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Work Less, Make More: The counter-intuitive approach to building a profitable business, and a life you actually love
Work Less, Make More is a dense delivery of solid systems and sane advice. It's not 80/20, it's 80/20 squared. Every few pages, James punches you in the face with an instantly actionable hack.~ Perry Marshall, Author of 80/20 Sales & Marketing, Ultimate Guide to Google AdWords, and Evolution 2.0
James gives massive value in a fun and easy-to-read book. Real, actionable ways to cut your hours while increasing your income. Want to know how to do it in your own business? Get this and find out! ~ Jonathan Mizel
In Work Less, Make More, James proves that keeping your business strategy simple produces far greater success (and happiness) than if you focus only on 'hustling'. ~ John Reese
James possesses a 'no-holds barred' approach to business which frees him to think outside ingrained assumptions regarding one's current realities and future opportunities. His candid advice in Work Less, Make More provides bold and practical wisdom for any person, of any vocation, who wants to lift the lid on their creative potential and move into unexplored territories of freedom and opportunity. ~ Ian Freestone
I found Work Less, Make More--part memoir, part how-to guide--to be truly extraordinary! James brings his unique analytical insights about how to think regarding complex issues in business. He describes the systems that he has designed to shape both meaningful work and relationships, as well as, a life worth living. So many authors attempt to "motivate" you, without giving any real instruction. I find that James provides both. Every page is full of so many principles, wisdom and insights--and I love how James incorporates his history and his life in such a thoughtful way. His book has already changed how I think about making decisions in my life and in my business. ~ Tim Papadopoulos
---- In 2006, whilst working in a full-time job, James Schramko wrote this in a
MY GOALS … create automated income so that I am independently wealthy and enjoy my life passionately.
Within three years, he’d built his own business and achieved those goals. At which point he set about helping his coaching clients do the same. Leveraging his knowledge and experience, they were able to make more money while reducing their work hours. Significantly.
This freed them up to spend more time living.
It’s easy to think working less and making more is something available only to a blessed few. But James has proven over and over again that this is not the case. All you require
• An open mind, • The ability to focus on what’s important, • An understanding of business models, and • A willingness to challenge your assumptions.
Work Less, Make More will break down all the barriers standing between you and the above.It will teach you how to effectively leverage yourself, your team and your business
• Increasing your personal effectiveness • Planning and goalsetting • Learning focus • Building a team • Creating an offer that converts • Leveraging the Profit Formula to boost cash flow • Understanding the importance of Customer Lifetime Value • Choosing the right business model • Removing compromise from your life
This book is for you if you
• A business owner (big or
James gives massive value in a fun and easy-to-read book. Real, actionable ways to cut your hours while increasing your income. Want to know how to do it in your own business? Get this and find out! ~ Jonathan Mizel
In Work Less, Make More, James proves that keeping your business strategy simple produces far greater success (and happiness) than if you focus only on 'hustling'. ~ John Reese
James possesses a 'no-holds barred' approach to business which frees him to think outside ingrained assumptions regarding one's current realities and future opportunities. His candid advice in Work Less, Make More provides bold and practical wisdom for any person, of any vocation, who wants to lift the lid on their creative potential and move into unexplored territories of freedom and opportunity. ~ Ian Freestone
I found Work Less, Make More--part memoir, part how-to guide--to be truly extraordinary! James brings his unique analytical insights about how to think regarding complex issues in business. He describes the systems that he has designed to shape both meaningful work and relationships, as well as, a life worth living. So many authors attempt to "motivate" you, without giving any real instruction. I find that James provides both. Every page is full of so many principles, wisdom and insights--and I love how James incorporates his history and his life in such a thoughtful way. His book has already changed how I think about making decisions in my life and in my business. ~ Tim Papadopoulos
---- In 2006, whilst working in a full-time job, James Schramko wrote this in a
MY GOALS … create automated income so that I am independently wealthy and enjoy my life passionately.
Within three years, he’d built his own business and achieved those goals. At which point he set about helping his coaching clients do the same. Leveraging his knowledge and experience, they were able to make more money while reducing their work hours. Significantly.
This freed them up to spend more time living.
It’s easy to think working less and making more is something available only to a blessed few. But James has proven over and over again that this is not the case. All you require
• An open mind, • The ability to focus on what’s important, • An understanding of business models, and • A willingness to challenge your assumptions.
Work Less, Make More will break down all the barriers standing between you and the above.It will teach you how to effectively leverage yourself, your team and your business
• Increasing your personal effectiveness • Planning and goalsetting • Learning focus • Building a team • Creating an offer that converts • Leveraging the Profit Formula to boost cash flow • Understanding the importance of Customer Lifetime Value • Choosing the right business model • Removing compromise from your life
This book is for you if you
• A business owner (big or
250 pages, Paperback
Published December 10, 2017
307 people are currently reading
562 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
May 25, 2020
The book contains some useful tips and few bulbs indeed went on in my brain. But I felt like i bought this book too rashly without researching bt who he was and what his business was. So there were some things that was already well known to me or didnt suite my case.
In general i couldn't help but get the impression that this book for him was another way of advertising and attracting new customers to his own business. So you will get an rough ideas, but i guess for more details then u gotta pay for his service
In general i couldn't help but get the impression that this book for him was another way of advertising and attracting new customers to his own business. So you will get an rough ideas, but i guess for more details then u gotta pay for his service
February 13, 2020
Powerful solopreneuer advice
I've been running my own business for a number of years, but still found a ton of great advice in this book.
The author shares his own business journey and the lessons he learned about running your business, not letting it run you.
I especially loved the concept of calculating your Effective Hourly Rate (EHR) to understand the time you're spending in your business vs the rewards you are taking.
A recommended read for anyone running their own business!
I've been running my own business for a number of years, but still found a ton of great advice in this book.
The author shares his own business journey and the lessons he learned about running your business, not letting it run you.
I especially loved the concept of calculating your Effective Hourly Rate (EHR) to understand the time you're spending in your business vs the rewards you are taking.
A recommended read for anyone running their own business!
December 21, 2017
Quick and simple yet super effective read on how you can make your life and business more streamlined. By focusing on what matters using the techniques and frameworks that James presents you'll be able to have a life-changing effect.
The customer lifetime value, effective hourly rate and standard operating procedures alone will change your life. Get your copy today and start working less and doing the important things!
The customer lifetime value, effective hourly rate and standard operating procedures alone will change your life. Get your copy today and start working less and doing the important things!
December 14, 2017
Easy and thought provoking read on how to simplify your business and life. I need to implement his strategies immediately. Read this if you're overworked and always tired in your business.
January 25, 2021
One of my favorite books. I loved the advice and suggestions. Fantastic. one of my top 5 business books in 25 years of reading.
May 13, 2023
This is a good, quick summation of a lot of principles you need to understand to build a profitable business. I took a ton of notes and I look forward to working toward implementing much of what Schramko says in my own business over time. The only downside is he spends the second half of the book drilling down on how to sell a product (a book, a course, software, etc.). This is great and all, but I would disagree with him in that it's the only way to have a successful business.
Regardless, lots of good takeaways here without a ton of fluff. It's definitely worth reading if you (like me) are somewhat new to entrepreneurialism or running your own business.
Regardless, lots of good takeaways here without a ton of fluff. It's definitely worth reading if you (like me) are somewhat new to entrepreneurialism or running your own business.
July 6, 2018
I read a lot of business books, and while there is less and less new concepts - I did like the new metric James introduces to measure our value of time.
He mentions his fondness for creating subscription-based businesses and from every book I've read that say the same thing, this isn't for everyone.
Also, building a subscription/recurring income business is NOT that easy.
Overall, I like what and how James has shared the business lessons he's learned from his own experience.
There must be a reason why so many big names out there right now name James as a business mentor/coach.
He mentions his fondness for creating subscription-based businesses and from every book I've read that say the same thing, this isn't for everyone.
Also, building a subscription/recurring income business is NOT that easy.
Overall, I like what and how James has shared the business lessons he's learned from his own experience.
There must be a reason why so many big names out there right now name James as a business mentor/coach.
October 22, 2022
Quick and easy read which gave me quite a few ideas for improvements to my business and got me thinking in a different way. Definitely worth a look.
October 29, 2025
Like the title says, it tells how to leverage yourself, your team, and your business to work less and make more money, so you can spend more time doing what you love. It's about getting your business to support your lifestyle. I didn't learn as much as I expected, given what I've heard about this book and about Schramko.
There are some additional resources at Schramko's site.
Notes
Introduction
Find something you're doing that's taking a lot of time but getting minimal results, and stop or reduce to one hour/day.
Find a client, product, project, etc. that's tedious and takes far more resources than you get in return, and drop it.
Personal Effectiveness
Set up business plans/goals in blocks of weeks (e.g., 12 weeks). Focus on something during that block, and push other items to the end of that block. Then, review and decide what to focus on for next block.
Focus on one high-impact thing each week.
Focus and the Power of 64:4
Choose an effective hourly rate (EFR) and delete or delegate all opportunities and ideas that would earn less than it. If you can pay someone else less than your EHR to do something, you should.
Building a Team
Delete or delegate all tasks that aren't your highest-level, highest-impact activities.
Don't use the positive–negative–positive feedback framework; it's confusing, and people don't know when to trust you. Be straightforward so when you praise people it's real.
Cash Flow and the Profit Formula
It's OK to sell by the hour as long as it's not your time, but your team's time. But value pricing is better.
Customer Lifetime Value
Don't follow ascension model (selling customer products/services of increasing dollar value over time in a linear path). Instead, solve all problems you can for customer, not only the problem they came to you about. Look after customer with integrity, offering different products/services as they fit customer needs.
There are some additional resources at Schramko's site.
Notes
Introduction
Find something you're doing that's taking a lot of time but getting minimal results, and stop or reduce to one hour/day.
Find a client, product, project, etc. that's tedious and takes far more resources than you get in return, and drop it.
Personal Effectiveness
Set up business plans/goals in blocks of weeks (e.g., 12 weeks). Focus on something during that block, and push other items to the end of that block. Then, review and decide what to focus on for next block.
Focus on one high-impact thing each week.
Focus and the Power of 64:4
Choose an effective hourly rate (EFR) and delete or delegate all opportunities and ideas that would earn less than it. If you can pay someone else less than your EHR to do something, you should.
Building a Team
Delete or delegate all tasks that aren't your highest-level, highest-impact activities.
Don't use the positive–negative–positive feedback framework; it's confusing, and people don't know when to trust you. Be straightforward so when you praise people it's real.
Cash Flow and the Profit Formula
It's OK to sell by the hour as long as it's not your time, but your team's time. But value pricing is better.
Customer Lifetime Value
Don't follow ascension model (selling customer products/services of increasing dollar value over time in a linear path). Instead, solve all problems you can for customer, not only the problem they came to you about. Look after customer with integrity, offering different products/services as they fit customer needs.
January 9, 2018
Unlike many business books I’ve read in the past, I couldn’t find an ounce of fat in ‘Work Less, Make More’. James Schramko has distilled his knowledge, experience and results into to an incredibly powerful book.
Whether it is introducing you to new knowledge or reminding you of things you already know, James keeps it simple and straightforward. And it's all from his own experience growing, running and selling some astonishingly successful businesses. I am accustomed to having to read at least four or five 'normal' business books to cover the amount of quality information that James has nailed in one. So he's already delivering admirably on the 'Work Less' aspect.
I read the book in under two hours. It was an immensely enjoyable read as well as being informative about business. The stories about James' career, progressing through various jobs to running multi-million dollar businesses for his employers - to then working for himself are relatable and inspiring.
Having worked in different industries myself: in construction, catering, energy, automotive, finance, security, retail and entertainment, I can see how relevant this book would be for pretty much ANY business. As it covers James' story from his early jobs through to his current-day success, it has valuable information for readers at every stage, no matter which stage of their career or business-building they are at.
Sharing some proven powerful ideas and techniques for growing any business, 'Work Less, Make More' will be a reliable 'go to' book in my business library for years to come. I am grateful to James for writing this book and sharing his extraordinary information, insights and life lessons.
Whether it is introducing you to new knowledge or reminding you of things you already know, James keeps it simple and straightforward. And it's all from his own experience growing, running and selling some astonishingly successful businesses. I am accustomed to having to read at least four or five 'normal' business books to cover the amount of quality information that James has nailed in one. So he's already delivering admirably on the 'Work Less' aspect.
I read the book in under two hours. It was an immensely enjoyable read as well as being informative about business. The stories about James' career, progressing through various jobs to running multi-million dollar businesses for his employers - to then working for himself are relatable and inspiring.
Having worked in different industries myself: in construction, catering, energy, automotive, finance, security, retail and entertainment, I can see how relevant this book would be for pretty much ANY business. As it covers James' story from his early jobs through to his current-day success, it has valuable information for readers at every stage, no matter which stage of their career or business-building they are at.
Sharing some proven powerful ideas and techniques for growing any business, 'Work Less, Make More' will be a reliable 'go to' book in my business library for years to come. I am grateful to James for writing this book and sharing his extraordinary information, insights and life lessons.
March 8, 2020
Lots of great ideas from a long list of other business and productivity books are summarized in this one book. Additionally, the author incorporates stories from their own life to illustrate how they learned various lessons and benefited from implementing these systems. If you need help with planning, goal setting, creating offers, boosting cash flow, building a team, or choosing a business model, this would be a good book to read. Additionally, there is a significant portion of the book dedicated to the 80/20 principle and, by extension, 64:4. If you're not sure what those are, you should consider reading this book.
January 21, 2018
Short and straight to the point
James shares some of his experience and wisdom in this book. There’s no fluff, just a bit good old fashioned advice on how to earn more and work less.
It’s a short book, however that’s a good thing because you won’t have to wait long to get all the information you need to get started.
James shares some of his experience and wisdom in this book. There’s no fluff, just a bit good old fashioned advice on how to earn more and work less.
It’s a short book, however that’s a good thing because you won’t have to wait long to get all the information you need to get started.
June 8, 2018
(Insightful + Inspiring) - BS = Schramko
I’ve been devouring content about entrepreneurial endeavors and this guy has me thinking outside the mental rut I found myself in. Loved his message and the stories of clients he coached to success. I will definitely be reading this one again.
I’ve been devouring content about entrepreneurial endeavors and this guy has me thinking outside the mental rut I found myself in. Loved his message and the stories of clients he coached to success. I will definitely be reading this one again.
November 21, 2022
If you liked The 4 Hour Work Week, this book is for you but in a more simple and yet still practical way.
I have to say this is the first book I used a marker on, which was so unacceptable to me, but I needed to highlight the best ideas so I won't forget them and start to put them into practice ASAP.
Whether you struggle with your business or regular job, you need to read this :)
I have to say this is the first book I used a marker on, which was so unacceptable to me, but I needed to highlight the best ideas so I won't forget them and start to put them into practice ASAP.
Whether you struggle with your business or regular job, you need to read this :)
February 27, 2018
Excelente para principiantes
Si empiezas en los negocios en línea, te va a servir muchísimo. Si ya eres experimentado te servirá como recordatorio. El capítulo 8 tiene ejemplos accionables que hacen que el libro entero valga la pena.
Si empiezas en los negocios en línea, te va a servir muchísimo. Si ya eres experimentado te servirá como recordatorio. El capítulo 8 tiene ejemplos accionables que hacen que el libro entero valga la pena.
July 26, 2018
Worth your time to read for those wanted be Entrepreneur
Have a mission of owning a Online Business after reading James book about how he created and converted his job to a online entrepreneur. And learned we have to know hour EHR and otherwise we just working a job.
Have a mission of owning a Online Business after reading James book about how he created and converted his job to a online entrepreneur. And learned we have to know hour EHR and otherwise we just working a job.
December 15, 2018
Lots of Passion in this Book!
Imagine doing what you love--and loving your life. Work Less, Make More outlines exactly what you can do to shift your "time for dollars" mentality and put processes in place so that you have more time for life. Highly recommended!
Imagine doing what you love--and loving your life. Work Less, Make More outlines exactly what you can do to shift your "time for dollars" mentality and put processes in place so that you have more time for life. Highly recommended!
November 24, 2019
Great Book on Time Management
If you own your own business you need to read this book. It gives very solid time management advice on how to run your business in a time efficient maner.
If you own your own business you need to read this book. It gives very solid time management advice on how to run your business in a time efficient maner.
July 26, 2020
Un-Traditional Working Success
I ate this book up! I’m hungry for more. As a struggling entrepreneur, I appreciate works like these and definitely want to begin implementing all these steps!
I ate this book up! I’m hungry for more. As a struggling entrepreneur, I appreciate works like these and definitely want to begin implementing all these steps!
March 9, 2022
Very useful tips and ideas how to manage your tasks and work as a business owner. Not all of this applied to me as I am just self employed and work on a small scale I definitely picked some things up.
March 19, 2025
I read this book from the perspective of an employee rather than a busines owner.
There are some good points to take home about prioritizing tasks, limiting certain tasks and improving your speed.
Overall things that I had already read elsewhere but the recap was good.
There are some good points to take home about prioritizing tasks, limiting certain tasks and improving your speed.
Overall things that I had already read elsewhere but the recap was good.
June 22, 2018
Very quick read with clear, logical advice.
February 20, 2019
Makes sense
A real eye opener. Easy to follow, even for a novice like me with no business acumen at all. Enjoyed this a lot.
A real eye opener. Easy to follow, even for a novice like me with no business acumen at all. Enjoyed this a lot.
May 7, 2019
It's more of a Todo list than a book
June 15, 2019
Brilliant no nonsense book!
Less of a self help book and more of a tool box! James has lived the journey he describes in each chapter!
Less of a self help book and more of a tool box! James has lived the journey he describes in each chapter!
February 9, 2020
Great book, a lot of tops to spending time more effectively. Highly recommend.
April 20, 2020
There were some useful tips in there. I liked that it was brief.
May 27, 2020
Packed with informative and actionable stuff
August 5, 2020
Great resource and reference book. There are also bonus chapters and a workbook available on the author's website.
December 31, 2020
This is THE book you need to read if you want to take your business to the next level. The advise this book offers could be heard out there but the structure is way better by James Sharamko.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews