box. So he pushed each of his opponents outside the box to win.
He is winning the I-work-less-than-you game with a similarly questionable method: semantics.
5.Time management is about making time to connect with people
The idea of time management only matters in relation to how important the stuff is that’s competing for your time. The stuff that makes time management the most difficult is relationships. Which Tim does not excel in.
Fine. Not everyone has to be good at making real connections.
But Tim runs around telling people who have lots of relationships competing for their time how to think about work/not work, forgetting that in the real world, where people are not assholes, time management is not an equation or a semantic game because relationships really matter. And figuring out how to judge time in terms of competing values is the hardest thing of all.
Tim is all about time management for achievement and winning. But there are not trophies or measurements for relationships. There is only that feeling that someone is kind. And good. And truly connected.
And Tim is not.
Whether you like Tim or not, his writing and outlook have affected millions. This is down to his take on life, his positivity and the fact that he empowers people. This post is the opposite, it’s negative and resentful throughout. It seems the motivation behind the piece is not to inform readers but to slur Ferriss.
If on the other had Penelope just made the post to boost engagement on her blog, high-brow trolling if you will, then great job! Either way I won’t be back.
Bye.
I don’t know who Tim Ferris is but I’m glad he was able to contribute something to the world by being the reason for these time management ‘tricks’. I have to take issue with terming them as ‘tricks’ though because I find them to be sound advice – tips, as it would be. I’ve been a commissioned officer in the Navy for 22 years and I can attest that you have to deal directly with those who could care less about respecting your time – except that I find with my wife there is still little care, and I love her so I don’t ever plan on kicking her to the curb – I plan on hanging out with her forever. Most folks don’t care to be told they’re full of sh*t but ‘them’s the breaks’ when you waste my time. I have to agree that self-centered people will unwittingly waste your time (don’t tell my wife though). Time management provides productivity opportunities and the mission is what’s important in the end.
I can’t believe you a-holes are still posting on this old out of date blog post. Drop it. It is old news. As usual you are late to the party. Go post on something relevant. Like election coverage or current events.
Pot, kettle, black much Bob?
Tim Ferriss is a con man…a selfish egomania type that some get fasinated by at first glance…so in love with himself..endless selfpromotions..
Shallow hal…Lost in the other world of apperance and getting the biggest cut…an example of whats wrong in the US..his type is why the rest of the world hates the US sometimes..they simply take over the space and make much noise…not to say that other place dont have their things too!….my friend, who lived 6 years in the US..said..but he just very american.. Ferriss clearly manipulate his way around..living in his head..He might actually get a few things right along his way, but its done so disturbing that its not worth the time..I hope he one day get down to the heart, and relax a bit..the greatest things in life are right here…no effort..
Thats why its called human being..not human doing…..Jasper
Haters gonna hate. I love tim’s stuff. Theres nothing he writes that doesn’t have something useful in it that you can’t add to your life. Seriously, everything you wrote it this just sounded rly whiney and like Tim made you his bitch over and over. Every point i read i just wanted to laugh and high 5 Tim Ferris. People who talk shit are people who say dumb stuff like “i lost him when he started talking about his Kickboxing competition”. No wonder your making ignorant comments, you didn’t even understand what he was saying. I just read most recent comment by “jesper” above me, (just for an example of an ignorant post) and he writes how Tim is a terrible guy, without even saying anything hes done. Seriously, read his post, he just says he manipulated people but doesnt say how. If I were Tim I’d do 100 percent of the shit he did to you (aimed at the author of the article) because that’s what made him who he is today. And as for him working 100 hour weeks, 1st of all his book is about starting a company that can run on 4 hrs of work a week, not rly about writing a book, and second, Tango counts as a hobby. If your making productive use of your leisure time instead of sitting in front of the Tube, i say more power to you. Your living life. I could write more and point out how hilarious everything else you wrote is, but I’ve already written an essay.
Read his stuff, it’s good. Maybe you’ll learn some real time managent tips.
How lame. Did you have a crush and get rejected? You sound bitter and jealous. I hope you don’t spend to much of your energy hating on Tim.
Reading these emails I wonder how many of you have actually read Tim Ferriss’ book or blog? You are responding to Penelope’s blog in varying degrees of support for her view point on Tim, and criticism of Tim himself, yet many responders seem to have little knowledge of the subject of her vitriol – so what point are you making?
I have two of Tim’s books and I bought them knowing full well what I was getting into – who he is and what he does – and read through the lines accordingly. I find his books a good read – some of it you take, some you leave, but either way, he’s inspiring to a degree: who doesn’t want to leave the humdrum 9-5 and set up on their own?
I too only found this blog via Tim Ferriss – and I wonder just how credible Penelope is (quick google gave me this:)
http://jezebel.com/5871929/who-is-penelope-trunk
Thoughts?
You are my new hero. I can’t stand Tim Ferriss and I love that you are so honest about it. Thank you.
haha! i have no idea what this post is supposed to be about — but it is hilarious.
the part about the email is especially funny – which is why i NEVER use my most personal/business emails to email ppl like that.
i use my ‘commerical/spammy/random’ emails (like this one) – so i could care less if they are still spamming me three years – or even ten – years later.
now they even have the auto function where you can send emails to a certain folder (ie: tim’s spam) — but i still loved this post!
hahaha! ;)
I read this post for the first time several months back, and I saw someone who is an insanely jealous and weak person. But now that I’ve found my way back to it again, girl, you really need to let go of that hate. You’re only helping to promote the brand of “Tim Ferriss” by bashing him with a poorly articulated argument and no supporting evidence to your claims. I would be embarrassed if I wrote this blog post.
You use the word hate as if it is nothing. It is one of the most terrible words to use about someone. Apparently you have another article about hating another individual. Apparently you have issues. It saddens me to read those words, but then again people with God Complexes often talk that way. And you coach people? Oh my.
My grandparents bought me Tim’s book for Christmas, and after getting 100 pages in, I couldn’t bare to bother with more of it. There was something about the book that just didn’t sit right with me. I’d rather work myself than outsource my skills.
Wow. Someone really is jealous.
“Hatred is the coward’s revenge for being intimidated.”
-George Bernard Shaw
Dear P
I am posting as anonymous, but you can email me if need be; I cannot stand the man; he is loathsome and looks like he is channeling some demon. He is a male chauvinist, definitely anti-Christian and a scammer!
I hate that so many men adulate and worship him and seem to have man-crushes on him.
He is vile and despicable.
Pkease email me if you can as there is something I have found out that you can blog about perhaps!
Proves that you can never keep a woman happy.Always finding fault with others.
Hate is such a strong word Penelope
but I’m sure you have your reasons.
I will but your book and I think your
“5 Things” are excellent guideposts to
the perpetual steeplechase. Well done!
Sacha
Tim has made a gold-mine by leveraging a few very basic principles of marketing. That anyone actually cares about how he won a competition, or about the content/ principles of his books, is a wonderful illustration of why he has found success. He seems to be a man who thoroughly enjoys his life, and I say good on him! There are millions of people out there commiting far worse “attrocities” than “cheating” by pushing an opponent out of a ring or outsourcing work. The point is, by generating this kind of hype on a blog, the haters are making mr Ferris all the more prolific and famous. He’s a multi-millionaire who gets to do what he loves for a living while most of the people on here are grinding away at jobs they hate for a lousey wage. Superimposing your morals and beliefs over others is ridiculous! He hacked life and won- good for him!!!
Yes, I agree with you 100%. I like your style kid.
If you’ve read this far you definitely are in need of advice on time management. I only say that because I did not learn this valuable lesson :)
OMG that is hilarious :)
This seems like a marketing strategy. If you really disliked him that much you wouldn’t be giving him free attention. You of all people, should know by bringing him up (and linking to him a suspicious number of times) on your blog post that you are HELPING him.
I would imagine most of your readers see through this as well. ;)
BTW – this negative emotional rant makes you look pathetic and probably hurts your brand.
Great post!!!
My time management skill is to waste a lot of time, on purpose, every day. My best work usually comes from things I stumble upon. Like TF redefining “work” and “non-work” for me wasting time is clawing through the interwebs. Dig though garbage long enough and you usually find a lost diamond ring.
Best article I’ll read all week. I’m glad I’ve avoided him as well. There are some good tips from him I’m sure but I’ve always sense something empty about his talks. relationships and value are the most important.
“So most weeks Tim probably has a 100-hour workweek. It’s just that he’s doing things he likes, so he lies to you and says he only works four hours.”
Still sounds like an extremely valid message to me. How many people spend 40+ hours a week on things they don’t like working on?
He may be brash in his ways but he has produced lots of very valuable material that have positively effected other people.
I enjoyed this post with a sort of gleeful ire. I couldn’t put my finger on what annoyed me while reading FHWW by Tim Ferris. But your post really crystallized my beef with Ferris – he’s basically a character from the jock house in Revenge of the Nerds. I distinctly remember setting the book down and telling my wife “This is a great book if you’re a drunk, frat boy who doesn’t care who you piss off”.
There are sections of 4HWW that are genuinely useful, such as the section on executing on a vision.
But it definitely won’t help someone who recognizes the value of character-based leadership and would probably make the late Stephen Covey LOL.
Very nice and well said. Thanks
I just found this blog – it’s hilarious! Well done. I love your irreverent and justified taking to task of the so called ‘gurus’.
What really gets me is all this bestseller bullSH1T and “I’m a success” stories from the big names. The key thing missing is that for most people it’s about INTEGRITY. Getting bestsellers by launching hardback copies (of which very little are sold, so easy to get a bestseller) coupled with aggressive online campaigns promising free books but you pay for the postage and packaging (you only then sell you book for 1 cent but it still counts as a sale) is not really getting a bestseller. If people really value what you write they will buy it, they do not need to be coerced. Sure yes you have to market it and spread the word but not use sales promotions to create a false return.
BTW in case you think this is sour grapes I have a bestseller and have won 2 international championship in sailing. And yes it was bloody hard work but worth it. To illustrate the point a politician here many years ago was climbing Kilimanjaro in Africa for charity. He got altitude sickness near the top. His friend said to him “stay here you can always say you got to the top, who’ll know?”. The politician replied; “I’ll know”. That man is now the Prime Minister.
So here’s the bottom line; if you have to sweat for it and do it with honesty and integrity it truly is ‘meaningful’ success where as if you ‘hack’ the system yes you will get success but success that is meaningless…
Your choice?
Laugh out loud there: thanks. The one that REALLY broke the camel’s funny bone was the alleged human, the TF, including drawings of how to give any female 15-minute, or more! clitoral orgasms. Yep– he’s the guy I’m hoping can do that for me.
Love your guts lady. Thanks again.
Astarte in Washington State
The writer of this blog sounds like a female who is easily disturbed by male focused aggression and focus. Tim is a producer who found a way to inspire millions of people to look at what they were doing and gave them a lose idea on how to fix it or make it steam lined using new ideas and make a version that worked for them. Who cares if the beta -version was buggy and caused some issues. No where was offered a counter point with specific ways to improve what tim was doing. What I read was a bitchy, overall kind of blanket writing that tried to paint with broad brushes, false accusations and a very small sample size of evidence.in my opinion.Typical of the middle management style that stands in the middle of a real producing sales force and teams and nit picks details and policy until the steam and vigor is hen pecked out of the new
producing paradigm because upper management is tired of listening to the whining of the other creative staff like this author
Let the people making the real money and producing the real dollars and deals run as fast as they can. Fire the nay saying people who hold on to old paradigms because they don’t want to try something new. Fact is the book sold and helped a great deal of people.
Get out of the way. Maybe your way works for you and your life but don’t force your perspective on projects and people clearly more successful then you. Middle management and the hen house peanut gallery serve to do nothing but hurt the publishing company and potential profit and also hurts the good done by the work it self.
The true dollar generators, sales people, promoters, writers, whom ever they are, should be recognized and given free reign to make new records of sales and strategy. Also, importantly, kept far away form the nay saying old school peanut gallery of mediocre writers and editors.’
Most people will be offended in the industry because this is not how they would have chose to do it or feel steamrolled. These people like to get up, go to work, and do things the same way they have done for years, And as evidence points, these are the results .
Okay…did you really think he meant 4 hours a week? I really don’t think it was to be taken literally/ His second book was called the 4 hour Body. Seriously people..we do not need to be such literalist! Is he the PT Barnnum is the digital age? Yep. Sure. That doesn’t mean he doesn’t have relevant things to say. And you only going to coffee with him bc you thought cool people would be there makes you sound like a tool.
I liked Tim’s books for some of the information, but I have found much of the same kind of information in books published prior to his. This includes this “great idea” of sending a check to pay for an advertisement that is less than the amount he agreed to pay. Don’t you think he got billed for the additional amount after the ad was run?
Also, for pretending to be someone you are not, watch “Romy and Michelle’s High School Reunion” to see the flip side of pretending to know more than you do.
One more caveat; spending six weeks learning a new activity by no means makes you an expert-I don’t care if it’s just learning to use the fryer at McDonald’s, much less dancing or martial arts.
Whew! I feel better. Thanks.
/2009/01/08/5 <- listen losers. She won. She posted this in 2009 and your idiots are still posting and dragging traffic to her site. It never was about tim you sheeple.
I posted originally when this article was released I get an email when you guys post. I still like how people *still* comment on this.
Sounds like a really cool guy
I purchased the book online audio format 3 years ago. It’s easy to see why it was a best seller: it appeals to the notion inherent in all of us that there is something or some way to conduct our lives that will be more fulfilling. The book offers some excellent tips and philosophies on doing just that. It isn’t easy on the surface but once I realized the key to implementation is by doing it in my way, it was seemless and easy. I don’t do things I don’t like very often, and at first when I became functional with some of Ferris’s ideas,I experienced a lot of alone time because most of my personal connections were, well, working and tight with time.
We are conditioned, well I’d say if you are upper-middle class and down, to think we have to be busy and connected with others all the time, however. Tim’s book articulates the inverse-belief of that, and initially it’s uncomfortable to digest and live. For me, that discomfort opened up a world of connection and power.
If it took Tim Ferris to gather, synthesize, and articulate some of these effective processes to the masses, in all of his apparent narcissism, then so be it. Everyone has a contribution and strength to optimize.
In my opinion, his work is like a sharp dart in the conditioned balloon fog of mass indoctrination to the work/employee/life-is- hard/follower life most feel like they must endure in order to find some peace at the end. I think if readers choose to borrow from that work what might work for them, it shouldn’t matter if Tim is a great buddy, friend, or social guy. I am not sure how social Thomas Edison was, however, most of us benefit from his work in ways now we all take for granted.
There is a strong social force that wants you to be a cog. In fact, an unhappy cog in the machine of work, so you will be likely to consume products in order to make yourself feel better. I believe with Tim’s advice you can become a happy cog, or decide to be something else. I think it’s very useful and insightful work.
People will never find a way to end suffering and misery. This is whether they have money or not. I think it is best to numb one’s senses to the world through a chemical means. Living in reality with a sober mind is highly depressing and demoralizing.
When you truly look at things, you realize that a great deal of your life is wasted doing things just to keep you alive. You derive very little joy from living in and of itself. I believe that it is better to fill as much time as possible using any and every drug you can in order to keep yourself happy. If that drug happens to be money, then use it.
There is no such thing as permanent happiness. Just keep seeking temporary fixes, because life itself is a temporary state of being.
judge time in terms of competing values. a good point of view. nice post
I’m happy you got that out of your system. Too bad it only served to make you appear as childish as you say Tim is. If your advice is better than his, than it should speak for itself.
haha Tim called you on your BS, he knew you didn’t have any plans. Don’t be a hater
First of all, I admire your courage. I’m sure the decision to publish this wasn’t easy, especially since nowadays you get labeled “hater” in an instant. It’s so refreshing to see people daring to criticize something popular.
Secondly, I’m a huge consumer of motivational books. I am in a constant improvement mode. But I also care about how I reach my goals.
I’ve read the 4hww and the 4hb and they are utter BS for a person like me. Sure, there are some good ideas in them, but nothing extraordinary. Just the same things we hear over and over again like “eat vegetables and drink lost of what”. For the most part, instead of providing meaningful information, they only preach taking “shortcuts”, breaking the rules, finding loopholes.
I don’t want to take such shortcuts. I don’t want to manipulate people. I don’t want to teach people how to avoid honest work. I don’t want to “bend” the truth to become rich. I have values.
Tim Ferris is an excellent sales person and marketer. And he obviously has a lot of determination. Kudos to him for that.
However, what’s frustrating is all the people praising him and calling him a genius and placing him near people who are successful because they are special, honest and hardworking people. He’s not. He’s an arrogant, highly-driven sociopath that made a lot a money either by outsourcing most of his work or by bending or embellishing the reality. Then he sold his “secrets” and made more money.
And I suspect most of his fans and either extremely confused, either extremely lazy people always looking for the easy way out. Being productive and and being smart about your time is not about using questionable methods. Sure, it sometimes require some hacking, but not at the expense of others. There are moral and ethical reasons for that. Competitiveness is good. As long as it’s fair.
I admit, sometimes rules are crap. But you can fight to improve the rules or just go play a different game.
There are lots of people that don’t care about ethics or honesty or being a decent human being. They don’t care about being genuine. All they care about is wealth and personal satisfaction, no matter how they obtain it. Well, these people have names, they’re called sociopaths.
*Tim Ferriss
Hahaha :D How about another old marketing trick – call attention to a controversial figure to get more eyeballs? Now there’s a good amount of exchange happening in the comments section.
If you really hate TIm Ferris so much why even write this post? You’re smart enough to know that any publicity is good publicity. You’ve now piqued the interest of anyone who hasn’t already checked out his book.
:) Pretty smart (and I’m not being sarcastic)
This was posted in Jan, 2009 and is still relatively alive and kicking. Kudos to that.
Every weekend i used to pay a quick visit this site,
because i want enjoyment, as this this website conations genuinely
pleasant funny material too.
I’m late to this website but love it. My husband loves Tim Ferriss but I think he’s a tool (Tim, not my husband).
Diagnosis: Tim has Aspberger’s, which explains his social awkwardness, his geekism, and his lack of fear which stems from lack of getting social cues from others.
I’m sure Tim is happy about your negative attitude giving him more publicity :)
Come one, guys and gals- ol’ Tim is just like any self-appointed expert or guru of anything: great to listen to on some points, but still just a fallible, human person.
I will say that I felt like a bit of a failure that I couldn’t seem to trim my own work week down to only 4 hours… and then realized I don’t WANT to. Work is a blessing, and to be able to work is a blessing. It’s how things get done, it’s how we contribute and create and add value, it’s how we impact and improve our world.
I’ve also learned that an acquaintance of mine knows a certain Tim F. very well- and that the whole 4 Hour Workweek is complete B.S., as our fine blog author here has indicated- there is a whole lot more work going on than we’ve been led to believe.
So, extract the useful bits, chuck the rest, and move on, yeah?
rock on!
-eKevin
You emailed Tim and got a template reply, which you were annoyed about, so you thought it was a good idea to email him again at the same address to tell him you don’t like the reply, only to obviously get the same template reply.. what were you expecting? That’s seriously self-destructive behaviour, albeit on a tiny scale.
All I can say is WOW! The world has too much hatred. This is will be my first and last visit to this blog.
ditto!
I’ve read Tims book (in german) and i realy luv it!!!!
I’ve also read your blog…sorry but for me hating is childish and I dont like hater…!