Taste is easy to talk about in a vague way. It gets more useful when it becomes a practice.
For me, that means going back to good work on purpose and paying closer attention every time. A record I missed pieces of the first time. A scene in a film that lands differently once I understand the restraint behind it. An outfit that looks simple until I notice the proportions are doing almost all of the work.
Preference is not enough
It is possible to like strong work and still make average decisions.
Practice is what closes that gap. Rewatching. Relistening. Re-reading. Looking long enough to notice what is carrying the weight and what is just decoration.
Why this matters outside art
Taste is not just for cultural opinions. It changes how you build, edit, dress, write, and decide what not to do.
It helps with software because it makes clutter easier to spot. It helps with writing because it makes filler harder to tolerate. It helps with style because it teaches restraint.
Better taste should make you calmer
The older I get, the less I want taste to mean showing people I know the right references.
I want it to make the work better.
That usually means being quieter, cutting harder, and trusting that the right details do not need to scream.