37signals new book is coming out in March 2010 and the cover design is awesome. Actually, I just I love the rules they’ve listed on the back. I went to business school and I thought about going to get my MBA at some point, but after talking to a few very smart people who got their MBAs (and some even got a JD at the same time) I realized it wasn’t for me.
Business school teaches you a lot of rules. They teach you to think strategically, mostly by analyzing cases and trying to think through management decisions. You learn some formulas that can help you plan things and you develop the most kick-ass PowerPoint skills known to man.
You learn “leadership” skills - I put leadership in quotes because most great leaders I know learned to lead by watching great leaders and actually leading, not taking a class. Most people I know who took a class are Bill Lumberghesque managers that people don’t respect much when they’re not in the room.
Anyway, most of business school is bullshit.
That’s why I love the new 37signals book cover design. I am not a 37signals fanboy, either. I don’t use their products because they’ve never fit into my work flow. I only use Ruby on Rails because it’s what we use at work. I think DHH is really annoying when he speaks at events. But they have built a great company with a loyal following by ignoring a lot of the rules that business schools teach.
The rules you learn at business school slow down small companies where the advantage should be speed and direct communication with customers. Business people want to turn everything into a process or force everything to be about setting goals or “hitting numbers.”
Build great products and empower employees and users to market those products - if you can do that, you don’t need a business degree.
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I’m excited about the book as well, Ben. I considered a law degree and a graduate degree in technology, but after evaluating the type of life I wanted and what my goals were, I didn’t think it would be the best fit.
I’m a huge fan of companies like LessEverything and 37Signals and Apple because they march to the beat of their own drummer, make things up as they go, and pump out great products.
What else is important?
ben -
i hear ya on a lot of that.
a few things for thought:
that said. there are many many angles and vcs helping to build and shape small businesses (eventually big?) in our space who have graduate degrees galore, including MBAs.
networks at top business school are incredible.
not all b. schools are the same. also, not all approaches are the same. many programs are evolving rapidly into experience driven tracks. i am especially intrigued with some of the entrepreneurship programs out there - see kellogg.
that said, there’s nothing like experience.