Thanks, Tim Ferriss (author of “The 4-Hour Workweek”) For The Inspiration To Write This Book

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Well, in my last post I talked about how amazing Buenos Aires is and that creative folks from all over the world are coming here to check it out for themselves.

Tim Ferriss, author of the best-selling book on lifestyle design called The 4-Hour Workweek, spent time here in BA back before he wrote his book.  He’s known about this place for a long time and it’s one of his favorite destinations. 

As it turns out, Tim is here in Buenos Aires right now–or at least, he was here just a couple of weeks ago…not sure if it was a short stay or if he is actually wintering here.  It was all a very last-minute decision and he threw together a plane ticket and great apartment rental ($250 a week) within 24 hours.  Read about it on Tim’s blog here.

I haven’t met Tim, but I am guessing I will eventually.  I do feel a kind of connection with him, and I’ll tell you why. 

I read his book.  And after I finished it, I was struck by something.  Oh, I already knew about the tricks and tools he suggested for those who want to “Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere and Join the New Rich” (that’s the subtitle of his book).  In fact, nearly every expat I know is using those same tools, so that part wasn’t too revolutionary for me personally.

But I kept thinking that there were thousands of people picking up Tim’s book and getting all fired up about streamlining their workload, outsourcing tasks and going virtual so that they could live anywhere.  And that’s really great if you happen to be, say, 29 and single, like Tim.  But for every 29-year-old single guy longing to go virtual, there are THOUSANDS of forty-somethings who want it EVEN MORE but they can’t even begin to consider it. 

Why?  Because they have kids. 

Or, more precisely, they have kids and they can’t even imagine what it would take to yank them out of school and remove them from their friends and favorite activities in order to go trekking in the Himalayas or sail in the tropics. 

And I started thinking that sure, there are tools available to help anyone work virtually.  It’s very easy to outsource and run a business from a laptop.  My husband has been doing it for nearly three years now.  THAT is not the challenge.

The challenge is in figuring out how to get your kids educated while you’re globetrotting.  You see, there’s a reason we haven’t met too many families during these last couple of years who are doing what we’re doing, and it’s this:  they don’t know it’s possible, they don’t know anyone who is doing it, and they haven’t got a clue how to go about it.

Question:  What kind of parents would risk sabotaging their kids’ education so that they could traipse around the world?

Answer:  Those who’ve read my book.  

And I got stealthy.  I did some online research on Tim’s book and how he got it published.  And I managed to get a contract with the same publisher (Random House/Crown) that Tim used. 

So, thanks Tim.  Really.  I owe you.  If I hadn’t read your book and started whining about how it didn’t cover the REALLY challenging part (for us, anyway) of going virtual (dealing with the kids’ education), I wouldn’t have come up with the idea to write my book.

There are lots of families who travel around with kids who are elementary school age and even middle schoolers.  But high schoolers?  Most people wouldn’t touch that.  Well, we left the US when our youngest three daughters were about to enter their freshman, junior and senior years in high school.  Yes.  (Things are turning out just fine: check out what the kids are up to here.)

Most school counselors will tell you not to move across TOWN with kids that age.  “Don’t get them off track!  They’ve got to get into college, and the more you move them around, the harder it will be to get them geared up for college admissions!”

Well, I’m here to tell you that not only is it possible to go virtual with a family, it’s life-changing.  It opens up tremendous possibilities for everyone in the family–if you know how to do it right. 

I know that there are many who’ve read Tim’s book and loved the premise but couldn’t see how they could do the “Live Anywhere” part with kids.  I hope they’ll read my book and get inspired to enjoy their 4-Hour workweek wherever they choose to go and transform their entire family’s lifestyle in unbelievably positive ways.

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Filed under Buenos Aires, Random House, The Four-Hour Workweek, Tim Ferriss, college admissions, creativity, distance learning, experiential learning, global education, high school, homeschool, innovation, parenting

Tags: Buenos Aires, college admissions, creativity, distance learning, global economy, global education, innovation, online learning, outsourcing, parenting, Random House, study abroad, The 4-Hour Workweek, Tim Ferriss