Discretion has gotten a bad reputation in the economics profession, in part because of a too-literal interpretation of the contributions of the two newest Nobel laureates. The effective use of discretion - the ability to deviate from the programmatic pursuit of a fixed goal - is only granted to central bankers when the public is confident that the opportunity will not be misused.
As I reflect on my observation of central banking over the years, my impression is that policymakers these days are taking account of a broader array of potential outcomes than in the past. Policy seems more frequently to be deviating a bit from a stance that is calculated only to maximize the odds of achieving a specific, numerical, economic goal.