Business
by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson
Does work have to be this hard?
Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson built 37signals, the company behind Basecamp, into a small, profitable software business. Rework is their argument that most business advice makes work slower and more stressful than it needs to be.
Hear a sample · read by Laura
A five-year plan pretends you can see five years ahead. Nobody can. Fried and Hansson say to call plans what they are, which is guesses, and decide what you're doing this week. You'll know more about next year when you get there.
When time or money runs short, cut features and keep the quality. A small thing that works well beats a big thing that's shaky everywhere. Limits helped them too. They built Basecamp on the side while running a design firm, with David programming from Denmark.
chats chop the day into pieces too small for real work. The authors call meetings toxic, since an hour with ten people costs ten hours. They want long stretches with nobody interrupting, which they call the alone zone.
A timber mill sells its sawdust. Fried and Hansson noticed they had by-products too. Ruby on Rails, the framework David wrote to build Basecamp, took off in its own right. So did Getting Real, a book of what they'd learnt along the way.
Don't hire to feel big. Wait until there's more work than you can handle, and try the job yourself first so you know what good looks like. When choosing between candidates, they say to hire the best writer, because clear writing shows clear thinking.
Plans
Nobody can predict next year, so long plans are mostly fiction. Decide what matters this week and do that.
Small is fine
Staying small is fine. A business doesn't need to keep growing to be a success.
Your own itch
Build something you need yourself, so you know when it's good.
Cut it down
Cut the features until the few you keep are really good.
Interruptions
Meetings and constant interruptions eat the long quiet stretches where real work gets done.
Hot take · true or myth?
Good enough is often the right standard.
True. A simple fix that works today beats a perfect one that takes months. You can polish later, once you know what people actually use.
One thing to try
Look at next week's calendar and find one meeting a short written note could replace. Cancel it and send the note. Then spend the hour you got back in an alone zone, with your phone and chat switched off.
Knotd has the key ideas from 250+ non-fiction books, each in a few minutes, in plain words. Rework comes with a Hot Take round to make it stick.
Get the whole book on KnotdOpen in the appDoes work have to be this hard? Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson built 37signals, the company behind Basecamp, into a small, profitable software business. Rework is their argument that most business advice makes work slower and more stressful than it needs to be.
Planning is guessing; Half a product, done well; Interruption is the enemy; Sell your by-products; Hire when it hurts.
Look at next week's calendar and find one meeting a short written note could replace. Cancel it and send the note. Then spend the hour you got back in an alone zone, with your phone and chat switched off.
Yes. Knotd has the key ideas from Rework in a few minutes, in plain words, plus a Hot Take round to test them. It's one of 250+ non-fiction books in the app.
