No. 349 | September 11, 2026
Welcome to Friday Five, a short collection of ideas to take into your weekend.
This week’s themes: controlling yourself, eliminating what’s unnecessary, and doing fewer things better.
If this resonates, forward it to a friend. Most readers discover Friday Five because someone they trust shared it with them.
Music of the Week
“There were holes in the music, there was always space. I always believed that it’s not what you say, but what you don’t say.” — George Porter Jr.
The Meters came together in New Orleans in the 1960s. Their music is simple, giving each instrument room to express itself.
Start with “Cissy Strut,” “Just Kissed My Baby,” and “Ain’t No Use.”
Quotes of the Week
“We are more often frightened than hurt, and we suffer more in imagination than in reality.” — Seneca
“I learned that courage was not the absence of fear, but the triumph over it.” — Nelson Mandela
“Courage is resistance to fear, mastery of fear, not absence of fear.” — Mark Twain
Article of the Week
“Do right for the company. Do right for society. You can’t prosper unless the community around you prospers.” — Ed Stack
Stay open to change. Customers evolve, customer service has to evolve with them, and relentless improvement never goes out of style.
Ed Stack’s story is a reminder that enduring companies never reach a finish line. They keep adapting.
For more on Dick’s Sporting Goods and the enduring principles in Ed Stack’s It’s How We Play the Game, read:
📝 Relentless Improvement: Why Dick’s Sporting Goods Keeps Winning
Podcast of the Week
“You’re better off with a kick-ass half than a half-assed whole.” — Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson
David Heinemeier Hansson (DHH), creator of Ruby on Rails and co-founder of 37signals, has spent 25 years building a business around one goal: no one gets to tell him what to do.
DHH joined David Senra to talk about that goal, why he doesn’t trust himself with unlimited resources, why he took money from Jeff Bezos, his marketing strategy, and building products he wants to use.
For more on DHH, constraints, independence, and building a business you control, listen:
🎙️ DHH: How to Build a Profitable Company Without Losing Control
Book of the Week
“If you can’t fit everything you want to do within 40 hours per week, you need to get better at picking what to do, not work longer hours.” — Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson
It Doesn’t Have to Be Crazy at Work makes the case for building a calm company in a business culture that celebrates anxiety, chaos, and overwork.
The book argues for reasonable workloads, less waste, fewer distractions, and working on fewer things at once.
Practical lessons I’ll take with me:
- A calm company creates the conditions for better work.
- Long work hours aren’t a badge of honor.
- Productivity depends on protecting uninterrupted time and eliminating unnecessary work.
- Get better at choosing what matters instead of simply working longer.
For more on working differently, read:
Enjoyed Friday Five? Hit reply and tell me what stood out, or forward it to someone who’d enjoy it.
You can also follow along on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and YouTube.
Thanks for reading Friday Five. Subscribe to receive a new collection of ideas every Friday.
