Doing Hard Things

When do you say enough is enough and plot a new course?

One of our developers reached this point yesterday when he was developing a new user interface for managing course exams. He was using a third-party control and had spent a ton of time getting it to handle multiple different types of data – questions, answers, and question narratives. It became apparent that the control’s way of managing data was not going to support our needs.

So, he decided to abandon that approach and adopt a simpler, more streamlined approach, using proven resources and approaches.

Sometimes you just have to muddle through these hard things. You have to slog through the mud of unknowns, uncertainties and untested solutions. People put their necks on the line when doing this and I’m grateful when they do. It shows that they are able to take risks and in spite of adversity and apparent lack of success, learn and go on. Also, when it is done with quiet integrity, self assurance, and not a bunch of ego being involved, it is a beautify thing to see. Thank you, Chris.

This reminds me of the minimalist principle and its application to software development – do just enough to meet the requirements and omit needless functionality and code.

This is my moment of Zen for today.