So, lately, you can't scroll through tech Twitter or open certain newsletters without bumping into this whole "taste" conversation. Now everyone feels qualified to draw a line in the sand and tell you who has taste -- and guess what? They're always conveniently standing on the "has taste" side. Let's talk about the Rick Rubin thing for a second (an example tech bros bring up every single time). Yes, he's a legendary [record producer](tab:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Record_producer). He listens, gives feedback, and helps shape work. Sometimes that leads to magic; other times, not so much. Take Eminem's *Revival* album, for example -- Rubin was the main executive producer, and that record got torn apart by critics. That's not a knock on Rubin, it's just reality: even great collaborators don't always strike gold. But turning his process into *the* definition of taste - and then assuming that admiring it means *you* now possess elite creative intuition? That's not insight. That's cosplay. And here's the kicker: This whole obsession is morphing into a new kind of gatekeeping. We used to talk about skills, experience, community. Now, some folks - yeah, especially in startup circles including YC bros -- are weaponizing "taste" like it's some proprietary software only they know how to run. It's giving strong "10x engineer" energy: vague, unprovable, and mostly useful for making other people feel inadequate. But here's the truth: everyone has taste. Seriously. You, me, the person scrolling next to you on the commute. Taste isn't some rare gem bestowed on a chosen few. It's personal. It's yours. We all vibe with different things -- that's what keeps culture alive. The weird thing happening in tech right now is pretending taste is objective, quantifiable, and, conveniently, something they have a monopoly on. They don't. And if someone tells you your taste doesn't count because it doesn't align with some curated, over-polished ideal they've built in their head? Push back. That's not about taste - that's about control. It's about narrowing the field so only a certain aesthetic, a certain worldview, a certain *type of person* gets to lead or be heard. You want a real moat for your work or your company? Make something useful. Make something beautiful. Be kind. Be honest. Let your weirdness show. Let your personal taste guide you, sure - but don't mistake taste itself as the thing that matters most. It's a compass, not a crown. Thanks for reading my not so tasteful blog post.