After thinking about this some, an instance that comes to my mind is when I questioned the implementing of a feature at work. While the feature had valid use cases, at the time it was asked to be implemented it would have caused questionable user experiences in some areas. While I didn’t outright say no, I talked to all the relevant parties and made my case that the feature should be implemented at a later date when all the user experience issues could be addressed. Everyone agreed and the feature has been put on hold until it can be completed fully.

As for my personal life, my wife and I have put off getting a dog since we still live in an apartment. While it would be great fun to have a dog, we feel that it wouldn’t be a good situation for the dog, since we don’t have a yard. We’ve said no for now and I think that is a good thing. It doesn’t put a dog in a difficult situation and it forces us to have some restraint and to not give in to instant gratification.

I think by saying no in these situations the world is a slightly better place.

…and the ironic thing is that it’s the customer, the ones that you designed that shiny new laser pointer for, that suffers from software regressions.

In what cases have you said no, either professionally or in your personal life, that resulted in the world being a better place?