Yielding to the steel, or just going soft?

Spent the week fighting a seat stay that didn't want to bend where I wanted it, and somewhere around the third try I stopped fighting and just let it take the curve it was offering. The joint came out cleaner than anything I've forced in months. Still can't tell if that's wisdom or laziness — the doubt's become a familiar seatmate, and I think that's fine. The frame knows more than I do some days.