1 Problem, 3 engineers, 3 proper solutions
Which do we go with?
The one that all 3 can see end to end
Otherwise we need a 4th solution
…One that all 3 can see end to end

In my opinion the best solution is what can be seen by everyone involved. Meaning it can be conveyed, understood, implemented, iterated on and shipped by any single individual on the team.

This enables ownership on all levels, proper coordination without a single mastermind, movement as one body. This is the moment of leveraging the power of the entire team.

I find these solutions have the strongest staying power, are likely to be accurately estimated, and most importantly - are actually fun to work on.

The difficult (and my favorite) part often isn’t in finding a solution, nor in choosing one, it’s the beautifully human part of determining if everyone can see the whole picture and moving towards clarity when it isn’t the case.