Economic honesty
"This is all fucking insane but I have a mortgage."
The tech industry runs on a simple dynamic: most people know the current trends are varying degrees of insane, but economic leverage determines intellectual freedom. Until you have "fuck you" money, you nod along with "AI will revolutionize everything" while quietly building actual useful tools.
This is for everyone who's ever sat in a meeting thinking "this is completely insane" while nodding because they need health insurance.
The meta layer
Even this observation gets commodified. The critique of capitalism becomes a product (satirical merch, anyone?). We're simultaneously victims and perpetrators. That's not hypocrisy - it's just the water we swim in.
Acknowledging economic constraints isn't defeat. It's starting from reality instead of pretending you're operating from some principled high ground that doesn't exist.
What this changes
Career decisions - What can you actually afford to say publicly?
Tool choices - Local-first matters more when cloud subscriptions stack up
Side projects - Build escape routes, not just passion projects
Community - Target systems, not individuals trapped in them