Ya'll about ready for another silly analogy? I sure am....
I work on the 6th floor and recently decided to start taking the stairs. Mostly because I've let myself go and I really need to drop a few pounds and those stairs are a bit of a hard slog. But it's worth it. It's funny how much of a better understanding of the building layout I get by just putting in the extra effort and going up the stairs. The stairwell itself is pretty bland but I see extra doors, and I now know were many of doors could lead.
So the analogy... Taking the stairs is a bit like the whole software craftsmanship thing. Sure I could just take the prescribed route, the default stack so to speak, and as with the stairs I'd probably get where I was going for a lot of the time. But you know what? I'd not know much more than the average person. What if that lift was over capacity, out of order or just smelling of urine - I'd be able to manage just fine without getting stranded on a random floor wondering what to do next, if that door I never tried went were I wanted. Imagine the stress involved if I was already late for a meeting. Crickey!
So I put the extra effort in to understand things, and it's already given me a better perspective on things. It's shown me other options, the ability to decide if the what I am doing is a good approach or perhaps there is a quicker, better, healthier route.
How does that grab you?
I really need to get off this analogy trip I'm on FFS!