> All anyone cares about is a) are you easy to work with, and do you b) get things done to contribute to profitability.
This gets to the crux of the matter. I think we all here have an intuitive sense that being a bit of a perfectionist and regularly chasing a few rabbits down holes can lead to better long-term results. But it's very hard to quantify, certainly it's impossible to quantify objectively; all you can do is be a good salesman about it.
There is another path though—put your money where your mouth is. Start your own business based on your chosen principles and standards of software engineering. It will certainly bring you joy and if your instincts are right then it could even become a competitive advantage as your competitors drown under mountains of technical debt while you nip it in the bud at the first sign of trouble.
This gets to the crux of the matter. I think we all here have an intuitive sense that being a bit of a perfectionist and regularly chasing a few rabbits down holes can lead to better long-term results. But it's very hard to quantify, certainly it's impossible to quantify objectively; all you can do is be a good salesman about it.
There is another path though—put your money where your mouth is. Start your own business based on your chosen principles and standards of software engineering. It will certainly bring you joy and if your instincts are right then it could even become a competitive advantage as your competitors drown under mountains of technical debt while you nip it in the bud at the first sign of trouble.