Amazon Summary

“For the last two years, I’ve interviewed more than 200 world-class performers for my podcast, The Tim Ferriss Show.

The guests range from super celebs (Jamie Foxx, Arnold Schwarzenegger, etc.) and athletes (icons of powerlifting, gymnastics, surfing, etc.) to legendary Special Operations commanders and black-market biochemists. For most of my guests, it’s the first time they’ve agreed to a two-to-three-hour interview. This unusual depth has helped make The Tim Ferriss Show the first business/interview podcast to pass 100 million downloads.

“This book contains the distilled tools, tactics, and ‘inside baseball’ you won’t find anywhere else. It also includes new tips from past guests, and life lessons from new ‘guests’ you haven’t met.

“What makes the show different is a relentless focus on actionable details. This is reflected in the questions. For example: What do these people do in the first sixty minutes of each morning? What do their workout routines look like, and why? What books have they gifted most to other people? What are the biggest wastes of time for novices in their field? What supplements do they take on a daily basis?

“I don’t view myself as an interviewer. I view myself as an experimenter. If I can’t test something and replicate results in the messy reality of everyday life, I’m not interested.

“Everything within these pages has been vetted, explored, and applied to my own life in some fashion. I’ve used dozens of the tactics and philosophies in high-stakes negotiations, high-risk environments, or large business dealings. The lessons have made me millions of dollars and saved me years of wasted effort and frustration.

“I created this book, my ultimate notebook of high-leverage tools, for myself. It’s changed my life, and I hope the same for you.”

About Author

Author Presentations

Other Book Summaries

Part 1: Healthy

Part 2: Wealthy

The Law Of Category

First person to cross the Atlantic

First woman to cross the atlantic

Beer

First high-priced imported beer: Heineken
First high-priced domestic beer: Michelob
First domestic light: Miller Lite
First imported light: Amstel Light

Computers

First: IBM
First in minicomputers: Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC)
First super computer: Cray Research
First super minicomputer: Convex
First multimedia computer: Amiga
First to sell computers by phone: Dell

If you didn’t get into the prospect’s mind first, don’t give up hope. Find a new category you can be first in. It’s not as difficult as you might think.

If you can’t be first in a category, set up a new category you can be first in.

Sometimes you can also turn an also-ran into a winner by inventing a new category.

When you launch a new product, the first question to ask yourself is not “How is this new product better than the competition?” but “First what?” In other words, what category is this new product first in?

Think Categories, Not Brands

This is counter to classic marketing thinking, which is brand oriented: How do I get people to prefer my brand? Forget the brand. Think categories. Prospects are on the defensive when it comes to brands. Everyone talks about why their brand is better. But prospects have an open mind when it comes to categories. Everyone is interested in what’s new. Few people are interested in what’s better. When you’re the first in a new category, promote the category. In essence, you have no competition.

Highlights

Quotes

“In the world of ideas, to name something is to own it. If you can name an issue, you can own the issue.” —Thomas L. Friedman

Book Summary & Highlights - Tools Of Titans: The Tactics, Routines, and Habits of Billionaires, Icons, and World-Class Performers By Tim Ferriss