I’ve been working on a fairly tricky patch of code, and I am starting to see a pattern in my strategy. Because this part of the program is so delicate, anything I do might break it.
So my general strategy has been to make one small change, test it immediately, and see whether things blow up. If it all still looks good, then I can start from there and make another small change.
But if anything has gone wrong, I undo whatever was the last thing I did. And then I try something else.
It feels kind of like hopping from stone to stone to cross a pond. You slowy proceed across by putting one foot down to test whether there is something solid there.
If the stone supports your weight, you shift to that stone and keep going. Otherwise, you pick up your foot and try another stone.
I suspect that a lot of the progress we make in life actually follows this pattern: step, test, retreat. And then step again.