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I finally read “It Doesn’t Have To Be Crazy At Work” by @jasonfried & @dhh and this is DEFINITELY my new work ethic bible (along with “Deep Work” by Cal Newport, which is closely related).
Some takeaways:
Some takeaways:
This isn’t war, it’s business. When you have to conquer the world instead of simply existing in it, you start to justify anything-goes morals and compromise your integrity.
When you plan for the short term, you get to change your mind often.
If you admit you have no idea what the long term future will look like, you’ll be free from the fear of making the wrong big decision years in advance.
If you admit you have no idea what the long term future will look like, you’ll be free from the fear of making the wrong big decision years in advance.
If you don’t defend your time, it’s getting stolen by others.
Time and attention are best spent in large bills, not small coins.
A quality hour is one block of 60 minutes, not 4 blocks of 15 minutes.
Time and attention are best spent in large bills, not small coins.
A quality hour is one block of 60 minutes, not 4 blocks of 15 minutes.
A shared work calendar enables anybody to find a slot in your day and plant a flag.
Scheduling a meeting should be a tedious negotiation instead.
If it’s easy to invite five people to a meeting, then meetings with six people will proliferate.
Scheduling a meeting should be a tedious negotiation instead.
If it’s easy to invite five people to a meeting, then meetings with six people will proliferate.
Look at your calendar - how many things did you put there, and how many things did other people put there?
If you don’t own the vast majority of your time, it’s impossible to be calm.
The satisfaction from actually making progress, not just talking about it, is gone.
If you don’t own the vast majority of your time, it’s impossible to be calm.
The satisfaction from actually making progress, not just talking about it, is gone.
There’s no reason everyone needs to know everything going on at the company, especially in real time.
It’s work, it’s not news.
Constant group chat conditions you to believe everything’s worth discussing right now, except hardly anything is.
It’s work, it’s not news.
Constant group chat conditions you to believe everything’s worth discussing right now, except hardly anything is.
The best companies aren’t families. They’re supporters of families, there to provide healthy environments so that when you’re off work, you’re the best husband/wife/parent/sibling/child you can be.
As a leader, saying your door is open is not enough to get ahead of problems.
You have to go out there and ask.
Posing real, pointed questions is the only way to convey that it’s ok to provide real answers.
You have to go out there and ask.
Posing real, pointed questions is the only way to convey that it’s ok to provide real answers.
Work-life balance is about give and take. If work can claim hours after 5pm, then life should be able to claim hours before 5pm.
An office should provide peace, quiet, privacy and space to allow for calm, creative work.
Think of it as a library. Everyone knows what the library rules are: silence and serenity.
Think of it as a library. Everyone knows what the library rules are: silence and serenity.
The cost of consensus is too much to pay over and over again.
Whoever can keep arguing the longest stands the best chance of winning.
Good decisions need commitment more than consensus.
Someone in charge has to make the call.
Whoever can keep arguing the longest stands the best chance of winning.
Good decisions need commitment more than consensus.
Someone in charge has to make the call.
Just like work expands to fill the time available, work expands to fill the team available. Small, short projects become big, long projects when too many people are there to work on them.
No is easier to do, yes is easier to say.
No is a precision instrument. Yes is a blunt object.
Knowing what you’ll say no to is better than knowing what you’ll say yes to.
No is a precision instrument. Yes is a blunt object.
Knowing what you’ll say no to is better than knowing what you’ll say yes to.
When some of your clients pay exponentially more than others, their demands for features or exceptions will automatically rise to the top.
With money comes influence, if not outright power.
This can be avoided when all your clients are worth the same.
With money comes influence, if not outright power.
This can be avoided when all your clients are worth the same.
To know the truth about what you’ve built, you have to ship it.
Simulated situations give simulated answers. Prerelease is also slow, costly and the feedback that has to be filtered, debated, decided is still just a guess.
You can only iterate on something that already exists.
Simulated situations give simulated answers. Prerelease is also slow, costly and the feedback that has to be filtered, debated, decided is still just a guess.
You can only iterate on something that already exists.
Many users value comfort and consistency over your “better” new version. Forcing change on them is condescending.
Give new customers the new thing and let old customers keep what they have.
That’s the price of having a legacy.
Give new customers the new thing and let old customers keep what they have.
That’s the price of having a legacy.
Not doing something that isn’t worth doing is a wonderful way to spend your time.
Choose calm.
Choose calm.
