Jason's point was a great one - historically people focused too much on resumes, and that is often a mistake today because their work speaks for itself.
Except, that's not a great point-- it's a pretty trivial point, and one that was hammered to death by Spolsky, t al., a decade ago.
And, it's not a matter "let's tell both sides of the story", as much as "pay attention to the context."
Fried has found something that works for 37signals. That's good, as far as it goes. To try to generalize from that into "This is the way everybody should do things" is not only arrogant, it's crazy.
If Fried were really interested in doing his readers a service, he'd examine why his system works at 37signals, and outline the context which makes it appropriate-- so that if the reader's context is similar, he can adjust the advice accordingly.
Wait, which of these points were made by Spolsky a decade ago? I have a near-fannish devotion to both of these people's writing, and I think you're either misremembering or have misread Fried's bit.
> If Fried were really interested in doing his readers a service, he'd examine why his system works at 37signals, and outline the context which makes it appropriate-- so that if the reader's context is similar, he can adjust the advice accordingly.
Isn't that what he's doing? Both "Getting Real" and "REWORK" both present an entire philosophy, with many facets that work together to create the effect that they have.
Except, that's not a great point-- it's a pretty trivial point, and one that was hammered to death by Spolsky, t al., a decade ago.
And, it's not a matter "let's tell both sides of the story", as much as "pay attention to the context."
Fried has found something that works for 37signals. That's good, as far as it goes. To try to generalize from that into "This is the way everybody should do things" is not only arrogant, it's crazy.
If Fried were really interested in doing his readers a service, he'd examine why his system works at 37signals, and outline the context which makes it appropriate-- so that if the reader's context is similar, he can adjust the advice accordingly.