[samdjstephens]

If you follow the authors advice to its logical conclusion then all changes to the code base are narrowly focussed tweaks - where does the longer term thinking come into this?

If I’m implementing a new feature, should I also disregard the need for refactoring?

A more nuanced approach is needed. You need to learn when to make changes additively and when to reshape the code to fit your new use case (and how much reshaping is required).

As an aside: I think tech debt sprints (if needed regularly) are often a sign that you aren’t developing software sustainably day to day.

[h3ctic]

I disagree, if you realize: "we need to refactor this file/module/class/etc." then it becomes a new task. Or more general, "we need to refactor the organically grown architecture": it's a new task. Working on a task should not prohibit your thinking about additional tasks, just add them to the backlog.