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armag88's review against another edition
5.0
In the last few months I’ve learned that spending hours on the internet looking for ways to “be better” is bullshit. Reading countless blogs. Staying on top of every tweet. And never missing a single word uttered. All bullshit.
I’ve been lucky in finding a few great people on the web who have said this is bullshit. And I’ve been lucky enough to sit back and look at what I’ve been doing and tell myself it’s all bullshit. I have everything I need to make something TODAY.
Unless, I happened to be on twitter when Skwerl says “i think this book is about how i work.” Upon clicking the link I then see a quote from Seth Godin saying “Ignore this book at your own peril.” Okay…so I can’t be WORSE off for looking into this book called REWORK. Written by the two founders of a company I was previously unaware of called 37Signals.
Step 1: I Ordered the book from Amazon 30 seconds after becoming aware of it’s existence.
Step 2: Upon coming home from work I find the book in my mailbox. I run upstairs and rip it open.
Step 3: I read the entire book without moving.
Step 4: I’m here, writing.
Now you want my thought out fucking review right? Okay…um…READ IT.
I’ve got shit I need to go do. Not because this book told me to. But because this book made me understand WHY I need to. It made me understand certain gut instincts that I couldn’t quite interpret. There’s some problems I have with the way things are done and it can’t fucking wait. One problem is long ass reviews from people you don’t know. I’d rather get a “READ IT” or “LISTEN TO IT” or “WATCH IT” from someone I completely know or at the very least trust their opinions 100%. In fact, this book discusses that concept of “audience” as people who trust YOU and your opinions, and who seek you out.
When I visited the book’s webpage, the first thing I saw were the claims of “Best Seller in US and UK” and the mention of a bunch of major newspapers that I could give a fuck about. And it turns out, upon reading the book, neither of the writers of this book could give a fuck about the major publications. They state they get more traffic from smaller unknown sources than from mentions in papers and magazines.
By far, the most important part of the book that really drilled into my head was that “Inspiration is Perishable”. I knew the second I read this book, I had a LOT to say. I don’t know if it would make any sense but if I waited until the next day I probably wouldn’t be as pumped to do it. And now that I HAVE done it (I’m now editing this the next morning), the energy hasn’t gone away and I’m pumped for having DONE this.
Thank you Skwerl. Thank you Seth Godin. And most of all, thank you Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson of 37Signals.
GOODNIGHT! (Morning?)
I’ve been lucky in finding a few great people on the web who have said this is bullshit. And I’ve been lucky enough to sit back and look at what I’ve been doing and tell myself it’s all bullshit. I have everything I need to make something TODAY.
Unless, I happened to be on twitter when Skwerl says “i think this book is about how i work.” Upon clicking the link I then see a quote from Seth Godin saying “Ignore this book at your own peril.” Okay…so I can’t be WORSE off for looking into this book called REWORK. Written by the two founders of a company I was previously unaware of called 37Signals.
Step 1: I Ordered the book from Amazon 30 seconds after becoming aware of it’s existence.
Step 2: Upon coming home from work I find the book in my mailbox. I run upstairs and rip it open.
Step 3: I read the entire book without moving.
Step 4: I’m here, writing.
Now you want my thought out fucking review right? Okay…um…READ IT.
I’ve got shit I need to go do. Not because this book told me to. But because this book made me understand WHY I need to. It made me understand certain gut instincts that I couldn’t quite interpret. There’s some problems I have with the way things are done and it can’t fucking wait. One problem is long ass reviews from people you don’t know. I’d rather get a “READ IT” or “LISTEN TO IT” or “WATCH IT” from someone I completely know or at the very least trust their opinions 100%. In fact, this book discusses that concept of “audience” as people who trust YOU and your opinions, and who seek you out.
When I visited the book’s webpage, the first thing I saw were the claims of “Best Seller in US and UK” and the mention of a bunch of major newspapers that I could give a fuck about. And it turns out, upon reading the book, neither of the writers of this book could give a fuck about the major publications. They state they get more traffic from smaller unknown sources than from mentions in papers and magazines.
By far, the most important part of the book that really drilled into my head was that “Inspiration is Perishable”. I knew the second I read this book, I had a LOT to say. I don’t know if it would make any sense but if I waited until the next day I probably wouldn’t be as pumped to do it. And now that I HAVE done it (I’m now editing this the next morning), the energy hasn’t gone away and I’m pumped for having DONE this.
Thank you Skwerl. Thank you Seth Godin. And most of all, thank you Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson of 37Signals.
GOODNIGHT! (Morning?)
aligrint's review against another edition
3.0
I really like that this book exists: a lot of its suggestions are the opposite of conventional knowledge around startups. If you follow Signal vs Noise, their blog, as I do, it's less worthwhile to buy the book. Many of the chapters are already shared as blog posts.
Some of the advice could be stronger if it thought harder about the opposing argument, rather than dismissing it as greedy or thoughtless.
Some of the advice could be stronger if it thought harder about the opposing argument, rather than dismissing it as greedy or thoughtless.
dbeaver77's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
fast-paced
3.25
I feel like a lot of the ideas presented in this book are worth thinking about at the very least, with some being more applicable than others in my opinion. Additionally, sometimes the authors’ tone is irreverent to “normal business” in a positive way but sometimes is that way just for the sake of it.
spav's review against another edition
3.0
37signal guys repeated formula for this book (after Getting Real).
Some parts are a mash-up of Getting Real, perhaps more high level view of the formula that worked for them and less focused on their success with Basecamp.
Some parts are a mash-up of Getting Real, perhaps more high level view of the formula that worked for them and less focused on their success with Basecamp.
jsorense's review against another edition
3.0
A sensible book about how to run a business, but I don't think I walked away from it with a much better understanding of good business practices.
Makes a lot of points that contradict the way things tend to work in business today (author speaks out strongly against bureaucracy and long term planning, for example) and many strongly resonate. However, I felt like for most of them the key is knowing how to navigate the gray area, not just reading an author who tells you why bureaucracy is bad. Structure and policies are created for a reason - rather than telling us all the ways they slow us down, help us tease apart when they help and when they hurt. Yes, PR firms are expensive, but they also often have connections to those on the press side of your industry and can get stories written about you. Yes, communication methods like e-mail that don't require an instant reply are nice because they don't interrupt the recipient, but anyone who has worked on a team can think of times their productivity tanked because they were waiting on information / responses from coworkers.
A few ideas from the book that I really liked:
* press releases are generic and easily missed, which makes them pointless - target individual people for a specific reason and target niche media outlets
* it's hard to maintain momentum and motivation on long term projects. author recommends avoiding them, but at least concedes that if you must have them, you should set aside one day a week for small victories to boost morale and maintain energy
* interviews and resumes are lousy ways to know if someone will work well as an employee - instead, hire them short term for a short project. If it's a good fit, make a full time offer after the project ends.
Makes a lot of points that contradict the way things tend to work in business today (author speaks out strongly against bureaucracy and long term planning, for example) and many strongly resonate. However, I felt like for most of them the key is knowing how to navigate the gray area, not just reading an author who tells you why bureaucracy is bad. Structure and policies are created for a reason - rather than telling us all the ways they slow us down, help us tease apart when they help and when they hurt. Yes, PR firms are expensive, but they also often have connections to those on the press side of your industry and can get stories written about you. Yes, communication methods like e-mail that don't require an instant reply are nice because they don't interrupt the recipient, but anyone who has worked on a team can think of times their productivity tanked because they were waiting on information / responses from coworkers.
A few ideas from the book that I really liked:
* press releases are generic and easily missed, which makes them pointless - target individual people for a specific reason and target niche media outlets
* it's hard to maintain momentum and motivation on long term projects. author recommends avoiding them, but at least concedes that if you must have them, you should set aside one day a week for small victories to boost morale and maintain energy
* interviews and resumes are lousy ways to know if someone will work well as an employee - instead, hire them short term for a short project. If it's a good fit, make a full time offer after the project ends.
durva_1401's review against another edition
5.0
“Until you actually start making something, your brilliant idea is just that, an idea.”
― Jason Fried, Rework
REWORK is the perfect playbook for anyone who’s ever dreamed of doing it on their own. Hardcore entrepreneurs, small-business owners, people stuck in day jobs they hate, victims of "downsizing," and artists who don’t want to starve anymore will all find valuable guidance in these pages.
The book applies a unique approach as compared to other business-related books out there. It throws light on all the things that are wrong with stereotypical business practices that people follow and offers alternatives to these practices. It gives you a bird’s eye view of why businesses fail and what you should be doing to make it survive. The book was published way back in 2010, but the concepts and the ideas shared in this book are still so relevant, and I think that is a sign of a well-written book. The sarcastic writing style and descriptive graphic designs enhanced the content of the book.
Anyone could easily relate to this book, be it a working professional or student or an entrepreneur or an artist, as there is something for everyone in there. It is the kind of book that even a non-reader could easily read. The book contains bite-sized chapters which anyone can easily flip through. The content in each chapter is pretty concise and straightforward.
This book was personally a great source of inspiration for me as a working professional. I would 100% recommend this book to everyone to read atleast once as the book is sort of an eye-opener. I might re-read this book, because it is that good!
― Jason Fried, Rework
REWORK is the perfect playbook for anyone who’s ever dreamed of doing it on their own. Hardcore entrepreneurs, small-business owners, people stuck in day jobs they hate, victims of "downsizing," and artists who don’t want to starve anymore will all find valuable guidance in these pages.
The book applies a unique approach as compared to other business-related books out there. It throws light on all the things that are wrong with stereotypical business practices that people follow and offers alternatives to these practices. It gives you a bird’s eye view of why businesses fail and what you should be doing to make it survive. The book was published way back in 2010, but the concepts and the ideas shared in this book are still so relevant, and I think that is a sign of a well-written book. The sarcastic writing style and descriptive graphic designs enhanced the content of the book.
Anyone could easily relate to this book, be it a working professional or student or an entrepreneur or an artist, as there is something for everyone in there. It is the kind of book that even a non-reader could easily read. The book contains bite-sized chapters which anyone can easily flip through. The content in each chapter is pretty concise and straightforward.
This book was personally a great source of inspiration for me as a working professional. I would 100% recommend this book to everyone to read atleast once as the book is sort of an eye-opener. I might re-read this book, because it is that good!