Co-founder and CEO of 37signals, author of Shape Up and Rework
Jason Fried is co-founder and CEO of 37signals, which makes Basecamp and HEY, has no investors and has made a profit for 24 years in a row. Bootstrapping is good for founders, he argues, because they get more practice making money. He believes constraints, simplicity and small teams are where it's at, and he calls himself intuition driven. He thinks of product work as play.
Lenny's Podcast 00:47 12:35 44:23 54:38 1:18:43
Product
An estimate predicts how long work takes. An appetite decides what it is worth. Time is fixed, scope bends to fit.
this is not an estimate of time it's an appetite which is a radically different approach it doesn't sound like that much of a different word but it really is
Jason Fried
rests the method on judgment: someone decides an appetite up front, and he defends intuition over data-heavy analysis on the grounds that people are fundamentally feeling creatures.
would weight that same call by who has a track record and can explain the cause and effect behind it.
Shape Up Methodology
Small, focused teams with strict time constraints (6-week cycles). Shape work before building, then give teams autonomy within fixed timeframes.
Jason Fried challenges your thinking on fundraising, goals, growth, and more
Stay as small as possible for as long as possible when bootstrapping
Controlling costs and doing work yourself hones the fundamental skill of making money
Jason Fried challenges your thinking on fundraising, goals, growth, and more 1:11:34
Gut instinct and intuition are valid decision-making tools
Humans are primarily feeling creatures; trusting instincts often leads to creative solutions born from lack of established patterns
Jason Fried challenges your thinking on fundraising, goals, growth, and more
