
Ask HN: How do you deal with perfectionism related to programming? - TechHawk
There is one thing that has held me back the most while progressing in my programming endeavors: perfectionism. It has been an enormous energy drain. I believe that programmers are especially susceptible to it since programming is a very creative but at the same time logical task with many different ways of approaching problems in a huge ecosystem. In the last few years I got to know my perfectionistic side, where it comes from and what is supportive in changing my relationship with it. I always say that perfectionism is a fear of vulnerability. I think it is a topic that is not addressed enough and that many people have challenges with. What are your experiences with perfectionism? How do you handle it? Lets support each other!
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iotscale
I try to write a first prototype without any regards to best practices. When
I'm doing a rewrite (of a prototype, not a full product), by then I already
have the structure in my mind and perfectionism then can't get in the way. For
example I don't design unnecessarily complex sub systems just to get the
flexibility I don't need.

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TechHawk
Thats a good tactic, I have done similar things in the past by using mind maps
to first create an overview which then created more flow and less
overthinking.

"Unnecessarily complex sub systems just to get the flexibility I don't need."
I would be lying if I said that I am not familiar with this... :)

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dozzie
One strategy is to leave the thing at hand for few weeks. This way you can
forget most of the trivial, unimportant things that were bothering you before.

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TechHawk
Great point! This does require quiet some discipline though :)

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dozzie
Not really. Having several other opened projects is enough.

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TechHawk
Yes, in that case definitely...

