6 Rules of Building Tech That Lasts

Great technology doesn't age out in 18 months. It's built with these six principles from day one.

1. Simple beats clever

The cleverest architecture is usually the hardest to maintain. Simple, boring solutions scale better and survive team turnover.

2. Optimize for change, not perfection

You won't get it right the first time. Build systems that are easy to iterate on, not systems that are "done."

3. Documentation is a first-class deliverable

If you can't onboard a new engineer in a week, your docs aren't good enough. Treat them like code: review them, update them, maintain them.

4. Monitoring isn't optional

You can't fix what you can't see. Build observability in from day one. If you don't know when things break, you've already lost.

5. Security and performance are features, not afterthoughts

Bolting them on later is expensive, risky, and often impossible. Treat them as core requirements from sprint zero.

6. Dependencies are liabilities

Every library, framework, and service you add is a bet that it'll be maintained. Choose wisely. Fewer dependencies = fewer future headaches.

**The takeaway:** Tech that lasts isn't about using the latest framework. It's about discipline, clarity, and building for the team that comes after you.