ReWork

This book was actually published in 2010, and I didn't realize it because all the stuff in here is still applicable today. It's really the entire philosophy of Fried and DHH and BaseCamp (used to be 37signals), and very concise and to-the-point. It's a collection of short tips, each of which counters conventional startup wisdom. I found that I personally knew most of it already, or I just basically agreed with all of it.

Rework is an example of the business-inspirational genre by the founders of 37Signals, a software company. I like 37Signals because they’re straightforward, even pithy, and because founder Jason Fried has some right-on things to say about business culture, such as the stupidity of insisting that all workers come to an office and stay for eight hours, whether they are productive there or not. Rework follows the format of a lot of these books, which alternates extremely short chapters with crude page-sized art. Usually this format follows naturally when the author is reworking his blog into a book, which is the case here.

A lot of the little chapters pretend to upend the common wisdom. There are chapters titled “Welcome Obscurity,” show more “Good Enough is Fine” and “Drug Dealers Get It Right.” This gives even completely passive readers the feeling of boldly thinking outside the box. There is a chance, I suppose, that some readers really will be jolted into changing their way of thinking, and I think that’s what the authors are aiming for. But I’m skeptical. You’re either ready to be bold, or you’re not, and if you are ready, you’ll quickly find your own path and won’t need this book.

Ultimately, Rework is not a lot different from a traditional book of business wisdom (say, Winning by Jack Welch of GE). People are hungry for advice and seek it from those they consider brilliant, and what higher proof of brilliance is there than success in the market? But consider: 37Signals began as a Web-design company just as the Web was becoming a truly mass phenomenon. The company then switched to developing Web apps just as the iPhone came out and apps became a very big commercial thing. These guys are very smart, no doubt, but they’re also lucky; like the rock musicians of the ‘50s and ‘60s, they were there just as the market demanded their particular skills for the very first time. If they’d been born ten years earlier or later, they would have found much less rewarding outlets or would have faced much stiffer competition.

If you’ve already begun a startup company, this book may be the encouragement you need and may even give you a few good ideas. If you’re looking for a book to inspire you to action, look within yourself instead. show less

Very good book - funny, witty, to the point, and great illustrations (both the picture kind and the example kind). Each chapter has smaller topics, each of which last only a page or two and have some sort of picture or design on the facing page. This kept each zinger short and to the point.

The book is full of snarky humor and blunt honesty.

I was prepared to rate it five stars until the second half - when some crude language began to filter in. I'm sure they had a point, but I'm also sure it didn't necessitate bad language. Came off as unprofessional.

Despite the description, this is more of a manifesto than a guide on how to actually do anything, but that's ok. It's a fast read with a good pace, and 37 Signals philosophy of building up a value delivering business to last is a refreshing contrast to the normal focus on growth, growth, and more growth.

The heart of their philosophy is to find the problems that will still need a solution in 10 years (even if the solution will change). Don't focus on creating a product or adding a feature just because it's trendy right now or a competitor has it. Don't focus on what the user -- or even worse, the market -- wants; focus on what they need.

While I didn't always agree with their vision -- it's my opinion that companies that think managers show more are useless don't understand how to grow good managers -- there was much worth thinking about in an easy to digest package. show less

I've long been a fan of Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson's unique philosophy of work in general, but particularly workflow and process. _Rework_ is breath of fresh air in the business book genre and scrupulously avoids the self-help mentality often found there. I recommend this book to people who hate business books. _Rework_ articulates a potent form of the 'less is more' philosophy where interminable soul-sucking meetings, feature creep, workaholism, and the tyranny of ASAP are verboten.

http://37signals.com/rework/

I need to start with a disclaimer; I’m a 37signals fanatic. I spend at least a few hours each day using Basecamp and I use a family level Backpack account for personal use. Both save me time and help keep me organized at work and home. The products that 37signals turns out are simple, clean and get the job done.

REWORK is just like any other 37signals product. It’s not a long book, but the authors make their points clearly and succinctly by cutting out any unnecessary filler. Being in the software industry, I could relate directly to most of what Fried and Hansson were relating from their experiences. I kept thinking “We should do things the same way!” or “Wow, someone else has the same attitude.” As I read REWORK, I started show more tagging pages that had passages that I wanted to remember. When I was done, I realized almost every page had something marked. The book is simply that full of usable information.

There was one piece of advice with which I don’t agree. In the section titled “Don’t Write it Down,” the authors recommend that you don’t document or record your customers’ issues. They believe that over time, if it’s important enough to enough of your customers, then you’re simply going to remember what needs to be done. If you don’t remember it, it must not be important and you should just let unimportant things fall away.

The theme of deciding what is or is not important is carried throughout the book. One section that spoke directly to me was titled “Decisions are Temporary.” I tend to be an analytical person and I think through the possible results of my decisions. At 37signals, they believe we worry about too many things that never happen anyway. If you make a decision, there are very few that can’t be remade later if something doesn’t work. I don’t think they’re advocating thoughtless decisions, but instead saying that analysis shouldn’t lead to paralysis.

Overall, REWORK is an excellent business book. Regardless of your industry, everyone will find one or two points of value. I’m going to start passing it around my office so we can benefit as a group. show less

I skimmed through this book once about a decade ago, and went back through it now after well over a decade working in/with startups.

I think it's still quite applicable today... it's strange because it seems to be a book people start their startup journeys reading, but then abandon many parts of it once "things get too real".

Most of the time this is because they're VC-backed, and, as the book mentions, VC-firms have goals... usually exponential growth and return goals which require lots of hires at once, which leads to some of the traditional 'problems' this book seeks to address.

Unfortunately, the book's solution of "just don't take VC money" isn't realistic for many companies and founders. That having been said, you can still maintain show more some of the essences of this book even in a rapid-growth environment if you bake flexibility and keeping your eye on what's important into your business from the early stages. show less