Expert in the Rough, Brian Monahan

A self proclaimed “Self Help Junkie,” I have read just about every “self help” book under the sun.  You know, the classics….Think and Grow Rich, PsychoCybernetics, The Road Less Traveled, The Power of Positive Thinking and don’t get me started with “self help crack” Chicken Soup for the Soul series of books.  Yes, I think I have read them all and I am looking for a new drug, I mean type of book.

I thought you might be burnt out as well on the “self help” craze and looking for a new direction.  I have a new  book category for you “Thought Provoking.”  I have tired of the idea that someone might have an answer for me.  Do I really want to limit myself with the constraints of someone else’s concept of “self help.”

Thought provoking takes self help in a different direction.  Instead of telling me what to do it provokes me to reflect on an idea or a concept and create something new.  You can even take this a step further and not only seek to be provoked but become the provoker.

In todays information age there are plenty of answers available but are there enough people with the courage to provoke new thinking?

Thought provoking material on my nightstand:

• Shambhala: The Sacred Path of the Warrior

• This Will Change Everything: Ideas That Will Shape the Future

• Linchpin: Are You Indispensable?

A Book, a Movie,a DVD and  a Museum, I hope you enjoy!

A Book

Ignore Everybody and buy this book.  Hugh MacLeod the artist behind the Gaping Void “cartoons on the back of business cards” takes his stab at how to be creative.  I find the book more of a manifesto for those who are following their dreams.  This book is a fast read.  If you don’t mind reading online you can see the online version by visiting his site.  Click Here.

Or you can buy it on Amazon:

A Movie

500 Days of Summer is a fun chick flick but hotty Zooey Deschanel will save your “Man Card” if you decide to go this one alone.  If your a chick you get a free pass on this one, that’s why they call them chick flicks.

A DVD

The Great Buck Howard is a light hearted movie about “Buck Howard” played by John Malkovich, a mentalist (not a magician) and performer who has lost his luster.  His comeback is launched in Cincinnati, which is a fun movie twist for this Cincinnati native as he performs his biggest feat ever, hypnotizing hundreds of people.  His comeback is almost foiled by Cincinnati’s favorite son Jerry Springer.  Rent it, don’t buy it.

A Museum

The American Sign Museum in Cincinnati, OH  is a one of a kind experience.  Tod Swormstedt, former editor and publisher of Signs of the Times magazine, as his self-proclaimed mid-life crisis project. It began as an idea, with no collection.  He has well surpassed the no collection status.  He currently has hundreds of signs on display.  From Big Boy to Earl Scheib he has some of the country’s most recognizable icons as well as one of a kind historic signs.  Neon and flashing lights are the backdrop for this museum.  You may want to bring your sun glasses.

$10 admission is a bargain, I recommend you visit during a tour time.

More Information Click Here.

Disclaimer:

Some of my links include affiliate links. I could make a small commission on your purchase, however, to date I have only made around $10 with this strategy. Not quite a living but as Expert in the Rough grows it readership affiliate links might just cover my costs of hosting this blog. A man can dream, can’t he?

I hope you enjoy the links.

Timothy Ferriss the author of “The 4-Hour Workweek” makes his case for and provides a blueprint for a luxury lifestyle with just 4 hours of work a week.

His book touts: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere and Join the New Rich.

Sounds good to me.

The Book also comes with a Warning:  DO NOT READ THIS BOOK UNLESS YOU WANT TO QUIT YOUR DAY JOB.

My goal for this article is not to share the “hows” of his book but to ask you to place a bet.

A bet to follow your dreams and live the unreasonable life you always wanted to live.

I can already see your arms folding, but do read on.

Ferris covers various concepts and strategies to creating a 4 hour work week which delivers his
results aforementioned.

All of his strategies have merit, most are eccentric and I will share my two favorite.

First you need to be unreasonable. Our entire economy is centered around trading time for money.   You would be silly to consider any other plan, but that is exactly why this book is so powerful.  So many of us have been misinformed about how to create wealth.  A job is not the only answer.  “Passive or Automated” income streams are ready and available.  The internet is the truly the golden egg.  FYI, the internet is just the vehicle, not the answer.

The second is start with the end in mind. If you build a business that revolves around trading time for money you are almost guaranteed you will not be able to convert it to a 4 hour work week model.  Don’t even start unless the model is created with 4 hours of work in mind.

Since I know most of the population is completely reasonable I have a reasonable challenge for you.

Most of you will not follow the concepts presented in the book and therefore will never get the opportunity
to experience true luxury lifestyle. 

Here is my request.

Buy Timothy Ferriss’ book.  Read it and embrace it.

Don’t quit your day job, don’t tell your boss you are going to work from home, don’t hire a virtual assistant for penny’s on the dollar american and don’t even think about taking any chances.

Now that I have made it completely safe for you, are you willing to wager 4 hours a week?

Do allocate 4 hours a week creating your 4-Hour Workweek business.  It’s only 4 hours give it a try.

Do you have the GUTS to take a 4 hour a week chance?

Oh wait, you are already taking a 40 hour plus chance, this will be easy!

Resources:

The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich

The Blog of Timothy Ferriss

Hopefully Natalie Golderg will update her classic book “Writing Down the Bones: Freeing the Writer Within” to include and updated addendum on blogging.  Natalie, if you are out there, you can even have my post title if you follow through with this idea.

Throughout Ms. Goldberg’s book she constantly takes you back to the idea of writing daily.  This is a central theme I have heard from all writers.  I have been lucky enough to spend some time with some well known authors such as Jeffrey Gitomer and Matthew Kelly.  Both alluded to some form of daily writing method.  I personally have started and stopped over the years and often wondered if I had what it takes to write.

That leads to one of the other themes in her book.  Squelching the editor.  You cannot be the editor and the writer at the same time.  In fact if you can allow someone else to be the editor that is even better.  The way to overcome being the editor falls back on the concept of writing daily.  If you want to be a writer, then write.

Ms. Goldberg’s book’s focus is on writing poems, novels and memoirs which can be a distraction at times, if your writing focus is on knowledge, expertise and opinion.  With that in mind I encourage you to push through this book.  I started reading this book in April and just finished this weekend.  It is a good read, a few chapters at a time.  This allows for digestion of her concepts.  With some writing practice in between readings, you will notice a difference in your voice.

I must say, this book has had great impact on me, I have been looking for a topic to write about for nearly five years.   Ms. Goldberg’s tips, tweaks and inspirations are scattered within her book which has inspired me to launch two blogs in the last 4 months, including this one “Expert in the Rough.”

So, I offer a “LifeHack” for “Writing Down the Bones” instead of journaling with a pen and paper, I recommend creating a blog about your life’s passion.