At a glance
WHAT IT’S REALLY ABOUT
Good taste means high standards, humility, and user value creation
- Dalton frames taste as a strong internal barometer for what’s good, including an ethical dimension of not producing work you believe is harmful or bad.
- Michael distinguishes between an artistic notion of taste and a business/economic notion centered on positive-sum value generation for users.
- They argue that loudly claiming to have good taste is often evidence of the opposite, while true taste shows up in standards and restraint.
- Good taste is recognized in people who care deeply about what they release, would proudly attach their name to it, and ensure users get real value.
- They note that work can be meaningful as “art” even without user value, but businesses ultimately must create value for users to succeed.
IDEAS WORTH REMEMBERING
5 ideasGood taste is more than aesthetics—it’s an honest quality compass.
They define taste as the ability to evaluate work truthfully and avoid making things you “know in your heart are bad,” including work that harms or fails to help others.
In business, taste is inseparable from user value.
Michael emphasizes that beyond artistic preferences, a practical definition of taste asks whether what you’re doing is positive-sum and delivers value to the user.
Self-proclaimed “great taste” is a red flag.
They suggest that people who insist on their own taste often reveal insecurity or shallowness, whereas real taste tends to be demonstrated rather than advertised.
High standards are the clearest signal of good taste.
They point to creators who deeply care about what they release, maintain strong quality thresholds, and don’t ship work they wouldn’t be proud to sign.
Standing by your work isn’t enough if users get no value.
They draw a boundary between art (which can be self-justified) and business, where the ultimate test is whether the user actually benefits.
WORDS WORTH SAVING
5 quotesTaste just means having a strong barometer, having a strong compass of what is good and what is not good.
— Dalton
Anyone that insists what good taste they have… that’s how you spot the people that don’t have good taste.
— Dalton
To recognize great taste in other people… it’s people that have high standards.
— Dalton
If you stand by the work but you don’t care whether the user gets value, that’s art.
— Michael
At the end of the day, value has to be created to the user.
— Michael
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