🦍 Stupid Rules 🤯

There’s a tale of gorillas in a cage. Bananas are placed atop a ladder, yet every time a gorilla attempts the climb, ALL the gorillas get drenched in cold water 🧊. Soon, they give up on the ladder.

Enter a new gorilla, replacing an existing one. Unfamiliar with the chilly consequence, as it approaches the ladder, the others, fearing the impending cold, pull him down and prevent him from climbing. This repeats, with all original gorillas eventually replaced. But the pattern remains. Every gorilla (none of whom has faced the cold water) prevents the newest from trying.

(Note: The authenticity of this experiment is undetermined, but the lesson is interesting regardless.)

Reflect on your organization now.

Ever wondered why certain rules or processes exist? Like not making releases on Tuesdays or seeking Ted’s nod for a new load balancer?

If you’ve read “The Goal” you already know.

Constraints force rules or processes into being. Maybe releases on Tuesdays caused chaos because everyone was preoccupied with the planning meetings. The resource constraint created the rule.

It therefore follows that if the constraint were to be removed, the rule should be re-evaluated as it’s quite likely it no longer has a purpose.

Sounds pretty simple, so, periodically revisit your processes:

👉 Make sure everyone knows why they exist.
👉 Verify they are still furthering your organizations goals.

PS. Don’t keep hungry gorillas in a cage and spray them with water. They deserve better.