I like this framing!

One analogy I'd make is alternating periods of

    - "grinding through tests", making them green, and 
    - deep design work (ideas often come in the shower, or on a bicycle)

On the other hand, you can't just dream up a great design and implement it. You need to grind through the tests to know what the constraints are, and what your goal is! (it often changes)

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So one way I'd picture programming is "alternating golfing and rowing" ... golfing is like looking 100 yards away, and trying your best to predict how to hit that spot. If you can hit it accurately, then you can save yourself a lot of rowing !!

Rowing is doing all the work to actually get there, and to do it well