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The 7 Coffee Principles of Great Developers

 


A Blend Break from The RPG Blend

Today’s coffee is simple.

Colombian medium roast
Whole bean
Ground fresh
Pour-over brew

Coffee Notes: smooth body, light cocoa, a little brightness at the finish.

Nothing complicated. Just good coffee made well.

There are many ways to brew coffee—drip machines, French press, pour-over, AeroPress. Each method produces a slightly different cup.

Whole bean coffee preserves flavor longer, while pre-ground coffee trades freshness for convenience. Grinding the beans just before brewing releases the oils and aromas that give coffee its character.

Developers might argue about tools the same way coffee drinkers debate brewing methods.

But most would agree on one thing:

When the fundamentals are right, the result speaks for itself.

Which brings us to the first sip.

 

First Sip

Before the day fills with stand-ups, production questions, and a flood of Slack messages, there’s a small moment of quiet.

A fresh cup of coffee.
A few minutes before the chaos.

For many developers, that moment is the real start of the day. The code will come later. The meetings will come later.

But for a few minutes, there is just the first sip.

Coffee, like software development, is a craft. And the more you learn about brewing it well, the more you start to see the same principles apply to building good systems.

This Blend Break explores a simple idea:

Good coffee and good software are built on the same foundations.

Before the Chaos

Every developer knows the moment.

The office hasn’t fully started moving yet. Your inbox hasn’t exploded. Production is quiet. The backlog is waiting.

There is a short window where you can think.

That moment is where many of the best ideas appear.

Not during a meeting.
Not in the middle of a release.

But during the quiet minutes between the first sip of coffee and the start of the day.

It turns out that the way we think about coffee can teach us something about how we think about building software.

The Seven Coffee Principles

1. The Grind Matters

Coffee begins with the grind.

Too coarse and the water moves through too quickly.
Too fine and the brew becomes bitter.

The same thing happens in development.

Good systems begin with good preparation:

  • understanding the requirements
  • thinking through the design
  • preparing the right data structures

Rushing past the fundamentals almost always leads to problems later.

Great developers know that the work done before the code is written often determines the quality of the result.

2. Fresh Beans Matter

Coffee loses its flavor quickly once it’s ground.

That’s why many people prefer whole beans. Grinding them right before brewing preserves the oils and flavors that make the cup taste alive.

In software, the equivalent is curiosity.

Developers who stay curious—who keep learning new tools, languages, and patterns—bring freshness to the systems they build.

Even in long-lived platforms like IBM i, fresh thinking matters.

Some of the strongest modern RPG systems today exist because developers were willing to modernize how they think about design, testing, and architecture.

Fresh ideas keep systems healthy.

3. There Is More Than One Way to Brew

Coffee drinkers argue endlessly about brewing methods.

Some prefer a classic drip coffee maker for its consistency.
Others swear by the French press, producing a heavier, richer cup.
The pour-over method allows careful control of the brewing process.
And the AeroPress creates a fast, clean cup with surprising depth.

None of these methods are wrong.

They simply produce different results.

Software development is the same way.

There are many approaches to solving a problem:

  • procedural designs
  • service layers
  • APIs
  • modernized RPG mixed with SQL and services

Strong developers don’t assume there is only one “correct” method.

They understand the strengths of each approach and choose the one that fits the situation.

Good engineering is rarely about rigid rules.

It’s about choosing the right tool for the job.

4. Temperature Matters

Water that is too hot burns the coffee.

Water that is too cool fails to extract the flavor.

Good coffee lives in the middle.

Development teams operate in a similar balance.

Too much pressure and speed creates mistakes.
Too little urgency and nothing moves forward.

Healthy teams maintain the right temperature:

focused, steady progress without unnecessary chaos.

When leaders get that balance right, quality improves naturally.

5. Simplicity Wins

Some coffee drinks involve elaborate recipes, syrups, foam, and decoration.

But many coffee lovers will tell you the same thing:

A simple, well-made cup of coffee is often the best.

The same truth applies to software systems.

Simple designs:

  • are easier to understand
  • easier to maintain
  • easier to improve

On long-lived enterprise platforms like IBM i, simplicity is not just elegance—it is survival.

Many systems still running today exist because someone decades ago chose clarity over cleverness.

6. Consistency Builds Trust

When you walk into a good coffee shop, you expect the same quality every time.

That consistency is what builds loyalty.

Software teams earn trust the same way.

Consistent practices matter:

Users trust systems that behave reliably.

Teams trust developers who produce reliable work.

Consistency may not be glamorous, but it is the foundation of professional software development.

7. Great Results Come From a Blend

Coffee is rarely made from a single bean.

Most great coffees are blends.

Different beans contribute different strengths—body, brightness, depth, aroma.

Together they create something better.

The same is true in development teams.

Great systems are not built by a single type of developer. They come from a blend:

  • experienced engineers
  • new developers bringing fresh ideas
  • architects thinking about long-term design
  • operations teams focused on reliability

When those perspectives come together, the result is stronger than any single contributor.

A Few Notes on Coffee Itself

For those curious about the craft behind the metaphor, a few basics:

Whole Bean vs Ground

Whole beans stay fresh longer. Grinding right before brewing preserves flavor. Pre-ground coffee is convenient but loses aroma and depth more quickly.

Common Brewing Methods

  • Drip Coffee – consistent and simple
  • French Press – richer, fuller body
  • Pour-Over – precise control of brewing
  • AeroPress – fast and clean extraction

None is objectively “best.” Each produces a slightly different experience.

Just like development approaches.

About Blend Breaks

Blend Breaks are short reflections from The RPG Blend — small ideas about development, leadership, and the craft of building software.

They are meant to be read the same way many of us start the day:

with a cup of coffee and a few minutes to think.

Last Sips

Coffee doesn’t solve every problem.

But it does create a small pause in the day.

A moment to step back.

To think about the craft.

And sometimes those quiet minutes between the first sip and the last produce the ideas that improve the systems we build.

Sometimes the best thinking in software development doesn’t happen during the chaos.

It happens just before it.

Built one cup at a time.

 The RPG Blend

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