Ask HN: Name one idea that changed your life
&quot;Premature optimization is the root of all evil&quot;<p>More and more, I&#x27;m realizing this applies more broadly than just for code. Abstraction is a form of optimization and shouldn&#x27;t be done before the space has been properly explored to know what abstractions should be built. Standardization is a form of optimization and shouldn&#x27;t be proposed until there&#x27;s a body of evidence to support what&#x27;s being standardized.<p>Failure to validate a product before building it? Premature optimization.<p>Build infrastructure without understanding the use case?  Premature optimization.<p>Build tools before using them for your end product&#x2F;project? Premature optimization.<p>This advice comes in different forms: &quot;Progress over perfection&quot;, &quot;Iteration quickly&quot;, &quot;Move fast and break things&quot;, &quot;Don&#x27;t let perfection be the enemy of good enough&quot;, etc. but I find the umbrella statement of not prematurely optimizing to encompass them all.