It Doesn’t Have to Be Crazy at Work

"Workaholism isn’t a badge of honor, it’s a broken way of working.” Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson challenge the chaos of the modern workplace and show another path forward.

1. Treat Your Company Like a Product

To fix workplace chaos, think of your organization as a product you’re constantly improving. Just as you refine and debug software, you should assess and adjust how your company operates.

When companies fail to run smoothly, it affects employees and customers. A chaotic environment, filled with disorganization, unnecessary meetings, and poor systems, breeds stress. But if you evaluate your company as a product, you'll notice areas to streamline operations and increase efficiency. Simplify where needed, improve workflows, and solve recurring problems like a developer fixing bugs.

A curious product-oriented mindset fosters ongoing improvement rather than settling for dysfunction. By seeing your company as something to refine, you can fix the ‘bugs’ causing stress—be it unproductive meetings, unclear responsibilities, or scattered communication.

Examples

• Use surveys to understand employee grievances, as you would customer feedback.
• Limit scope creep on projects, prioritizing clarity and focus.
• Adjust office tools or procedures to cut down on recurring frustrations.

2. Stop Glorifying Overwork

The modern workplace celebrates long hours and hustling as proof of dedication, but overwork rarely leads to breakthroughs. In fact, chronic exhaustion does more harm than good.

Consider historical examples like Charles Darwin, who created groundbreaking work while sticking to short workdays. Similarly, high performance comes from regular and steady efforts, not burning out. The relationship between success and excessive hours is a false narrative. Companies that encourage balance get better results in the long run.

Getting good work done doesn’t mean cramming 18-hour workdays. Instead, focus on organizing work in segments and pacing. Over time, businesses with employees who work smart, rather than endlessly, thrive.

Examples

• Workers at Basecamp stick to manageable eight-hour days, using focused bursts instead of marathon sessions.
• Productivity slows when we sacrifice sleep or personal time, as studies show.
• Long-haul pilots rest to ensure alertness. Workers, too, need rest for sustained performance.

3. Avoid the "Business as War" Mentality

Thinking of business as warfare creates animosity, stress, and unethical actions. Instead, focus on making your company better instead of treating competitors like enemies.

When you treat business as war, it invites bad behavior both on and off the battlefield. This can mean manipulating data, mistreating employees, or unethical practices to ‘win.’ The authors value a peaceful, self-focused approach—one that prioritizes sustainability and meeting internal goals over unnecessary competition.

Cultivating peace clears the toxic energy in workplaces. By focusing inward rather than outwardly attacking rivals, you can grow an authentic, positive business model.

Examples

• Replace competitive rhetoric (like "crushing competition") with goal-oriented plans.
• Focus on product improvements that delight customers rather than copying rivals.
• Basecamp prioritizes profit stability over aggressive growth.

4. Reclaim Your Time by Reducing Interruptions

Distraction-filled workplaces drain time. Protecting employees' attention is more productive than packing days with meetings and emails.

Interruptions like status-update meetings, chat notifications, and pop-in visits scatter focus. When time is fragmented, workers lose momentum and end up needing longer hours to finish. Reclaiming time involves creating uninterrupted blocks for deep work. Basecamp demonstrates this with asynchronous communication: team updates are written rather than live, allowing employees to catch up at their convenience.

When companies treat time as a vital resource, they preserve efficiency and reduce stress.

Examples

• Eliminate daily or weekly check-ins, replacing them with written updates.
• Implement tools like Basecamp for delayed-response communication.
• Schedule no-meeting hours or days to encourage focus.

5. Don’t Pretend Your Company Is a Family

The idea that a company is a family sounds nice but plants harmful expectations for employees.

Strong bonds at work should grow naturally, and colleagues can look after one another. But calling coworkers ‘family’ pressures employees to sacrifice personal needs for the company. Some firms use this concept to encourage unpaid overtime or prioritizing work over personal life. Instead, good companies allow workers to prioritize their real families by supporting flexible schedules and time off.

Rejecting the family facade reinforces the real commitment: that a business intends for its teams to thrive both professionally and personally.

Examples

• Let employees leave on time to have family dinners.
• Offer ample PTO without guilt.
• Replace "we’re a family" rhetoric with honest communication about expectations.

6. Rethink Deadlines and Presentations

Deadlines and meetings often stir up anxiety—addressing how you approach these processes can calm the workspace.

Unreasonable timelines lead to stress and poor work. At Basecamp, project scopes never grow after starting, and employees can reduce scope, if needed, to meet the deadline. Similarly, face-to-face presentations can stifle deep thinking, as they force instant reactions. Written pitches give employees time to process ideas before responding thoughtfully.

Rethinking these common practices encourages clarity and lowers stress while retaining accountability.

Examples

• Projects at Basecamp retain their scope throughout, avoiding mid-course changes.
• New concepts are shared in written form rather than last-minute presentations.
• Employees are encouraged to "sleep on it" before giving feedback.

7. Embrace Calculated, Not Reckless, Risks

Taking measured risks avoids paralysis and chaos, pushing progress while maintaining stability.

At Basecamp, risks are taken selectively. For instance, raising prices for new customers carried uncertainty, but they avoided jeopardizing existing customer satisfaction. Reckless risks—like major decisions with no fail-safes—cause unnecessary chaos. Paradoxically, hesitating to take small risks also causes organizational stagnation and stress.

Businesses can avoid indecision by acting with thoughtful experimentation rather than endless debate.

Examples

• Pricing changes applied only to new customers to avoid alarming loyal clients.
• Avoid exhaustive surveys and testing that delay launches.
• Learn in real-world conditions rather than before-market probabilities.

8. Treat Complaints with Care

When customers complain, how you respond sets the tone. The way you handle even minor issues can calm or escalate tension.

Taking customer concerns seriously earns respect. A dismissive tone can frustrate the customer further, escalating conflict unnecessarily. Responding with care, even for small problems, wins trust. For example, as hotel managers know, highly responsive service makes guests likely to forgive and move past issues.

Adopting an empathetic approach with customers leads to better relationships and calmer interactions overall.

Examples

• Prioritize complaints quickly to satisfy upset clients.
• Apologize emphatically even for minor problems.
• Offer actionable solutions swiftly, securing goodwill.

9. Leaders Set the Tone for Balance

Leaders’ behavior signals the real expectations to employees. If you want balance for your team, start by modeling it yourself.

Even if leaders tell employees to take time off or avoid overwork, their actions will speak louder than words. If managers take vacations, leave work on time, and enjoy off-hours, it signals employees to do the same without fear. Real-life adherence to boundaries outweighs company rhetoric.

A work-life balance culture programmed from the top trickles down successfully.

Examples

• Basecamp founders foster balance by never glorifying overwork.
• Leaders who refrain from sending late-night emails reduce the pressure on everyone.
• Demonstrating flexibility sends implicit encouragement to all team members.

Takeaways

1. Guard your time like a resource. Proactively minimize disruptions to your day by switching to asynchronous communication and refusing unnecessary meetings.
2. Stop glorifying overwork. Set clear boundaries in your work schedule and commit to an achievable amount of focused time each day.
3. Lead by example. If you’re in a position of authority, prioritize your own balance to show colleagues it’s valued in your workplace.