| This sounds like torture (as written). Of course, working in a legacy codebase is also torture. Software development is a hyper-rational endeavor, so we don't often talk about feelings. This article also does not talk much about feelings. Reading between the lines, it looks like reverting the code is supposed to affect how you feel about the work. Knowing that failure is an explicit option can help to set an expectation; however, without a mature understanding of failure, that expectation may just be misery. With a mature understanding of failure, the possibility of a forced rollback should help you "let go" of those changes. It's like starting a day of painting or drawing with one that you force yourself to throw away; or a writing session with a silly page. ---- If someone thinks that they are giving you good advice, but it sounds terrible, then maybe they are expecting you to do some more work to realize the value of that advice. If you are giving someone advice and they push back, maybe you are implying some extra work or expectations that you have not actually said out loud. Advice is plagued by the tacit knowledge problem. |
It makes intuitive sense to me that this would be true in complex domains (e.g. legacy code) where you really need to find the right solution, even if it takes a bit longer. Our first ideas are rarely our best ideas, and it's easy to get too attached to your first solution and try to tweak it into shape when it would be better just to start fresh.
[1]: https://www.hytradboi.com/2025/03580e19-4646-4fba-91c3-17eab...