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ChooseFI

Designing an Intentional Life | Tim Ferriss | Ep 558

ChooseFI

Brad Barrett | Choose FI Media

Financialindependence, Investing, Firemovement, Passiveincome, Frugalliving, Personalfinancepodcast, Daveramsey, Careers, Business, Earlyretirement, Habits

4.8 • 5K Ratings

šŸ—“ļø 4 August 2025

ā±ļø 98 minutes

šŸ§¾ļø Download transcript

Summary

Ā 

Tim Ferriss focusing on financial independence, the importance of mentorship, and the role of playful experimentation in living a fulfilling life. Discover insights on designing an intentional life and the values behind Tim's new game, COYOTE.


Key Takeaways

  • Experiential Learning & Game Selection
    Choose the right projects to engage in rather than just focusing on winning. Tim stresses that the correct game selection impacts long-term success more than winning the game itself.

  • Mentorship
    Mentors and influential figures can shape our lives and paths significantly. Tim shares personal stories of mentors that led him to better decisions and prevented disastrous outcomes.

  • Social Connections
    Both Brad and Tim agree on the importance of meaningful social interactions and relationships in ensuring a fulfilling life post-financial independence.

  • Importance of Play & Experiments
    Financial independence allows for the experimentation of interests. Tim emphasizes the need for playful exploration of life after achieving financial goals.


Episode Breakdown

Ā Introduction

  • Welcome to ChooseFI! This week features Tim Ferriss, renowned author and podcaster.

Ā Tim's Background and Impact

  • Tim shares his journey from aspiring neuroscientist to bestselling author and podcaster. The significance of mentors in influencing his life.

Ā Mentorship and Its Importance

  • Exploration of how mentors shaped Tim’s decision-making and life course, leading to successful outcomes and personal growth.

Ā Choosing Projects and Life Experiences

  • Tim emphasizes the concept of game selection, stating it’s about finding projects and experiences that align with personal growth, rather than merely aiming for success.

Ā Real Growth Happens Outside Your Comfort Zone

  • Discussing self-imposed limitations and the value of experimenting at the edge of comfort zones for personal development.

Ā The Importance of Social Interaction

  • The significance of social connections in enhancing life experiences and mental health.

Ā Discussion on COYOTE Game

  • Overview of Tim's new game COYOTE, the thought process behind it, and its importance in fostering social interaction and play.

Notable Quotes

  • "Choosing the right game is more important than just winning!" - Tim FerrissĀ 
  • "Real growth happens outside your comfort zone." - Tim FerrissĀ 
  • "It's not about winning—it's about self-discovery through experimentation." - Tim FerrissĀ 
  • "Be proactive about your well-being, don't wait for a crisis to take action." - Tim FerrissĀ 
  • "Focus on nurturing your top ten most important relationships." - Tim FerrissĀ 

Actionable Takeaways

  • Experimentation: Start small experiments in your life to explore new interests (Timestamp: 00:40:44).
  • Prioritization of Relationships: Focus on nurturing your top ten most important relationships (Timestamp: 00:31:26).
  • Intentional Play: Engage in intentional play and social activities for overall well-being, especially after achieving financial independence (Timestamp: 01:13:16).
  • COYOTE Card Game:Ā Buy HereĀ (Timestamp: 01:30:00)
  • 5-Bullet Friday Newsletter:Ā Subscribe HereĀ (Timestamp: 01:34:06)
  • Tim's Blog and Podcast:Ā Visit HereĀ (Timestamp: 01:35:01)

Discussion Questions

  1. How can you apply the concept of game selection to your personal or professional life? [Timestamp: 00:15:43]
  2. What are some small experiments you can run to discover new interests? [Timestamp: 00:40:04]
  3. How do you prioritize your relationships and ensure they align with your goals? [Timestamp: 00:31:26]

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Hello and welcome to Choose FI. Today on the show, Tim Ferriss is my guest, and this episode

0:05.4

exceeded even my lofty expectations. For those of you who aren't familiar with Tim, he's the author

0:10.9

of multiple bestselling books, including the four-hour workweek, four-hour body, and Tools

0:15.8

of Titans. His podcast, The Tim Ferriss Show, has been downloaded over one billion times.

0:21.5

He's an angel investor with an incredible track record, and he's now a board game creator.

0:26.4

His card game, Coyote, just launched everywhere at the end of July, and I've played it, and it's honestly fantastic.

0:33.2

Genuinely fantastic, and you know what a card and board game connoisseur I am. It isn't hyperbole to say

0:39.3

that my life has been profoundly impacted by following Tim going all the way back to 2007 when I read

0:45.9

the four hour work week. I took action and it was the start of my entrepreneurial journey.

0:50.8

Tim, as you'll see, is intimately familiar with the Phi community, and that showed through

0:54.8

in this episode. He was so generous with his time and his energy, and this was truly an incredible

1:00.2

conversation. To say that you're going to get a lot out of this is an understatement. So sit back

1:04.8

and enjoy. And with that, welcome to choose that Phi.

1:15.6

Yeah. Welcome to Choose a Phi. Tim, welcome to Choose a Phi. I'm so excited you're here.

1:19.0

Thanks for having me, man. Nice to finally meet.

1:21.3

Yeah, indeed. Indeed. This is, yeah, something I've been really looking forward to.

1:26.1

I was just telling you a minute ago, I'm going to take the obligatory minute here and just say just a huge thank you to you. I think one of the things that we've talked about here and choose a vibe for so long is you're the average of the five people you spend the most time with. And for a lot of people, interestingly, who listen to this podcast, I'm that person for them. And a lot of what I've learned, frankly,

1:45.3

is through listening to probably 900 episodes of the Tim Ferriss Show. Wow. Thank you for

1:50.8

listening. Yeah. That's a lot of episodes. It's a hell of a lot of episodes. I think I'm probably

1:55.3

98% of your episodes, maybe, maybe higher. But yeah, it's, it's incredible. I mean, I read the 4-R-Work

2:01.7

Week pretty shortly after it was released. I look back at some of my financial savings from my

2:07.4

LLC, and it started in the beginning of, I think it was 2008, was the very first one.

...

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