[Nursie]

> My dopamine levels [0] skyrocket when I visualize making some component generic, or future proof.

I think I've successfully rewired that impulse in myself now, at least partially. I do get that feeling from imagining great systems, but I also get that dopamine hit from deleting old stuff and simplifying things as much as possible. We can ditch compatibility for API v8? Awesome, I just made my code smaller and we can scrap that entire abstraction layer! The service just lost 20% of its LoC :)

[saalweachter]

Honestly I think this may be a component: besides code shame (my code is bad and I don't want other people to see it) a lot of programmers also feel protective of their code. They want it to last forever, a paean to their skills. Writing simple code to throw away and refactor feels like a failure -- it should be perfect and eternal.

[psahgal]

I totally understand the sentiment of writing elegant code that lasts forever, but I think developers need to manage their expectations a little better.

If you're writing foundational code for an operating system, then yeah, whatever you write is going to stick around for a while. (Which means you need to be a LOT more careful about what you write.)

If you're writing code for a mobile app or website, expect your code to get thrown out in a few months due to shifting requirements. I'm sure the Facebook app has been completely rewritten more than once, since they switched to React Native at one point.

If you're writing a JavaScript library, expect your code to be replaced next week. :D