Before you break a rule, first seek to understand what caused that rule to be created

Rules and procedures don’t get created arbitrarily. They’re usually created to prevent unwanted behavior, or to ensure something gets done a certain way in order to mitigate risks and prevent harm that might otherwise occur when work is done “incorrectly”.

For a rule to come into effect, somebody has to go through the effort of defining it and getting it approved by the organization’s leadership, a group’s moderator or a country’s government.

If you find yourself tempted to act in a way which violates the rules, keep in mind these scenarios, implications and consequences.

The rule is incorrect

It’s entirely possible for a rule to be wrong, possibly because it is based on incorrect assumptions or simply because the environment has changed since it was originally created.

In this case, I suggest you challenge the rule with the person or institution which created it as it can be hard for executive management, compliance, and/or safety professionals to have a completely accurate picture of everyday, real-world scenarios. These people need to made aware of practical concerns and shortcomings with rules so that they may be updated or even removed entirely.

Doing this helps combat a culture of useless bureaucracy and safety theater. Other reasons to challenge such rules are that bad rules help suppress minorities and vulnerable people and rules and procedures are often used to legitimize scapegoats.

The key take-away here is that when you allow bad rules to remain in place, you run the risk of letting a normalization of deviance take root.

The rule does not apply

It’s possible for a rule to be valid and sensible, but within a different context rather than your current situation.

In this case, as with the case above, consider giving this feedback to the original creator. Have it incorporated in the description or construction of the rule so that it becomes more representative of the real-world scenario you just encountered.

Your understanding is incorrect

Lastly, you might think the rule is bad or wrong based on a lack of understanding or incorrect assumptions on your part.

By educating yourself on why a rule was created, you will likely identify and correct these gaps in your knowledge. This may lead you to recognize the value and validity of the rule you were looking to break.