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3.94 AVERAGE
3.94 AVERAGE
I liked some of the ideas in the book - interesting to see how they work. But there wasn’t enough substance here, and the analysis of most of the ideas was mostly along the lines of “we tried it one way, and then another, and this one worked for us”. Good to skim though.
This was a re-read for me. Going into 2020 I wanted to remind myself and ‘reset’ myself so that I can go back to work and create the best environment for me to do my best work. This means bringing back boundaries that have slipped and making sure work is work and home is home. This book is a manifesto for everything that’s wrong with the ‘hustle’ culture we read and hear about so much today. I love reading about the culture at Basecamp and the company inspired me to think differently about how I approach my work.
informative
Thoughts:
Good explanations both in how work is made crazy, how to create a calm environment and emphasis on the importance of work-life balance and a healthy environment.
Good explanations both in how work is made crazy, how to create a calm environment and emphasis on the importance of work-life balance and a healthy environment.
Kniha pre majitelov firiem, alebo manazerov na c-level urovni
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
Solid 4 stars. I really enjoyed all the concepts and completely agree, but it was a bit too pithy and Food Rules for me to give it 5. I’m also intensely curious how Basecamp employees feel. CEOs always think they’re doing better than they are.
While this book has a few gems, the central neoliberal contention that the rigors capitalism takes on the planet, the human body, and the collective psyche are merely due to the shortsightedness of employers is at best naive and at worst exceedingly dangerous.
The attitude evidenced in this book is glib and self-righteous, while their conclusions under-researched and thinly supported, offering only brief internal anecdotes. I honestly can't imagine anyone but their greedy publisher thought it fit to have them sit down and turn their uneducated opinion into prescription to fill the business erotica section of your major airport bookstores.
Every chapter is marked with brief anecdotes about how people like Charles Dickens, Maya Angelou, or Gustav Mahler structured their days. To my mind, none of these people took on venture capital or had much in the way of employees, so WTF does their "calm approach" to working have to do with the realities of the modern tech industry?
I know they are smug and self-satisfied that they've been able to build a successful company without VC money or a single office or employee in the Bay Area -- and to be honest I accept this as a feat as well -- but they still managed to fall into the typical Silicon Valley mindset that believes that the learnings and subsequent leadership style of their fluke can (and should!) be evenly applied across all other companies.
Y'all got lucky. Congrats. Now shut up.
---
Update May 2021 - yup they should've shut up.
The attitude evidenced in this book is glib and self-righteous, while their conclusions under-researched and thinly supported, offering only brief internal anecdotes. I honestly can't imagine anyone but their greedy publisher thought it fit to have them sit down and turn their uneducated opinion into prescription to fill the business erotica section of your major airport bookstores.
Every chapter is marked with brief anecdotes about how people like Charles Dickens, Maya Angelou, or Gustav Mahler structured their days. To my mind, none of these people took on venture capital or had much in the way of employees, so WTF does their "calm approach" to working have to do with the realities of the modern tech industry?
I know they are smug and self-satisfied that they've been able to build a successful company without VC money or a single office or employee in the Bay Area -- and to be honest I accept this as a feat as well -- but they still managed to fall into the typical Silicon Valley mindset that believes that the learnings and subsequent leadership style of their fluke can (and should!) be evenly applied across all other companies.
Y'all got lucky. Congrats. Now shut up.
---
Update May 2021 - yup they should've shut up.
This is a great leadership/management book. It really runs against a lot of common "things to do" regarding leadership. We often get too caught up in what the norms are to manage people and don't stop to think if there might be a better way or even more importantly is it worth the cost to our humanity. To often we are driven my production/profit at all costs and completely throw aside that we are all humans and this is not our best foot forward. This book challenges that thinking and instead tries to integrate the idea that people can have satisfaction and delight and *gasp* still get shit done! As a recovering workaholic this challenged me greatly and I was convicted of integrating damaging leadership principles I had learned into my own leadership. Things that were well meaning on my part but probably did not do well for those that worked for me. Yeah maybe we were able to get the job done as long as "the job" did not include taking care of my team. However, as a leader, that is the primary job of the leader. There is a phrase about leaders that don't get this: horrible leaders
If you are a leader in any capacity and care at all about your team, I highly recommend this book. But be ready to have conventional thinking challenged and be open to looking at what bullshit you were taught or picked up. You won't get much out of this if you only care about the bottom line or don't have an open mind.
If you are a leader in any capacity and care at all about your team, I highly recommend this book. But be ready to have conventional thinking challenged and be open to looking at what bullshit you were taught or picked up. You won't get much out of this if you only care about the bottom line or don't have an open mind.
informative
inspiring
fast-paced