Cause And Effect

Deadlines and a Code Monkey mindset are the most common reasons for writing bad code.

Many (most) are easily intimidated by the thought of missing the deadline. A simple thought “What would my senior think, if I miss my deadline” or “I might get fired if I miss my deadline” instills a fear in one’s mind that the deadline needs to be achieved at any cost and to achieve their target, they tend to compromise the quality of code they write.

But the truth is most people (colleagues/managers/co-workers) expect and want a better code. They expect good code in the given time frame and would at times also defend their timelines, schedule, and requirements with passion, but given another thought isn’t this their job.

Then there is another group who write code just to get the job done and ignorant to the fact the way the code is written and how it would affect others. Such a person is usually called a Code Monkey(jugaadu).

Writing bad code can have an adversely affect the way we write code in the future. It could engrave a mentality of one becoming more and more willing to compromise on code quality and keep on writing bad code.

Looking back, each and every one of us when we started to code, would think about always writing the best code that is ever written, but with time due to various reasons, we tend to go loose on the philosophy and start to compromise.

Bad Code is like an endless cycle, at times it might look like a necessary evil and would work but deep down you know that it would come back to haunt you and when it does, it would give you sleepless nights and bad nightmares (if you manage to get some).