About this quote

People argue about the 'right' method because they mistake certainty for competence. You can respect someone else's route while testing your own plainly and quickly. Ask yourself: which approach gives the result you need in this situation? If a way fails, change it fast. If it works, keep doing it and don't force others to copy you.

When to use it

• During a product architecture meeting where a teammate insists on a single pattern, you say, "Okay, you run your approach this sprint and I'll run mine next sprint, then we'll compare error rates and load."
• Before finals, when a classmate claims memorization is best, you say, "You have your way; I study by solving problems. We'll see whose score is higher on the practice exam."
• At the running club, your coach pushes intervals but you prefer steady miles, so you tell them, "Try your plan this month, I'll stick to mine, and we'll compare pace and how our legs feel in four weeks."
• During a parenting discussion about bedtimes, you tell your partner, "Let's try your schedule for two weeks and my schedule for two weeks, then watch how our child adjusts and sleep patterns change."