Editing Open Sourcing the Virtues of a Perl Programmer (section)

=== Why Both Extremes Matter ===

Deficiencies are often easier to recognize because something visibly fails to happen: a bug is not fixed, a module is not maintained, documentation is not written. Excesses can be more dangerous precisely because they can masquerade as excellence. Over-engineering can call itself wisdom; aggression can call itself commitment; bureaucracy can call itself quality. Naming the virtue correctly is therefore only the beginning. The community must also remember the end for which the virtue exists.

Balanced together, Practical Wisdom, Spiritedness, and Good Order form a stable foundation for Perl craftsmanship and community stewardship. Diligence, Patience, and Humility help keep those powers integrated. The goal is not to make Perl programmers less energetic, less ingenious, or less opinionated. It is to direct those strengths toward work and relationships in which people can flourish.