A reflection on the trap of over-engineering through feature addition, using the author's own experience building Strictland, a contract testing library. While designing file storage and grouping strategies for message schema snapshots, the author fell into the classic trap of imagining too many configuration options. After a self-imposed sanity check, they stripped the feature set down to a single opinionated layout, which paradoxically unlocked a cleaner design — a Contract Registry — and opened doors to more meaningful future features. The post distills two rules: adding imaginary features subtracts real value, and subtracting imaginary features adds real value. A practical six-step framework is offered: generate ideas, evaluate tradeoffs, define solutions, stop and rethink, subtract aggressively, then ship and gather feedback.
