This challenge, viz. the confrontation with the programming task, is so unique that this novel experience can teach us a lot about ourselves. It should deepen our understanding of the processes of design and creation, it should give us better control over the task of organizing our thoughts. If it did not do so, to my taste we should no deserve the computer at all! It has allready taught us a few lessons, and the one I have chosen to stress in this talk is the following. We shall do a much better programming job, provided that we approach the task with a full appreciation of its tremenduous difficulty, provided that we stick to modest and elegant programming languages, provided that we respect the intrinsec limitations of the human mind and approach the task as Very Humble Programmers. -- E. W. Dijkstra, The humble programmer

No matter how much you plan you’re likely to get half wrong anyway. So don’t do the ‘paralysis through analysis’ thing. That only slows progress and saps morale. -- 37 Signal, Getting real

Training research shows that if you get speed now you can get quality later. But if you don't get speed you will never get quality in the long run. -- Philip Greenspun

So the mere constraint of staying in regular contact with us will push you to make things happen, because otherwise you'll be embarrassed to tell us that you haven't done anything new since the last time we talked. -- Paul Graham (a talk at Y Combinator, for startup creators).

Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. -- Goethe

Premature optimization is the root of all evil (or at least most of it) in programming. -- Donald Knuth

Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going. ~Jim Ryun

There is only one way to avoid criticism: do nothing, say nothing, and be nothing. –Aristotle

I would rather die of passion than of boredom. –Vincent van Gogh

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away. –Maya Angelou