The essence of a good contribution

At its simplest, a good contribution is indistinguishable from the rest of the codebase.

You can probably write better standalone code.

You can use better abstractions.

But then your code will stand out as an outlier to the project.

The next person will either follow your new style, the existing style, or add their own.

The codebase will lose its coherence.

Coherence is key.

Coherence reduces cognitive load.

It makes your code readable.

When in Rome, do as the Romans do.