Aneesh Sathe<p><strong>Hack, Hacky, Hacker</strong></p><p>A few days ago I wrote about the beauty of <a href="https://aneeshsathe.com/2025/07/15/divine-documentation/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">great documentation</a>; this is the evil twin post.</p><p>The spectrum of meaning across the words <em>hack, hacky, and hacker</em> form a horseshoe when thinking about postures toward life. On either ends are the most difficult options. Being either a hack or a hacker requires dedication and both approaches narrow your world. Being hacky, taking imperfect shortcuts, in the world is immensely satisfying. It is play disguised as problem solving. </p><a href="https://aneeshsathe.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/image-from-rawpixel-id-8899456-original.jpg" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank"></a>Fox by Arnold Peter Weisz Kubincan. Original public domain image from <a href="https://www.webumenia.sk/en/dielo/SVK:SNG.K_947" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Web umenia</a><p>A successful hack takes tremendous effort and dedication just to pretend to be great at something. Humans are great at spotting and discarding hacks. It takes a true master to fool a large enough population and build financial columns under the smoke. Being a hack is constant desperation, there is no play. It is no way to live. </p><p>On the other end of the same horseshoe as the hack, is hacking. Here, you are actually achieving something difficult enough to require mastery. “Playfully doing something difficult, whether useful or not, that is hacking.” says <a href="https://stallman.org/articles/on-hacking.html" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Richard Stallman</a>. Now, I’m all for the playful, the difficult, and the useful, but not the “or not”. At minimum hacking should be in service of a prank. Doing things <em>just because</em> is like felling a tree in a forest when no one is around. At least a jump scare is a <em>sine qua non </em>(<a href="https://aneeshsathe.com/2025/07/16/a-good-dictionary/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">the dictionary </a>is working :P). </p><p>Most systems, especially computers are designed by people for people like you and me who are neither very bright nor very invested in the thing. We want to not have the problem. You can always walk away but that is neither fun, nor useful, and certainly not hard. My favored way is to take the <a href="https://www.bldgblog.com/2010/01/nakatomi-space/" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Nakatomi Tunnel</a> through problems. Be hacky. Try enough approaches, push buttons that may do the thing you want until the alignment is just so and you slip through. Effectiveness here = solving many real-world problems quickly while preserving playful momentum.</p><p>I want to draw a distinction here from the oversubscribed idea of <em>jugaad</em>. <em>Jugaad</em> was <a href="https://hbr.org/2010/01/jugaad-a-new-growth-formula-fo" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">once framed</a> as creative improvisation. It is not. I do not care for <em>jugaad.</em> To make something substandard and expect people to accept it is no way to be in the world. Build good stuff, be hacky route through the small issues.</p><p>A hacky mindset is a foxy mindset and not just in the <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_PVjcIO4MT4" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank">Hendrix way</a>. The Hedgehog and the Fox is a great essay by Isaiah Berlin where he talks about the two kinds of people in the world. Hedgehogs, are great at one big thing. Foxes are mediocre at many things. Foxes thrive on lateral moves and opportunistic shortcuts, you know, hackiness. The hacky, foxy approach to life is more my style. </p><p>Breadth, speed, and joy beat fakery and fixation every time</p><p><a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://aneeshsathe.com/tag/business/" target="_blank">#Business</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://aneeshsathe.com/tag/creativity/" target="_blank">#Creativity</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://aneeshsathe.com/tag/fox-vs-hedgehog/" target="_blank">#foxVsHedgehog</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://aneeshsathe.com/tag/hacker-culture/" target="_blank">#hackerCulture</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://aneeshsathe.com/tag/hacking/" target="_blank">#Hacking</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://aneeshsathe.com/tag/hacky-mindset/" target="_blank">#hackyMindset</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://aneeshsathe.com/tag/isaiah-berlin/" target="_blank">#IsaiahBerlin</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://aneeshsathe.com/tag/leadership/" target="_blank">#Leadership</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://aneeshsathe.com/tag/life-design/" target="_blank">#lifeDesign</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://aneeshsathe.com/tag/nakatomi-tunnel/" target="_blank">#NakatomiTunnel</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://aneeshsathe.com/tag/philosophy/" target="_blank">#philosophy</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://aneeshsathe.com/tag/playful-productivity/" target="_blank">#playfulProductivity</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://aneeshsathe.com/tag/problem-solving/" target="_blank">#problemSolving</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://aneeshsathe.com/tag/richard-stallman/" target="_blank">#RichardStallman</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://aneeshsathe.com/tag/shortcuts/" target="_blank">#shortcuts</a> <a rel="nofollow noopener" class="hashtag u-tag u-category" href="https://aneeshsathe.com/tag/tech-philosophy/" target="_blank">#techPhilosophy</a></p>