HEY World,
I just finished Rework by Jason Fried and DHH. It was the most refreshing thing I’ve read in a long time. It tore down and rebuilt how I think about business, and in many ways life in general. I have felt for a while that there’s a different gear that I could be shifting into at work, but I hadn’t understood what it was or how to do it - it’s just been a feeling. The words and ideas in this book have unlocked that for me.
The following is a collection of what I found to be the most insightful, useful, or funny pieces in Rework:
I just finished Rework by Jason Fried and DHH. It was the most refreshing thing I’ve read in a long time. It tore down and rebuilt how I think about business, and in many ways life in general. I have felt for a while that there’s a different gear that I could be shifting into at work, but I hadn’t understood what it was or how to do it - it’s just been a feeling. The words and ideas in this book have unlocked that for me.
The following is a collection of what I found to be the most insightful, useful, or funny pieces in Rework:
Our culture celebrates the idea of the workaholic. We hear about people burning the midnight oil. They pull all-nighters and sleep at the office. It’s considered a badge of honor to kill yourself over a project. No amount of work is too much work… Working more doesn’t mean you care more or get more done. It just means you work more.
This was one that I always knew was bad, but it’s easy to fall into the traps that lead to “workaholism”. Sometimes you do have to pull the all-nighter and spend many, many consecutive hours on your work. But this shouldn’t be the norm, take care of yourself.
You don’t make a great museum by putting all the art in the world into a single room. That’s a warehouse. What makes a museum great is the stuff that’s not on the walls.
This is all about the idea of curation. Everything that isn’t included in the museum, your product, your business is important - and is a deliberate decision. Think about this!
Tone is in your fingers.
Give Tiger Woods a set of cheap clubs and he’ll still destroy you.
We all know the type. Total beginners that spend money on getting decked out with the top of the line equipment and swag. In business, this can translate into caring too much about the sexiest gadgetry, tools, whiteboards, etc. Don’t. Just get work done.
The problem with abstractions (like reports and documents) is that they create illusions of agreement. A hundred people can read the same words, but in their heads, they’re imagining a hundred different things. That’s why you want to get something real right away.
I hadn’t ever really considered the implications of this in business, but they are totally right. Get something real, fast… so people are on the same page.
Interruptions are the enemy of productivity.
Get in the alone zone.
Meetings procreate.
Basically, make time to do work and no meetings if they aren’t absolutely necessary. When they are necessary, try to make them truly worth it - and respect everyone’s time with hard stops.
How should you keep track of what customers want? Don’t. Listen, but then forget what people said. Seriously.
There’s no need for a spreadsheet, database, or filing system. The requests that really matter are the ones you’ll hear over and over. After a while, you won’t be able to forget them. Your customers will be your memory. They’ll keep reminding you. They’ll show you which things you truly need to worry about.
I had just created a database, doing this exact thing right before I started reading the book. It’s now in the trash.
We all know resumés are a joke. They’re exaggerations. They’re filled with “action verbs” that don’t mean anything. They list job titles and responsibilities that are vaguely accurate at best. And there’s no way to verify most of what’s on there. The whole thing is a farce.
There’s surprisingly little difference between a candidate with six months of experience and one with six years. The real difference comes from the individual’s dedication, personality, and intelligence.
I just love their take on this stuff.
The second something goes wrong, the natural tendency is to create a policy. “Someone’s wearing shorts!? We need a dress code!” No, you don’t. You just need to tell John not to wear shorts again.
This is actually funny, and true. Why do companies do this sort of thing?
Forget rules.
I loved when I saw this. One of the best pieces of advice I’ve ever received is “there are no rules”. I think about that a lot.
Ok, I decided to cut a bunch out. But you really should read or listen to the book. Rework. It’s phenomenal.
-Pret