Last week I watched a developer spend three weeks configuring a Next.js app with TypeScript, ESLint, Prettier, Husky, and about seventeen other tools before writing a single line of actual business logic.
Three weeks. Configuring.
Meanwhile, I built and shipped a complete client CRM system in 90 minutes using Astro and Django.
The difference? I chose boring technology. He chose what everyone on Twitter was excited about.
This is where it gets expensive. Every hour I spend fighting my framework is an hour I’m not shipping features that win clients.
I’m Not Making Technology Decisions. I’m Choosing Where to Spend My Cognitive Load.
Here’s what I’ve learned: every framework choice is actually a decision about where my brain will struggle.
- The Latest JavaScript Framework: I spend 60% of my time fighting build tools, 30% updating dependencies, 10% building features
- Boring Technology: I spend 10% on setup, 90% building features that actually make money
The AI has seen Django implemented thousands of times. It knows exactly how it works. When I say “Build me a HubSpot-style CRM in Django”, Claude Code doesn’t need to figure out architecture patterns or debug framework quirks.
It just builds.
That’s my entire competitive advantage.
In This Issue
- Why “boring” technology is actually the most revolutionary choice - The paradox I missed for years
- The cognitive load trap modern frameworks create - And how it killed my velocity
- Real numbers: My Django vs React build times - 90 minutes vs 3 weeks for the same CRM
- How AI changed my tech stack decisions - Pattern recognition beats configuration complexity
- The £120k platform I built on “outdated” technology - Proof boring wins
The Modern JavaScript Trap
Here’s what actually happened when I chose the “exciting” stack:
Week 1: Set up TypeScript, configure build tools, debate folder structure
Week 2: Add state management, set up testing (that I never run), configure CI/CD
Week 3: Fight with package conflicts, update dependencies that broke overnight
Week 4: Still haven’t deployed anything that makes money
I’ve watched this pattern destroy my projects that should have shipped in days.
And here’s the thing: I thought I was being professional by choosing modern tools. I was actually just choosing expensive cognitive load over revenue.
My Boring Technology Advantage
My stack:
- Astro - Static site generator (boring, fast, works)
- Django - Web framework from 2005 (boring, stable, documented)
- SQLite/PostgreSQL - Databases older than most frameworks (boring, reliable, proven)
- Tailwind CSS - Utility classes (boring, no build complexity)
Why this wins for me:
1. AI Pattern Recognition
The AI has seen Django millions of times in its training data. Every common pattern is already learned. When I say “Build me authentication like Stripe”, it knows exactly what that means in Django.
In the latest JavaScript framework? The AI is guessing based on partial documentation and beta patterns from six months ago.
2. Cognitive Load Elimination
Django’s “batteries included” philosophy means decisions are already made. No debates about which state management library to use. No bikeshedding over build configurations.
My brain is free to think about business logic, not tooling wars.
3. Deploy Velocity
- Astro: Static HTML files. I upload anywhere. Works forever.
- Django: One command deployment. No container orchestration required.
- Modern JS stack: 47 environment variables, 12 services, Docker compose files, prayer
This is where it gets expensive. Every complexity layer is another place my deployment can fail at 2am.
I built this with boring technology:
- Django backend handling my 9 active clients
- 706+ invoices I’ve tracked
- Complete SEO intelligence system
- 4-source data integration
- Email campaign management
- Financial tracking and P&L
My build time with boring tech: 6 months to full platform
Estimated time with modern JS stack: Still configuring TypeScript
This isn’t theory. This is my actual business platform managing real client revenue.
The AI Native Insight
This is where pattern recognition changed everything for me.
Modern Framework:
- I say: “Build a user authentication system”
- AI generates code based on latest documentation (maybe outdated)
- I spend hours debugging framework-specific issues
- I’m fighting configuration, not building features
Boring Technology:
- I say: “Build Stripe-style authentication”
- AI recognises the pattern from millions of examples
- Code works immediately because patterns are proven
- I’m building features, not debugging tools
The framework doesn’t matter. The AI’s training on that framework matters.
Django has 20 years of Stack Overflow answers, tutorials, and production code in the training data. That latest framework has blog posts and beta documentation.
Why This Feels Wrong (But Isn’t)
My developer brain says: “But the new framework has better DX!”
My reality check:
- Better DX = More abstractions I need to learn
- More abstractions = More places for AI to misunderstand
- More misunderstanding = More time I spend debugging, not building
The “worse” developer experience with boring tech is actually faster for my AI-assisted development because the patterns are proven and recognised.
Nobody on Twitter is talking about this because they’re too busy arguing about which state management library has the cleanest API.
My Competitive Advantage
While everyone else is:
- Configuring build pipelines
- Updating breaking dependencies
- Debugging framework quirks
- Waiting for “the ecosystem to mature”
I’m:
- Shipping features
- Winning clients
- Building revenue
- Deploying working software
My boring technology + AI assistance = 40x velocity advantage
Not because the technology is faster. Because I’m not fighting it.
That’s the entire game.
Try This Tomorrow
Next time you start a project, ask yourself:
Modern Framework Decision:
“What’s the coolest stack I can use?”
My Boring Technology Decision:
“What stack has the AI seen most in production?”
Then test it:
- Pick a feature - User authentication, payment processing, anything
- Ask Claude Code to build it in Django - Note your time and quality
- Ask Claude Code to build it in [Latest Framework] - Note your debugging time
- Compare - Which got you to deployed feature faster?
The answer will surprise you.
You’ll know it worked when you’re shipping features while others are still configuring ESLint.
The Revolution Nobody Talks About
Everyone’s chasing the new framework.
The real revolution is AI making boring technology 40x more productive than complex modern stacks for me.
Django isn’t outdated. It’s optimally documented for AI pattern recognition.
Astro isn’t simple. It’s efficiently understood by AI training data.
Boring technology wins because the AI has seen it win thousands of times before.
The next time someone tells me Django is “legacy”, I remember: legacy means proven. Legacy means the AI knows every pattern. Legacy means I ship in hours, not weeks.
That’s not a disadvantage. That’s my entire competitive moat.
P.S. Next week: Why “Build me a HubSpot Lite” delivers more than 50 functional requirements ever could (the client conversation pattern that wins proposals).
P.P.S. Want the complete boring technology stack setup? Reply with “BORING” and I’ll send you the exact Django + Astro configuration that built my £120k platform.