À la manière de 37signals
/SKILLCréez des produits épurés et affirmés en vous inspirant de la philosophie de 37signals telle qu'elle est exposée dans *Getting Real*, *Rework* et *Shape Up*.
name: 37signals-way
description: 'Build lean, opinionated products using the 37signals philosophy from Getting Real, Rework, and Shape Up. Use when the user mentions "Getting Real", "Rework", "Shape Up", "37signals", "Basecamp method", "six-week cycles", "fixed time variable scope", "appetite vs estimates", "betting table", "breadboarding", "fat marker sketch", "build less", "underdo the competition", or "opinionated software". Also trigger when cutting scope to ship faster, running small teams, avoiding long-term roadmaps, or eliminating meetings. Covers shaping, betting, building, and the art of saying no. For MVP validation, see lean-startup. For design sprints, see design-sprint.'
license: MIT
metadata:
author: wondelai
version: "1.1.0"
The 37signals Product Development Framework
A system for building profitable software without bloat, bureaucracy, or burnout, distilled from three books: Getting Real (build less), Rework (say no by default), and Shape Up (fix time, flex scope). Use it to shape work, bet on six-week cycles, run small autonomous teams, and ship on a predictable cadence.
Core Principle
Build less. The best products do fewer things exceptionally well — simplicity is the destination, not the starting point. Traditional development adds; the 37signals way subtracts: build half a product (not a half-assed product), say no by default, fix the time and flex the scope. Constraints are what make great work possible — six weeks, three people, and a shaped pitch force you to find the essential version.
Scoring
Goal: 10/10. Rate product plans, feature scopes, and team processes 0-10 against these principles. Report the current score and the specific changes needed to reach 10/10.
- 9-10: Fixed-time cycles, shaped pitches, small teams, no backlog, opinionated defaults, clear copy
- 7-8: Mostly shaped work and small teams, but some scope creep or process overhead
- 5-6: Some shaping happens, but backlogs persist, teams are too large, or preferences replace decisions
- 3-4: Heavy process (standups, sprints, story points) with occasional simplicity efforts
- 0-2: Feature factory: long-term roadmaps, large teams, estimation rituals, no shaping
1. Build Less, Underdo the Competition
Core concept: Win through deliberate omission — fewer features, fewer preferences, fewer moving parts, each done better than competitors do theirs. Build software you need yourself and solve problems you understand deeply.
Why it works: Every feature carries maintenance, cognitive, and opportunity costs forever, usually for a fraction of users. Building less keeps the product focused, the codebase manageable, and the team small.
Key insights:
- Half a product beats a half-assed product — do a few things well, not many things poorly
- Be a curator, not a hoarder: say no to good ideas so the great ones can breathe
- Make tiny decisions — big ones are hard to make and hard to reverse; small ones build momentum
- Underdo the competition: let them build the Swiss Army knife while you build the steak knife
- Focus on what won't change — speed, simplicity, reliability, ease of use
Product applications:
| Context | Application | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Feature prioritization | Default answer is no | Reporting dashboard requested → ship CSV export covering 90% of use cases |
| MVP scoping | Cut until it hurts, then cut more | Drop user accounts for v1; use email magic links |
| Competitive strategy | Underdo, don't outdo | Competitor has 50 integrations; ship 3 that work flawlessly |
Ethical boundary: Cut complexity, not accessibility or safety — "less" means focused, not neglectful.
2. Shaping the Work
Core concept: Before work reaches a team, a senior person who bridges product and technical worlds makes it rough (room to maneuver), solved (main elements figured out), and bounded (scope limited by appetite).
Why it works: Raw ideas waste team time; detailed specs turn teams into ticket-takers. Shaping removes the biggest unknowns while leaving design freedom, and appetite ("how much time is this worth?") replaces estimation ("how long will this take?") — bounded investment instead of open-ended commitment.
Key insights:
- A shaped pitch has five elements: problem, appetite, solution, rabbit holes, no-gos
- Breadboard flows as places, affordances, and connections — structure without visual design
- Fat marker sketches keep abstraction high; wireframes invite pixel-level feedback before the concept is validated
- Rabbit holes (scope-blowing risks) get addressed in the pitch, not during the build
- No-gos make boundaries visible, preventing scope creep before it starts
Product applications:
| Context | Application | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Feature design | Breadboard before mockup | "Invite teammate": |
