The difference between rules and principles
I’ve written before about the importance of defining your core principles, the need for them to be consistent externally and internally with your strategy, and living them through actions, not words. Don’t get me wrong - sainthood is not realistic for most of us - but on the whole, most of us aspire to live up to our principles, even if occasionally we forget ourselves.
Rules, however, are a wholly different concept. Principles are how we live; rules are technical constructs to be obeyed (or disobeyed). Too often, people try to enshrine principles as rules (update: or is that the other way round?), or worse, suborn principles through ill-conceived, contradictory or just plain dishonest rules.
David Maister, renowned author of ‘Managing the Professional Service Firm‘, picked out this titbit from ‘How: Why How We Do Anything Means Everything…in Business (and in Life)‘ by Dov Seidman:
The Problem With Rules (as opposed to Values or Principles)
- Rules are external: made by others
- We are ambivalent about rules (we like breaking them)
- Rules are reactive to past events
- Rules are both over- and under-inclusive (they are proxies, not precise)
- Proliferation of rules is a tax on the system
- Rules are typically prohibitions
- Rules require enforcement
- Rules speak to boundaries and floors, but create ceilings
- The only way to honor rules is to obey them exactly
- Too many rules breeds over-reliance
July 4th, 2007 at 1:56 am
Why does e veryone think I have a toupee? I gotta get myself some new photos (or muss up my hair a little.)
July 5th, 2007 at 12:47 pm
I want cash not wine!
July 6th, 2007 at 7:40 pm
Given your bullish outlook on soft commodities, DPF, wine is a good deal!