“Build half a product, not a half-assed product.”

Why it was said

Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson give a chapter of Rework this title. It sits inside their broader case, drawn from building software at 37signals, for cutting scope rather than cutting quality when time and money run short.

What it actually means

Every project runs into the same squeeze: too many features, not enough time. The usual response is to keep everything and do each part a little worse. The authors argue for the opposite. Pick the parts that matter most, make those genuinely good, and leave the rest out entirely. Half a product that works well can be launched, used and improved. A full product where everything is mediocre satisfies nobody and is harder to fix, because the problems are spread across all of it. The line is about where you put the cut: through the feature list, not through the quality bar.

How to use it

1. 1List every feature planned for your next release and cross out half. Put the time you save into the rest.
2. 2Ask of each item: if we shipped without this, would anyone notice in the first month?
3. 3Emre opens a small café in Beşiktaş with six drinks done well instead of a menu of thirty; the longer menu can wait until he knows what customers actually order.