7 rules for getting things done
The content below is a concise summary of the 7 Rules. For the full text, see post.md. For the previous version, see the December 2019 edition.
The original 5 Rules were published in December 2019. This update adds two new rules, reorders the original five, and refines the language throughout.
New rules:
- We, Not I — The original rules were silent on ego and collaboration. In practice, ego — individual and organizational — is the single most common reason teams fail to execute the other rules. Silos are just ego with an org chart.
- Own the Outcome — "Wait for No One" was always about starting. But starting without accountability is just motion. This rule closes the loop: when you act, the result is yours.
Reordered: The rules now follow a deliberate progression — WHY → Mindset → Discipline → Method → Culture → Action → Accountability — where each rule is the precondition for the next. "Nothing is Sacred" moved up to #2 (Mindset) and "Commit and Iterate" moved to #4 (Method) to reflect that you need the right mindset before you can commit to a direction.
- Delight the Customer
- Nothing is Sacred
- Less is More
- Commit and Iterate
- We, Not I
- Wait for No One
- Own the Outcome
WHY → Mindset → Discipline → Method → Culture → Action → Accountability.
Get closer than ever to your customers. So close, in fact, that you tell them what they need before they realize it themselves.
— Steve Jobs
Don't do what customers ask — solve what they actually need. The real problem is almost always buried behind a dozen other problems your customer won't pay for but that you have to solve to get there. Use the 5 Whys, build empathy, and seek out people who disagree with your conclusions. The rest is on you, your intuition, and your willingness to commit and iterate.
Sacred cows make the best hamburger.
— Mark Twain
Act on data, not intuition. If it isn't working, it goes, no matter how much you love it. The leading indicator of failure is disengagement, not declining revenue; by the time sales drop, it's usually too late to change course. Don't be afraid to throw your solution out the window when customers aren't embracing it.
Je n'ai pas fait celle-ci plus longue que parce que je n'ai pas eu le loisir de la faire plus courte.
I have made this longer than usual because I have not had time to make it shorter.
— Blaise Pascal
Every line of code is a liability, every feature you don't ship is a problem you don't have, and every word you cut makes the ones that remain stronger. Doing less is harder than doing more. It requires ruthless focus and the willingness to say no repeatedly, without apology. Focus is about saying no.
Art is never finished, only abandoned.
— Leonardo da Vinci
Make the decision, commit, then iterate relentlessly. Don't let perfect be the enemy of good enough, but never stop chasing perfection. When a team knows iteration is required — not just allowed — commitment happens faster and the pressure to be right the first time disappears. If it was worth doing, it's worth refining.
None of us is as smart as all of us.
— Ken Blanchard
Ego is the enemy of great work. Seek feedback aggressively, especially the kind that stings, and be deeply suspicious of praise that isn't backed by data. Silos are just ego with an org chart. Your win is my win. Your problem is my problem.
If you spend too much time thinking about a thing, you'll never get it done.
— Bruce Lee
You are fully empowered to solve any problem in front of you. Don't wait for permission, consensus, or an invitation; just do it. No one will ever be upset with you for getting something done vs. nothing, especially at a startup.
You can't build a reputation on what you are going to do.
— Henry Ford
Speed without accountability is just motion. When you act, the result is yours, all of it, including what goes wrong. Ownership isn't a title or an assignment; it's a decision you make the moment you see something that needs doing. The customer doesn't care who's responsible. They care whether it gets done.
That's it. Now for the hard part, execution. Good Luck, we're all counting on you.
These rules are written and maintained by Erik Peterson, but they wouldn't be what they are today without the contributions of so many others. Specifically, the following individuals have directly contributed to the rules:
This repository's content is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License (CC BY-SA 4.0). See LICENSE for the full legal text.
Copyright © 2009–2026 Erik Peterson.