> All the lead wanted was a single private variable placed in the class and the amount of effort it took to get that accomplished was a multiple day discussion.

Sounds like the kind of environment I used to work in. Team lead would specify the exact changes he wanted to see in the code, sometimes literally attaching marked-up screenshots in JIRA.

I would typically not argue, but I left to consult independently partly due to this experience. Knowing the diff to achieve the desired effect is literally what my job is about; if you have the solution, why not go ahead and commit the changes yourself? It gave an impression that my purpose was primarily to be… a teammate, justifying that guy’s title as a team lead.

That said, I was getting paid for that work still—an hourly rate that would be generous for a glorified typist. I struggle to come up with a logical explanation of why it left such an unpleasant residue.