All issues
Ship Notes · SN #06·1 Feb
The real cost of “fix it later”
Shortcuts aren't free — they're borrowed time. Two notes on taking on technical debt without getting buried by it.
1. Tech debt charges interest
A shortcut is a loan. Sometimes worth taking, but the interest is paid in every future change that has to route around the mess. Take debt on purpose, not by accident.
2. Name the debt out loud
Untracked shortcuts become folklore nobody remembers the reason for. Write the trade-off down — a TODO with a why, a ticket, a line in the README. Debt you can see is debt you can actually pay down.
Previous issue
SN #05 — Speed without chaos