[mindcrime]

If you tell someone to hack their life by gathering statistics, that's cool and nifty. If you tell someone that the Personal Software Process requires you to gather data on time, defects and estimates of software development, you'll get a lecture about maintaining flow and the evils of high ceremony and the SEI.

That is quite possibly the single most brilliant thing I have ever read on HN. And that's saying something considering the people who post here. Maybe it's not so much "brilliant" as just "timely" but that really hits home.

It's amazing how a little bit of wording can completely change the way we view something. It's one of those things I - and probably most of us - appreciate intellectually... but when it's so glaringly pointed out, it's like somebody pulling the wool from over your eyes. Or like seeing The Matrix, whatever. Thanks for sharing!

[jacques_chester]

Business punks know this, which is why they stampede from buzzword to buzzword, regardless of its meaning. It's just that Google juice has given geeks a similar incentive.

edit: and if that was the most brilliant thing you've read on HN, to quote the Slashdot meme, you must be new here :D

[mindcrime]

Hehehe, no, not new at all. And like I said, maybe it was just the timing... but that was an excellent example of the power of words. Which, strangely enough is something I enjoy studying, even outside of this context. Your example above just struck a chord with me for some reason.