[feffe]

I think a mindset that could work is to accept software as done. This is hard but for foundational stuff it could work well. Only fix bugs in such software. Try to set a scope what the software should do, build it, then do maintenance on it. Supersede it entirely to add new functionality.

That's my armchair take on it.

[seoaeu]

Adding features to existing software is much cheaper than writing entirely new software (not to mention the cost to switch!) At the same time, new features in low level software can unlock substantial value. Say a new API that speeds up your app by 1% or cuts down on further development time by a small fraction.