In Praise Of Technical Debt
It just might save your startup
Technical debt isn’t always a bad thing.
I’ve seen it save projects. I’ve also seen high-quality code sink companies, particularly early startups.
The key is to make decisions consciously, rather than out of sloppy habit.
Sometimes you can be a craftsman
Most engineers would agree that there’s nothing more enjoyable than treating software development as craftsmanship.
We want to keep code DRY, write unit tests, refactor old code, and continuously look for better ways to do things… in other words, constantly be raising the bar in terms of quality.
It’s what keeps coding enjoyable in a world where most leaders only care about shipping.
That said, the ability to do this is a luxury, earned through previous successes and paying customers. Refusing to write anything but super high-quality code before you have traction can sink your ship before it leaves the dock.
Sometimes you need to be a cowboy
Yes, “cowboy coding” is a thing, and sometimes it’s the solution.
Most developers haven’t risked their personal capital in a venture with a high probability of…
