The IRS has a mobile app today because of a conversation in December. @shl had just come out of DOGE, where he wrote publicly about what he found inside the federal government. Most of it was not what people expected. His line was that the government is pretty efficient and could move faster, and that the obstacles were legal and procedural rather than a shortage of talented people. @SamCorcos recruited him to the IRS. Not as a contractor, not as a temporary detailee. As a career employee, A civil servant. At a public event that month, @shl asked the room whether the IRS should have a mobile app. Everyone said yes. Obviously yes. The IRS processes roughly 160 million individual returns a year on a system written in 1960s COBOL, and taxpayer-facing technology there has been a decade behind the private sector for most of living memory. Less than a year later, the app is live. That is the model working exactly as designed. Put builders inside the agency, and let them ship. No statement of work. No eighteen-month procurement. No vendor whose incentive is the renewal. Every agency in the federal government should be operating the same way.

When the things that motivate you also motivate everyone else, you're ultimately trapped and limited. When the things that motivate you aren't the things that motivate everyone else, you're free and clear to pursue whatever the fuck you want, however the fuck you want.

35 years ago I did it all myself. Wrote, built, sold, and released software solo. 25 years ago I did all the design myself. Sketches, then HTML, then CSS. 15 years ago I still did some hands on design, but mostly directed others to implement my vision. 5 years ago I primarily directed others. My "I can do it myself" muscles had atrophied. Today, I feel like I'm back to the beginning. Able to write and design software entirely by myself. And having an elite team of others who can do the same thing is an enormous multipler. Wild how massive advancements can propel you FORWARD by bringing BACK capabilities you lost along the way. Full circle feels more like an arrow.

Many of my favorite Basecamp 5 features are the smallest ones. The features of convenience. The ones that hide until the context is just right, then spring to life, front and center. The little "Hey, something's happening for you right now" reminder/nudge is one of those. Whenever an event you're on is on, or is on in 15 mins or less, you get this little pill at the bottom with a direct link to a Zoom (or whatever service) so you can jump right in. Of course there are other ways to know about events that are coming up, but this is a gentle, "hey, I got you" style reminder that really makes a big difference.

Been working on a real estate deal for a while. Yesterday I was told something was going to take 3-5 days to turn around. I asked why? Answer: Because that's how long it usually takes. Then I asked: What would happen if you called them and told them you need it tomorrow? My attorney said she'd try. So she did. And what do you know? They said they could turn it around in a day. Yet another reminder that the first answer is just a placeholder for "usually". If you settle for that, that's what you'll get. But there's another option on offer: The option you want. And if you don't ask, you don't get. And if you don't do, it won't be done. Everything can be compressed.

Totally agree. “Productive” isn’t a word in most people’s vocab. Tech word. Work word. People have “stuff”, “hassles”, “shit to deal with”. Being more productive is not a category. Tech misses this mark all over the place all the time.

Just cranking out the new fun stuff! Now you can add backgrounds to your Basecamp 5 projects. Here's a project where we keep all relevant customer feedback. Added a background and now when you hit the project and you instantly know exactly where you are. Lots of customization potential here. To add, click the project name to enter the settings view. You'll find the new Wallpaper option right there. Full screen or old school tiled backgrounds, you pick.