Rating 5*/5

This is not just a 5/5, I also had to give it a star. I've seen this book on the business bestsellers list for weeks and I randomly decided to give it a go. Boy do I not regret it! If you're planning on doing an MBA save your money: get this book and you'll learn most of what you need to start your business on the right foot.

What I liked the most about this book is that it affirms a standing belief of mine: don't leave enjoyment until retirement, earn now and enjoy it as you go. The New Rich, want money and time and in this world of technology you can absolutely have your cake and eat it too! The Old Rich had tonnes of dosh and very little to time to enjoy it, not spend it, enjoy it. 

I already use some of the tools mentioned for automating a business, getting things done faster and delegating but I learnt SOOO much more e.g. I had never heard of fulfilment houses and this knowledge will come in very useful when I go into manufacturing.

The book is so good that I have just purchased the paperback after listening to the audiobook; I have to re-read it - I will pore over every page diligently to make sure I've got it all. Normally, I write out the best takeaways but on this occasion I cannot - every other line is gold dust. 

There was a chapter on email management that I didn't find useful but that came very early on and it was relatively short. 

There are plenty of tips on how to start a business whilst you're still in employment and how to convince your boss to allow you to work remotely.

On time management I have already implemented one suggestion: I am checking my email in batches and I can feel the efficiency benefits already. I was a prolific email checker because my previous job required it but carrying that into my life as an entrepreneur meant I wasn't getting as much done as is possible.

Want to increase your email efficiency too? This is what I have done:

• I now only check email three times per day: in the morning, at lunch time and in the evening.
• To discourage frequent checking: I've removed the mail icon from the first page of my iPhone and disabled auto-email. Now, if I have to, I click on icon for the emails to flow in. 
• I'm getting out of the habit of using my phone for email; I use my computer. Relegating emails to my desk helps me not to be obsessive about it.
• Set an auto-responder to set customers' expectations.

As soon as I read the bit on virtual assistants, I got one and I am loving this new time saver. My assistant has helped me to effectively 'double' myself so I can focus on tasks that add more value to the business. She's much more efficient than I am at admin.

Some people don't get Tim Ferris, he is slightly arrogant which I personally found funny but it can turn others off. He chooses to spend all his time traveling and seeing the world and some people seem to take it as though he is telling them to do the same, he isn't saying that. His objective is to give you the tools needed to build a very profitable business and release your labour time at the same time so that you can pursue your own non-monetary interests e.g. charity work, spending time with your kids or indeed travel as he has chosen to do.

For the first time ever, I commented on a 1* comment on Amazon:

If you want to start a business or improve your business but have plenty of free time as well, read this book now!

3.75 / 5

A very interesting take on feminism. If you a) have a vagina and b) want to have control over it, then you are a feminist! This is Caitlin Moran's definition and I like it. It's a good definition because many women think being a feminist is radical. 

Lots of people forget that not so long ago women could not vote, inherit assets or even work. You did not have the choice; it was all decided in advance for you. If you believe that we should have any of this stuff, you are a feminist. 

Every woman is a feminist and the only question after that is just the degree to which one believes in women's rights and fights for them.

Men too can be feminists. I know because I married one! Frankly, I thought that a man had certain very basic expectations of a woman and that to be a good partner I had to fulfill these;  being myself was not one of the primary ones. This is why I fervently never expected to get married. I thought that my partner's affections for me would rise with the number of household duties undertaken, the number of times I made his lunches and any other fawning that I could muster. One does not fawn very well.

A few interesting bits from Caitlin's take on life, I paraphrase or give my interpretation of what she says:

• Arm pit hair: you know what, it's not that big of a deal if you're not always cleanly shaven, sometimes a bit of hair just looks cooler
  
• Thongs: get some proper underwear, ones that cover your whole butt
  
• Ron Jeremy (celebrity porn star) named vaginas "pussy" hence she does not like the word. Women should not be defined by a male porn star, we should define ourselves!
  
• Being pro-women does not mean you have to be nice to all other women
  
• Burka: against them because the men don't have to wear Burkas too (makes sense)
  
• Shopping: just because you're a woman, you don't have to like it. Finally!! Someone needed to put this out there because I for one hate shopping. It is sooo time consuming and if I could afford it I would rather have a personal shopper because for me the shopping experience is resolutely boring and extremely overrated. Shopping, for me, is about the thing you want or need to get not about the experience in itself. As a self-styled minimalist, I don't like to own lots of useless clothes and trinkets.
  
• There's a difference between being "fat" and "human-shaped"; think about this one
• High heels should "fuck-off", feet were not designed for them and supermodels wear them exclusively for photo shoots. This is actually something that I had never thought about but it's relatively true - when you see supermodels outside of "work" they're wearing pumps and other more comfy footwear. Thank you again Caitlin, someone needed to put this out there.
• Flirting your way up the career chain is A-okay. Male bonding is also flirting wherever it might take place: toilets, on the golf course, in a pub or a bar...so, people should think of women trying to get ahead using flirtation as a woman-only act, guys do it too!
• All young girls have had imaginary relationships in their heads as a teenager - you know what, I was afraid to ask about this one because I thought I might come off as weird but I did used to have these when I was a teen and then they kind of just disappeared in the late teens. Perhaps it's because I started having real relationships!
• Porn is bad and degrading to women; it's essentially designed for men
• Addiction to porn and strip clubs is the third highest cause of debt in men
• 60-80% of strippers have a background/history of abuse
• Burlesque is okay though because it is art: a) the artists have decent names; b) it's not humourless - the artists talk, sing and dance; c) it is designed with women in mind

Overall: insightful and it is great to know her very balanced view on life and being a feminist. Ultimately, the book said to me: BE YOURSELF!

I highly recommend this book. 

Because it's so different to my field of work and study, I felt so much better educated after reading it. Moreover, it's not just the information but the characters are spell-binding; I loved, Ann Trason, Emil Zátopek, Jenn Shelton, Barefoot Ted, Caballo Blanco and of course, the Tarahumara.


​Because I loved the book so much, it has inspired these four blogs:
The women went hunting too!?!
You were designed to outrun deer
The "best" running shoes are the worst!
The hardest thing about banking that no one ever talks about

Interesting fact to know for when you get stuck somewhere thirsty and without water: urine is perfectly sterile, nutrient rich and apparently is great for whitening teeth, so give it a good swirl around your mouth before chugging it down!