I don't program because I enjoy it (I don't), I program because our lives are ruled by computers and I, the human, refuse to suffer machine's rules. Every piece of code I write is meant to solve a real-life problem outside of computers. I work with computers, not for computers. I'm not a technophile, and I'm very cautious with what people call "progress".
The best solutions are the simplest, the best tools are the simplest, the best life is the simplest. If simple tools can't accomodate your workflow, your workflow is probably to blame, not the tools.
Technology that escapes our understanding is technology that controls us ; this is unacceptable. Thus programming is political.
Design is a task that starts on paper with a properly-defined use case for a properly-defined user. Coding happens last. Code editors should not be opened until the problem(s) and the solution(s) are all laid out on paper. If no use case, then no problem, then no solution, then no coding, then enjoy mojitos and sunsets on the beach, and give some rest to your eyes away from LED panels.
A well-managed project is one that incurs less work as time goes by. If you find yourself with an increasing amount of work, question your project management. Clever people are lazy. Being lazy means working less, then tiring less, and therefore working with a clearer mind and an healthier body: all that leads to better quality of work. Being lazy also promotes minimalism which helps maintainability and keeps the overhead low. This makes for long-term sanity of the projects.
I'm trained as a classical pianist and in Newtonian physics, with mechanical engineering applications (metrology, thermodynamics, structural calculations & design). I have authored a thermodynamics computational Python library (proprietary software), a perceptual color space (darktable UCS 22) and many color manipulation algorithms. I enjoy clean maths that simulate, predict and revert physical processes through numerical computations.
I find myself completely overwhelmed by the crazy modern life and the unreasonable number of variables and things we have to handle in a typical day, which is why I try to get things under control by relying on the least amount of techs and tools, and minimizing the daily overhead.
I teach photo editing by constantly looping between artistic and technical aspects, and I firmly believe what my piano teachers repeated : technics are there only to serve artistic intent. Both are important, but one is the goal and the other is only the mean. Direct interaction with users is what drives my design in image processing matters.