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Refactoring - Putting It All Together - Kent Beck →

How will you know when you are really getting it? You’ll know when you start to calm down. When you feel absolute confidence that no matter how screwed up things are, you can make it better, enough better to keep making progress.

Mostly, though, you’ll know you’re getting it when you can stop with confidence. Stopping is the strongest move. You see a big goal. You begin to move toward that goal, each step small and sure, each step backed. You’re getting close.

That’s when it happens. You run out of gas. Maybe it’s getting late and you are becoming fatigued. Maybe you were wrong in the first place. Whatever the cause, your confidence is gone. You can’t make the next step with certainty. You don’t think you will screw anything up, but you’re not sure.

That’s when you stop. If it isn’t better, walk away. Flush it. Glad to have learned a lesson, pity it didn’t work out. What’s on for tomorrow?