Lifestyle Design

Much has been said on the topic of lifestyle design, ever since Tim Ferriss' book, 'The 4-Hour work Week: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich'. While the thought behind design your own lifestyle has been practiced and been in existence since the American Dream, the term itself, was aptly coined only recently by Tim Ferris.

So what is lifestyle design? According to Ferris, the New Rich or the people who design their own lifestyle, abandon the rat race and the conventional 9-5 drudgery, by creating an alternative luxurious lifestyle, using the New Rich currency, which is time and mobility. This has now become an art and science by itself.

According to Ferris, people caught in the status quo, never pause to question the sense in working 40-60 hours a week during their prime, with only a rare, short annual vacation, if ever. The whole philosophy behind lifestyle design therefore, is to question the conventional idea that this is life - working without having a life to show for it. It goes on to suggest that living the retired life that allows freedom and mobility, is possible now - when you're still young.

Though Ferris goes to extremes while illustrating his point, the majority of people needn't take such extreme measures. What's important is that, people understand that there are options available to them. And it's up to them, how much on the edge, they want to live.

In short, it is about taking an inventory of our lives, re-examining our goals and opting for unconventional ways of living the dream while we're still young, instead of saving it up for retirement. It's about asking ourselves some questions - Do I want to travel, spend more time with the family, switch careers, take up a new hobby or volunteer for a cause I'm passionate about? And once we've answered those questions, we need to ask ourselves how long we plan on working, before giving it all up for the life that we dream of - 30, 25, 15 or 10 years? And then, we need to chalk out a plan to go about achieving those goals, so as to enjoy the outcome much earlier than a corporate schedule would allow.

Lifestyle design isn't a far-fetched bubblegum philosophy that people discuss in large conference rooms, but rarely put into practice. It is a paradigm shift in thinking, that releases people to go back to an Eden way of life - where everything they need is already available and they don't have to break their backs, swivelling in chairs all day, to get it. It's a radical idea that can change individuals, families and nations, if taken seriously. But as all great ideas, it demands a lot out of the person choosing it - discipline, planning, an open-mind and most of all, courage. Certainly not for the faint-hearted!

Designing your own lifestyle

• Lifestyle design case-studies from Tim Ferriss' blog