My friend Joe shared this with me awhile back. I'm just now getting around to reading it. 37signals published a book (Getting Real) on how they do successful projects by keeping things simple. You can read it online for free.SO much of what they talk about is transferable to communications, systems and ministry. I love their "modus operandi":
We believe software is too complex. Too many features, too many buttons, too much to learn. Our products do less than the competition — intentionally. We build products that work smarter, feel better, allow you to do things your way, and are easier to use.
A few highlights from the book intro alone (it just gets better from there):
What is getting real?
- Getting Real is about skipping all the stuff that represents real and actually building the real thing.
- Getting real is less. Less mass, less software, less features, less paperwork, less of everything that's not essential (and most of what you think is essential actually isn't).
- Getting Real is staying small and being agile.
- Getting Real starts with what the customer actually experiences and builds backwards from there. This lets you get it right before you get it wrong.
- Getting Real delivers just what customers need and eliminates anything they don't.
Kem, glad you're enjoying it. My favorite article from the book right now is the one titled Start With NO from the fifth chapter.
Posted by: Joe | Dec 27, 2006 at 09:48 AM