B***sh*t rules
are ruining your life
I have to credit Vishen Lakhiani of MindValley with creating the word “brules” as a shorthand for b***sh*t rules.
Brules are “rules” that are not written or are contradictory — but in any case impose restrictions on our perceived freedom and mental health. I say “perceived freedom” because breaking these rules has no actual penalty.
Here’s a brule: don’t write sucky content.
Seriously? Who starts off writing amazing content? Steven King has a huge rejection stack and as a benchmark he’s pretty good.
A better rule would be: write content, it may suck, so what? you need the practice and over time you will improve.
Another brule: don’t move the furniture.
Why not? What if it’s a hazard? What if it’s useless where it is but moved would be useful? What if you want to see a sunset?
A better rule: feel free to move the furniture — and please put it back where it was when you are done.
My favorite brule is: don’t make mistakes.
That is the dumbest brule ever. Do you have any idea how many mistakes Amazon, Walmart, Alex Hormozi, and PitBull make on a daily basis? They have institutionalized mistakes as a learning tool and ultimately a revenue driver. We can learn from them.
A better rule: you learn faster by making mistakes. Use the scientific method, see every action as an experiment, there are no mistakes, only learning.
What’s the brule that messes you up?
Bill spent 20+ years running software teams in Silicon Valley. His teams consistently delivered “impossible” results, had almost zero churn, and were highly engaged. He was constantly breaking “brules”. Learn more about his leadership work at https://40pb.com
What’s a brule that’s holding you back at work?