# Most controversial rules in Arkency

In random order:

1. Don't **comment** the code.
0. Don't use **branches**. Commit to master, push often, don't break stuff.
0. Let **developers manage** the project.
0. No **refactoring** sprints. Always refactor.
0. Don't send **private messages**. Use channels.
0. Don't **@mention** people unless it's really worth it.
0. **Estimations** are often a waste of time, energy and trust.
0. **Meetings** are often a waste of time, energy and momentum. Especially true if they're large, compulsory, regularly scheduled or not focused.
0. Got an **idea**? Ship it and prove it instead of asking for a blessing. Expect someone's _revert of indignation_ in worst case. _Better to ask for forgiveness than permission_.
0. Proactively and continually communicate your progress instead of **asking questions** only when stuck. _Tell, don't ask_.
0. Avoid **communication proxies**.
0. Share communication with the whole team.
0. Share **accesses** with the whole team. Everyone should be able to do anything without asking others.
0. Best **story size** is 1.
0. There should be **one backlog**.
0. Don't attach certain people to certain types of tasks. Always pick the **first task from the top** of a prioritized backlog. Always have 1 ticket assigned.
0. Don't expect anyone to read or respond to your message immediately.
0. Avoid **blocking** (other people to wait on you - or - yourself to wait on others).

## These guidelines happen to also be the:

* key reasons why people love to work _in_ Arkency 💚
* key reasons why people love to work _with_ Arkency 💚
* key ingredients that facilitate remote & async work 

## Wait, but...

Of course most of these rules have their own:

* **rationale** 
* **assumptions** - we're a small, cohesive team of experienced & responsible engineers
* **exceptions** - our internal weekly call is large and regular and unfocused - but it's voluntary and everyone loves it
* **alternatives** - namely what do we do instead, for example: record & summarize meetings to let others skip them and remain on the same page
* **costs** - which we still choose to pay

## Should we elaborate?

Do you find any of these _rules_ particularly exciting, outraging or confusing? **Let us know** via email or twitter (you can reply to [this tweet](https://twitter.com/arkency/status/1254784379190038534)). We appreciate your input.

We'd like to keep **elaborating** on these points in coming blogposts. If you wanna **stay in the loop** [subscribe to our newsletter](https://arkency.com/newsletter/). We believe these guidelines are very valuable and we'd like our prospective clients and teammates to be aware of the way we like to work. 

We already **covered** most of these topics in [The Book](https://arkency.dpdcart.com/product/71091) or in our [26 other blogposts about async/remote](https://blog.arkency.com/tags/async-remote/).