Never apologize for using sharp tools

When faced with a problem, you can apply tools you’ve mastered elsewhere. Using power tools is the fastest way to free a stuck door. A Gantt chart can help organize your wedding preparation. And personal financial decisions can be made much clearer by applying a little bit of your Excel chops.

Some people will admonish you for perceived “overkill”: we’ve always done it that way, we don’t need that, you’re overcomplicating things, etc. Usually, those are people who are not familiar with the particular tool or approach you’re bringing to the table. You don’t need to apologize for using sharp tools. The quote “Don’t take criticism from someone you wouldn’t take advice from.” applies here too: when you bring in a tool to help, don’t take criticism from people that have no experience using said tool.

Can you overdo it? Sure. A-dato LYNX is a fantastic tool for planning software projects that I’m sure to write more about in the future. It’s extremely powerful in doing capacity planning for complex projects. But bringing it to your volunteer stint at the yearly town festival is using the wrong tool for the job. The core strength of LYNX is capacity planning, and capacity for volunteers is always an afterthought to almost everything else in life, making it very unpredictable. Using LYNX makes your job harder, with little benefit. You should also generally avoid learning new tools before doing something new: use what you know. Experimentation & learning are best left to areas without deadlines.

These soldiers (source unknown) are cutting onions while wearing their gas masks. They’re perfectly able to cut onions without them. Being a WW2 soldier, they’re certainly tough enough to cut onions without PPE; I’m sure they would manage. But it’s a hell of a lot more convenient when your gas mask is close anyway.

If you can make your work a little faster, a little easier, or a little more convenient, bring the sharper tools. Never apologize for using what you’ve mastered.

P.S. Shoutout to Angela Riggs for inspiring this blog post. Take a look at her art at dandygal.art.