Hey everybody!
We’re just about half way through the month of April so hopefully most of you are about halfway through our book: No Rules Rules
Section 2 aggressively doubles down on the lessons learned in section 1 and as a result, my book is literally brimming with sticky tabs! I can barely see where the book ends and my sticky tabs begin!
What’s your method for making/taking notes from the books you read? Let us know via the book club chat over on Discord!
We’re counting down the days until our end of month book call so, don’t forget to register to attend.
Also, keep an eye out for next week’s email because it will be time to vote for the May book! Man this year is flying past!
BTW - if you haven’t yet started on No Rules Rules - It’s not too late. The book is ~274 pages and the audio version is 9 hours 42 minutes!
You’ve still got a few weeks which is plenty of time to get stuck in!
﹅ Community insights
Reflections and thoughts from members in our Discord Community
“I have started the book and I am happy I am reading just now. We are in the process of building a Tech startup and I definitely want a culture of Freedom and Responsibility. This great information on top of the authentic leadership framework we use (and created for IT teams).”
“I got a recommendation of Erins book first. And without the bookclub I would not have decided to read No rules rules. But I am very positively surprised and I feel that taking Erin Meyer on board was the best he could do for the book.”
● Additional resources
No Rules Rules is all about Netflix's counterintuitive management philosophy. If you enjoyed this theme and want to learn more, here are three other great books for you to check out.
Written by the former SVP of People Operations at Google, this book pulls back the curtain on how Google built its world-famous culture, using data, experimentation, and trust.
Why you’ll love it: Like Netflix, Google rejects conventional HR playbooks. Bock focuses on hiring top talent, building a culture of freedom, and using evidence to guide people decisions — all strong parallels to Hastings’ philosophy.
A deep dive into the hidden ingredients of successful group dynamics, with case studies from Pixar, Navy SEALs, and more.
Why you’ll love it: If No Rules Rules is about tearing down traditional structures, The Culture Code shows what to build instead — psychological safety, purpose, and cohesive teams.
A U.S. Navy captain transforms a submarine crew by shifting from command-and-control leadership to one based on empowerment and trust.
Why you’ll love it: This is a great real-world example of the “freedom and responsibility” principle in a high-stakes environment. It reinforces that radical autonomy can work — even outside Silicon Valley.
Which will you be adding to your reading list? Let us know what you think!
► Our burning questions
Last week we asked you…
Netflix's culture is built on "freedom and responsibility," but could that work in your organisation? Do you think a high-candor, low-control environment would thrive or fail where you work — and why?
Here’s what you said:
“I think that if you feel a meeting is not a good use of your time and you nor the other participants have much to gain from your presence, then no questions asked, you should feel free to leave/decline with recriminations.”
“I find this question interesting as I have worked in a highly regulated industry most of my career (Pharma). Many of the things listed above have been embraced (relaxed dress code, better meeting management, flexible working agreements), but the big stuff that is covered in the book are honestly no-go's. From tight controls of results in clinical trials, to strict spend management dictated by law. There's good reasons for these rules - patient safety, reliability of medical results, ensuring access to medicines isn't subject to bribery and, for most of the non-US world, protecting the public money that funds healthcare systems. Finding areas where controls could be loosened and rules changed is a really interesting problem - one this book has definitely got me thinking about, but I have no answer for right now!”
“I would abolish any rules around working from office or home. But, with the expectation that everyone manages their time and comes to the office to meet their team members as required.”
This week we’re asking…
What’s one rule or policy in your company that you think should be broken? Hastings argues that fewer rules lead to better innovation. What's a rule that might be holding you back?
Let us know by dropping a reply to this email - or better yet - heading over to share these thoughts with the rest of the Bad Assess on Discord!
♦︎ Next book club call
We're so excited to host our next Bad Ass Bookshelf bookclub call to discuss No Rules Rules! Call details below:
Date: Thursday 1st May
Time: 17:00 GMT (12:00 EST / 09:00 PST)
Register for the call here: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/YK_qnF7RSTOV7P5i0FvHcw
Cannot wait to see you all there!
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