Mike Bifulco

## I found this bug on an invoice I shipped this one, and I didn't catch it in code review, in staging, or in production monitoring.

## Why LLMs don't know the current date Your favorite LLM doesn't have any way of knowing what time it is.

## The Big Idea At some point, a successful prototype changes jobs.

# The Big Idea Being wrong is unavoidable.

## The Big Idea "You are not your user" is fundamentally good advice.

## Part 2: A Slightly Smarter Wrap In the last post, we talked about `text-wrap: balance` and how it makes headings feel cleaner and easier to read.

## The Big Idea AI makes it easier than ever to build something that feels like it works.

## The Big Idea Your brain rewires itself based on what you practice.

## The Big Idea Becoming a great product builder means falling in love with the process of building and rebuilding. --- I have always felt like I'm somewhere between the before photo and the after photo.

## The Big Idea Stable products still need maintenance.

## A quiet problem I almost missed I got one of those automated emails from Vercel that made me stop and read it twice.

## The Big idea This year, my work shifted from "write code" to "orchestrate systems."

## The Big Idea Most habits don't fall apart because people quit.

## The Big Idea What if sleeping a little better, moving a little more, and finding a sense of purpose could measurably change your life?

## The Big Idea The best product ideas hide in plain sight, in your habits and everyone else's.

## The Big Idea Every message is a moment of influence.

## The Big Idea Open source works best when we treat each other like humans - not vending machines for bug fixes. ## How We Patched a Broken Package - and What It Taught Us Recently at [Craftwork](https://craftwork.com), we hit a snag using the [@payloadc…

## Introduction Sometimes a third-party package breaks, and you can't wait for a PR to make its way into a release.

## The Big Idea When providing accurate context is make-or-break for your workflow, everyone needs to become a better writer.

## The Big Idea Software has always required people to think like a computer.

## The Big Idea Good design is universal - no matter what you're building. ## Back to Basics Dieter Rams is the legendary German industrial designer behind Braun’s iconic products from 1955 to 1997(!).

## The Big Idea Design success is measured in signals that show whether people actually achieved what they came to do. ## Clicks Aren't the Problem When it comes to design success, clicks aren't the problem - they're just a symptom you'll hear about when…

## The Big Idea **"Too many clicks" isn’t the problem.** It's a _signal_ that your design isn't getting the job done.

## The Big Idea By using a bit of math called the **optimal stopping problem**, you’ll learn exactly when to stop second-guessing yourself, and start making confident decisions, whether you’re choosing features, hiring teammates, or testing new ideas. ##…

My first product launch was a disaster.

## The Big idea Your Computer Science Degree, MBA, or Law Degree is a great thing, but don't get it twisted: history-making innovations come from all areas of study. ## Public Education: Are we really debating this?

## The Big Idea LLMs and vibe coding tools are most powerful when they're used an an extension of your brain - not a replacement for it.

## The Quiet Room Problem You’ve probably been in a meeting where something felt off.

## The Big Idea The way you get your work done has a direct impact on how well it gets done, especially when working with teams on problems of increasing complexity.

## The Big Idea Open source is an open invitation to plug into a global braintrust of brilliant people building the future.

## The Big Idea The secret sauce of successful AI prompts is out in the open, and comes down to job, context, capabilities, constraints, and flavor.

# The Big Idea It's not divine intervention; it's just someone who did a damn good job.

## The Big Idea Brought to you by Paddle Opportunities don't "just happen" - they come from staying connected, helping others generously, and trusting your instincts when the right path shows up. ## Serendipity isn't magic Opportunities don't "just happen"

## The Big Idea Brought to you by Paddle **Freedom builds trust.** People don’t want to feel trapped by the products they use.

## The Big Idea When the world feels shaky, your steadiness matters more than ever.

## The Big Idea The best developer tools make you faster and make you look good.

## The Big Idea Starting is harder than it looks.

## The Big Idea Ideas are easy, but focus and execution are hard.

## The Big Idea Your first product version needs to be smaller than you think.

## The Big Idea Look around you.

## The Big Idea LLM tools like ChatGPT, Copilot, and Cursor are great at helping you build, but they are a second brain - not a first one.

## The Big Idea Talking to AI is a lot like talking to people... except for all the ways that it isn't.

## The Big Idea Smart engineers always seem to know what's coming next.

## The Big idea The right tools don't just save time-they amplify your focus and flow, making it easier to do your best work.

## The Big Idea When you carve out focused time for your work, you're making a statement.

## The Big Idea Building products and teams successfully relies on your ability to build meaningful relationships; making a habit of introducing interesting people to each other is a great way to seed serendipity. ## Build Meaningful Relationships Building

## The Big Idea Your inbox is a tool-learn to use it to stay focused, organized, and in control of your time. ## Did you get my email?

## The Big Idea Reflection fuels growth.

## A Quick Win with text-wrap: balance Here's a ludicrously simple tip to make your website more readable: use the `text-wrap: balance` CSS property.

## My writing workflow I have worked diligently to develop a writing workflow that keeps me productive and focused on writing, rather than getting hung up on the tools I use to write. ### A little about me I'm Mike Bifulco, a software engineer and designe…