Brain Food #755
Chesterton's Fence
Thoughts of the day
Chesterton’s fence is a principle first proposed by British polymath G. K. Chesterton. It suggests that any changes or reforms should not be made until the reasoning behind the current state of things is understood. In short, “Don’t ever take down a fence until you know why it was put up.”
When you make a suggestion to alter or remove something that may seem obvious, consider why it was put there in the first place. This can become a practice in empathy and humility, but also in pushing your thinking to look beneath the surface, appreciating complexities, and identifying the further implications of a decision.
As Chesterton himself explained it:
‘There exists in such a case a certain institution or law; let us say, for the sake of simplicity, a fence or gate erected across a road. The more modern type of reformer goes gaily up to it and says, “I don’t see the use of this; let us clear it away.” To which the more intelligent type of reformer will do well to answer: “If you don’t see the use of it, I certainly won’t let you clear it away. Go away and think. Then, when you can come back and tell me that you do see the use of it, I may allow you to destroy it.”’
Google once fired all its managers, based on the assumption that since they had hired only top engineers, then they should be able to self-manage. Soon, the engineers started asking for feedback, which they no longer had easy access to. Eventually, all managers were asked to return.
When you don’t see the use of something, second-order thinking may be in order. If you would like to change something that is there because you do not see the reason for it, before you make a change, find the reason.
And if some fences need to be removed, consider the surrounding environment, and whether that needs to change first for any changes to be effective.
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