250 years old, but still essential business knowledge
Posted 11 July 2007 at 8:34AM by Simon Dickson in Business blogging
With only a handful of employees, Chicago-based web development company 37signals have developed a first-rate reputation in the 'web 2.0' world. Their online applications, such as project management tool Basecamp, have a devoted following in the technology field and wider. They are rightly seen as cutting-edge, preaching new ways of working and delivering great tools for doing so. So when founder and chief executive Jason Fried reveals that his favourite business book is almost exactly 250 years old, you have to know more.
'The Way To Wealth' was written by Benjamin Franklin, helpfully described by Wikipedia as an 'author, political theorist, politician, printer, scientist, inventor, civic activist, and diplomat.' Published in 1758, it's effectively a 'best of' collection from Franklin's annual publication, Poor Richard's Almanack. 'This pocket-size book takes less than a half-hour to read,' said the Washington Post in 2004, 'but will give you a lifetime of financial wisdom.'
Countless everyday sayings - 'time is money', or 'early to bed, and early to rise, makes a man healthy, wealthy and wise' - trace their origins back to these few pages. Franklin clearly wouldn't have thought much of modern concepts like work-life balance, but in terms of running a business, much of his advice is as relevant today as it was two and a half centuries ago. Which is presumably why he features on the American hundred dollar bill. It's all about the Benjamins, baby.
You can buy a copy of 'The Way To Wealth' for less than a fiver at Amazon; but of course, because it's well out of copyright, you can download it free of charge - a frugal approach of which Franklin would surely have approved.
Tags: 37signals, benjamin franklin, business books, copyright
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