It is possible (likely!) that some of that code was written because of some weird Python behavior or to handle an edge case from a buggy external API or some od

It is possible (likely!) that some of that code was written because of some weird Python behavior or to handle an edge case from a buggy external API or some odd behavior from another internal system. If that code is in there without at least a comment mentioning that, then you have bigger problems than handling people's egos. This kind of thing is precisely what comments are for. I do advocate "if you want a change, write some code and make the change." But a wikipedia-style edit war between programmers' egos is also not productive. False dichotomy. In the context of a business, "creativity" can and should mean "creative ideas that have the potential make more money." It is unfair to ask someone to pay you a salary for unbridled side-project creativity; that is what your disposable income is for! Tell that to people who came up with 15% "innovation time" at 3M and 20% at Google. Of course, Google's 20% got subverted as far as I've heard, but that's a completely different topic. The point is that creativity should be exercised at the right time, in the right place and in a right degree. I'd suggest, then, that this list is relevant for anyone trying to make money, because that always entails working with some other person (fellow programmer, business partner, customer) and that can only happen when you have a harmonious relationship with - and are willing to bend a little - for these people. This has nothing to do with making money. It has to do with your project being successful or not. It has to do with people on your team being reasonable most of the time and having a good manager (or something equivalent) the rest of the time. Having said all that, "Don't rewrite code without consultation" should be a no-brainer. Not necessarily for Jeff's reason, but because if it's someone else's code, chances are that there might be something you don't understand about it; on the other hand, if it's your code, there might be someone using it and your rewrite could break it for them. Checking this stuff is usually a good idea.