
March 19, 2020
How To Work Remotely | Livestream Q&A with Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson
Key Takeaways
- The silver lining in the coronavirus: Companies and employees will reevaluate the way they work
- “This is one of those unlucky, lucky moments when we get a chance to rethink the way we’re working”– Jason Fried
- After the coronavirus pandemic ends, lots of businesses will move into a hybrid mode–Have both office workers and remote workers
- “This is one of those unlucky, lucky moments when we get a chance to rethink the way we’re working”– Jason Fried
- “If work can be done at a computer, it can be done anywhere you can put a computer” – Jason Fried
- You shouldn’t need to look over an employee’s shoulder to see if they’re working or not–You should be able to give them work and trust them to do it
- “The lack of trust is a projection of someone’s own insecurities as a manager” – DHH
- Hierarchy of communication importance (if it doesn’t work, move to the next level):
- 1) Write it out (text, email, slack)
- 2) Talk it out (phone call)
- 3) Meet Up (talk in person)
- Level the playing field when it comes to meetings–Have everyone dial-in individually
- Instead of having a remote worker dial-in into a conference room of 4 people, have everybody dial-in from their desk. That way everyone is one the same level.
- At Basecamp, there are no shared calendars, that way no one can easily take someone’s time
- “When it’s really easy to take up someone’s time, you end up taking more of it” – Jason Fried
- If you treat your employees badly during these hard times, as soon as things get better, your workers will leave the company to work elsewhere
Intro
- Co-host: David Heinemeier Hansson (@dhh) is a Danish programmer, racing driver and the creator of the popular Ruby on Rails web development framework and a partner at the web-based software development firm Basecamp
- Co-host: Jason Fried (@jasonfried) is the co-founder and CEO of Basecamp. He’s also the co-author of:
Coronavirus’ Impact on Remote Work
- The silver lining in the coronavirus: Companies and employees will reevaluate the way they work
- “This is one of those unlucky, lucky moments when we get a chance to rethink the way we’re working”– Jason Fried
- After the coronavirus pandemic ends, lots of businesses will move into a hybrid mode–Have both office workers and remote workers
- “This is one of those unlucky, lucky moments when we get a chance to rethink the way we’re working”– Jason Fried
- “If you’re a manager, now’s a good time to be a leader” – DHH
- Step up to the plate and set a good example for your team
Best Practices For Moving Your Team To Remote Work
- Everyone can work remotely, it’s a skill anyone can learn
- It will take some time to adapt to working remotely in the beginning, but you can get better
- Give people time to set up their home office and adjust to the new lifestyle
- It will take some time to adapt to working remotely in the beginning, but you can get better
- Reading Jason and DHH’s book Remote: Office Not Required, is a good place to start
- Have employees read blog articles about remote work and discuss what they think would work best for the team
- Emphasize good writing–Teach employees how to write clearly and concisely
- Respect your coworkers’ time–You can send them a message but don’t expect an immediate response
- Before you ask for help, try to figure out the problem by yourself
- Instant messaging doesn’t mean instant responses–Tell people “no rush, get back to me when you have a chance”
How Do You Make Remote Workers Not Feel Left Out From Office Events?
- You can’t all connect physically, but you can connect virtually
- Basecamp has an optional feature that asks employees every Monday what they did over the weekend (non-work related answers only) so that any employee from around the world can join the conversation if they want to connect or talk with someone
- Level the playing field when it comes to meetings–Have everyone dial-in individually
- Instead of having a remote worker dial-in into a conference room of 4 people, have every individual dial-in from their desk. That way everyone is one the same level.
- Have one central source of truth–You don’t want to say different things in different places
- Whenever Jason has a company announcement to make, it won’t share it in the company’s HQ. Instead, he’ll write up a memo and share it will all of the employees at the same time.
How Do You Trust Remote Workers?
- You should vet how truthful and honest a person is during the hiring process
- Basecamps spends MONTHS interviewing candidates
- You shouldn’t need to look over an employee’s shoulder to see if they’re working or not–You should be able to give them work and trust them to do it
- If you trust your employees, they’ll trust you–You must give to get
- “The lack of trust is a projection of someone’s own insecurities as a manager” – DHH
- If you trust your employees, they’ll trust you–You must give to get
Dealing With Meetings of 20+ People?
- In almost every meeting, there are several people who shouldn’t be there
- Address the root of the problem: Limit the number of people who are involved in meetings
- Try not to have more than 5 people in a meeting, the best meeting usually have only 3 people
- If someone is checking their phone during the meeting or not interested in the meeting’s content, they shouldn’t be in there
- Try not to have more than 5 people in a meeting, the best meeting usually have only 3 people
- Address the root of the problem: Limit the number of people who are involved in meetings
- Minimize meetings
- Hierarchy of communication importance (if it doesn’t work, move to the next level):
- 1) Write it out (text, email, slack)
- 2) Talk it out (phone call)
- 3) Meet Up (talk in person)
- Hierarchy of communication importance (if it doesn’t work, move to the next level):
Balancing Team Work With Solo Work
- At Basecamp, there are no shared calendars, that way no one can easily take someone’s time
- If most of the time on your calendar is blocked off by someone else, that’s a problem
- If someone wants your time, they should negotiate for it
- “When it’s really easy to take up someone’s time, you end up taking more of it” – Jason Fried
- “Shared calendars are some of the worst inventions made by software companies in the past 20 or 30 years”
- “When it’s really easy to take up someone’s time, you end up taking more of it” – Jason Fried
- If someone wants your time, they should negotiate for it
- If most of the time on your calendar is blocked off by someone else, that’s a problem
How Do You Prioritize Tasks?
- This is the main job of a manager: to identify which takes have the highest priority
- Basecamp has a free book about this topic, it’s called Shape Up
- When working on a new project, Basecamp focuses on how much time it will take to complete rather than how much money
Can Everyone Work Remotely?
- For the most part yes, with the exception of retail workers, people in the restaurant industry, and blue-collar jobs
- “If work can be done at a computer, it can be done anywhere you can put a computer” – Jason Fried
- It doesn’t matter what desk you’re sitting at or what country you’re living in
- Lots of introverts prefer to work remotely
How Do You Handle Large Layoffs?
- Be empathetic with people and don’t give them false hope
- Do the layoff in person and have a document ready with helpful information
- Unless the employee has been abusive or is physically dangerous, you don’t need to have security escort them out
- Do the layoff in person and have a document ready with helpful information
How To Adjust When Team Members Are Sick
- When employees are sick, you must relax your project expectations
- Basecamp was planning on releasing their new product Hey in April, but is pushing the release to a later date because it wants employees to focus on their health right now
- Because of the virus, for the next couple weeks all your full-time workers will become part-time workers
- People need to take care of themselves and their family
- Most project deadlines are made-up, you have the power to change them
How To Take Care Of Your Team’s Emotional Well-Being During This Crisis
- If you treat your employees badly during these hard times, as soon as things get better, your workers will leave the company to work somewhere else
- Push back deadlines and scale down your ambition with projects
- Understand most of your employees will only be able to work part-time since they have to care for their family
- For the next few weeks, employers are not going to get 100% effort from your workers–They need to adjust their expectations accordingly
- Continue to pay your employees if you can
- Don’t lie to your employees during this time
Building Culture In A Remote Organization
- Culture is the byproduct of consistent behavior
- It isn’t words on a wall, it’s how people act
- It’s how you treat people and work with them
- It isn’t words on a wall, it’s how people act
- Basecamp has a 5 X 12 meeting: Jason and David video chat with 5 random people every month and talk for an hour about anything except work
- It’s meant to mimic common conversations that would normally occur in an office
- “You can really make sure people know one another even if they don’t see each other” – Jason Fried
- It’s meant to mimic common conversations that would normally occur in an office
- To learn more about culture and how Basecamp built their remote organization, read their book It Doesn’t Have to Be Crazy at Work
Managing Boredom, Anxiety & Isolation While Working Remotely
- Tell your manager how you’re feeling
- In normal times: Get out of the house, take a walk, grab a coffee
- Do something that breaks the daily routine
- Go to a co-working space, coffee shop, or public library
Additional Notes
- How Do You Have A Brainstorm Session Remotely?
- Have people brainstorm ideas individually and then have a group discussion and bounce ideas off one another
- If your company is still forcing you to come to the office even though it’s possible for you to work from home, consider:
- Educating your boss about the seriousness of the matter and the importance of social distancing
- Educating them about how people can work from home
- Leaking the news to an investigative journalist
- Make sure you don’t use your company email and leak the information anonymously so that you aren’t fired
- David loves using GitHub for pull-request reviews
- Don’t try to get the most out of your employees, aim to get the best out of them
- To get the best out of people:
- Create a positive environment
- Give people time to do deep work (at least 3 hours a day)
- Treat people well (pay, benefits, vacation days)
- To get the best out of people:
- Tools needed for working remotely: Basecamp, Zoom, and a laptop with a webcam