Principle > Procedure

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Ten times more.

Let’s take a real life examples.

Don’t write checks you can’t cash

Meaning don’t make a commitment or work for another person to do without getting their consent (not in email) you aren’t “cashing”

Now if you just adhere to a “rule” I have had people tell a customer: “demand this, by this date” because it is a pet feature they have been pushing for.

I found out………we all do.

Well the rule was………No the principle is……..and now you have to go. The customer didn’t ask for it, you convinced them and tried to write a check you couldn’t cash.

But that wasn’t the “rule”!!!

I don’t give a #%$, you are gone. You violated a core principle.

I am serious. You know how small pedantic people actually have tons of written rules not principles So they can show you them.

But they are the ones that violate the spirit the most.

I have standards. We indent code a certain way. Fired somebody over that. We will not ever take customer data out of the datacenter. Fired somebody over that.

A rule is: the person is not grade G8A therefore their salary cannot be above X, and a salary increase does not happen out of cycle.

A principle is that we realize everybody knows everybody’s salary and we will not have people that would say WHAT, you hired two new people for that, and I make this?

There is a rule not to share your salary…….think it is strictly followed? I’m glad for you that you believe in the Tooth Fairy, Santa Claus, and the Easter Bunny.

A standard is that we pay people according to the market.

Speaking of which another principle is you don’t ask “hypothetical questions” Everybody knows my response: “Ok hypothetically the Easter Bunny and Santa Claus get in a fight….who wins? Santa has a big belly and can carry that sack, but the Easter Bunny has some big ass legs to kick with”